Mennonite Church USA Executive Board has changed how it will divide donations directed to “Mennonite Church USA” among its agencies and affiliated Racial/Ethnic Council groups. This change only impacts donations under the denominational unified giving formula and not donations made to specific program agencies.
“The changes in the denominational unified giving formula were necessary to enable us to live into our Renewed Commitments and to address the evolving ministry needs of the denomination,” said MC USA Executive Director Glen Guyton.
Guyton noted that the denomination has experienced significant change in the last few years. “Many of our senior leaders are new, with fresh vision and strategies. We’ve also experienced shifts in the priorities of the denominational body, changes in agency programming, and new patterns of donor behavior,” he said.
For the current fiscal year ending July 31, 2023, the giving formula will designate a higher share of MC USA donations to MennoMedia, MC USA’s publishing agency. In MC USA’s recent denominational survey, 51% of respondents said that they used MennoMedia “often,” yet it received just 3% of the funds from the churchwide giving distribution.
“MennoMedia fills a unique need in our denomination by providing quality publications that support our Anabaptist Mennonite faith values,” said Guyton. “We need to invest more deeply in our publishing agency to ensure that we continue to develop these important resources,” he added.
Proposed changes for the fiscal year ending July 31, 2024, include another incremental increase in donation shares for MennoMedia (raising it to 11% overall), as well as increases for Mennonite Education Agency, African American Mennonite Association, Iglesia Menonita Hispana and Native Mennonite Ministries.
Mennonite Mission Network will continue to receive the largest share of denominational donations, with a proposed reduction from 66% to 51% over the next two years. The MC USA Executive Board’s share of 15% will remain the same. Please see the adjacent chart and pie graphs for more details.
Guyton noted that the discussions around the denominational giving formula were difficult but helpful in establishing a clear process for future updates. The new process examines the programming impact of the agency/entity, future ministry needs and fundraising capabilities, among other factors.
“Moving forward, we expect to have even greater collaboration among our agency leaders, particularly in fundraising,” Guyton said.
To donate using the denominational unified giving formula, please make checks payable to “Mennonite Church USA,” noting in the memo line “churchwide formula.” Mail checks to Mennonite Church USA, 718 N. Main Street, Newton, KS 67114. To support specific MC USA projects, such as our biennial convention and #BringThePeace, you can also give online at MennoniteUSA.org/give.
Mennonite Church USA is the largest Mennonite denomination in the United States with 16 conferences, approximately 550 congregations and 59,000 members. An Anabaptist Christian denomination, MC USA is part of Mennonite World Conference, a global faith family that includes churches in 59 countries. It has offices in Elkhart, Indiana, and Newton, Kansas. mennoniteUSA.org
By MC USA staff