Thur. 11-12-04 FreeGoodNews.com E-Letter No. 12
John 3:20-21 (Jesus Talking)
Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God."
Contents:
1. Response from last e-letter (Campus Crusade for Christ)
2. Plans on my next show
2. Plans on my next show
Hi friends-
Response from last e-letter (Campus Crusade for Christ). Some people were upset with me because of what I wrote about Campus Crusade for Christ. Although I mentioned that they did good work (and they do, remember I said that!), I was frustrated in trying to get their financial info. I mentioned that they may be "hiding" behind "church" rules ("Churches" don't need to file tax returns, but para-church organizations do).
I finally found out why they don't file a form 990 tax return (it was not easy to find out). I called the President's office at CCC, and spoke to the secretary. She called someone else, and was told that they don't have to file because their organization is too large. I let them know that that was not a valid legal reason. She transferred me to the person she talked to, and this person thought also that CCC was classified as a "church." She passed me on to the top guy, who told me the real answer, finally. They are a "religious order" (yes, they are also a para-church ministry). As a "religious order," they have their own training and missionaries. "Religious Orders" are exempt from reporting taxes, just like churches.
By the way, I just received an email to my question to them (I had submitted it to their website) about why they don't file a form 990, and it's answer is because they are a "church," which of course is an official "wrong" answer. I guess this just proves how most people, even the ministry workers, aren't aware of nonprofits and what a form 990. I guess I'm at the fore-front of showing people how they can be good stewards in checking out an organization's finances. If more people did this, we wouldn't be seeing the ridiculous extremes (in my view) that exist today in some "ministries."
Since CCC is classified this way, I guess there's no way to check their financials, beyond what they want to show in a sanitized report. It may be impossible to see what their executives make. Some say it is real low, but who knows? Billy Graham has a reputation for living modestly and with a low salary, but the truth is he was paid over $400,000 in the last form 990 his organization submitted. So I guess it's a faith issue.
Personally, the only reason I see for not submitting a form 990 is to withhold info for accountability. I don't think it takes any additional significant time to prepare-- they should have all the info already for their annual reports, etc. I think it's just a matter of disclosure, but that's me. Youth for Christ is a similar in operation to CCC, and they file form 990's. Maybe they don't know they don't have to, or maybe they want to. But when you see what the Youth for Christ directors make in pay, you'll feel sorry for them-- it's low. In fact, it's a motivator to want to support them!
I know the many missionaries (who raise their own support) working for Campus Crusade for Christ are also struggling financially. But this doesn't say anything about the Corporate exec's. As a donor, I'd like to know, and I prefer to give to those organizations who want to disclose form 990's. That's just my opinion, and something I think worth sharing.
Summary: The missionaries for CCC do good work, and desperately need your support. I'm just disappointed that CCC doesn't file a form 990, which they could if they wanted to (there's no law saying they can't, just that they don't need to, because of the classification that they chose to operate under).
Response from last e-letter (Campus Crusade for Christ). Some people were upset with me because of what I wrote about Campus Crusade for Christ. Although I mentioned that they did good work (and they do, remember I said that!), I was frustrated in trying to get their financial info. I mentioned that they may be "hiding" behind "church" rules ("Churches" don't need to file tax returns, but para-church organizations do).
I finally found out why they don't file a form 990 tax return (it was not easy to find out). I called the President's office at CCC, and spoke to the secretary. She called someone else, and was told that they don't have to file because their organization is too large. I let them know that that was not a valid legal reason. She transferred me to the person she talked to, and this person thought also that CCC was classified as a "church." She passed me on to the top guy, who told me the real answer, finally. They are a "religious order" (yes, they are also a para-church ministry). As a "religious order," they have their own training and missionaries. "Religious Orders" are exempt from reporting taxes, just like churches.
By the way, I just received an email to my question to them (I had submitted it to their website) about why they don't file a form 990, and it's answer is because they are a "church," which of course is an official "wrong" answer. I guess this just proves how most people, even the ministry workers, aren't aware of nonprofits and what a form 990. I guess I'm at the fore-front of showing people how they can be good stewards in checking out an organization's finances. If more people did this, we wouldn't be seeing the ridiculous extremes (in my view) that exist today in some "ministries."
Since CCC is classified this way, I guess there's no way to check their financials, beyond what they want to show in a sanitized report. It may be impossible to see what their executives make. Some say it is real low, but who knows? Billy Graham has a reputation for living modestly and with a low salary, but the truth is he was paid over $400,000 in the last form 990 his organization submitted. So I guess it's a faith issue.
Personally, the only reason I see for not submitting a form 990 is to withhold info for accountability. I don't think it takes any additional significant time to prepare-- they should have all the info already for their annual reports, etc. I think it's just a matter of disclosure, but that's me. Youth for Christ is a similar in operation to CCC, and they file form 990's. Maybe they don't know they don't have to, or maybe they want to. But when you see what the Youth for Christ directors make in pay, you'll feel sorry for them-- it's low. In fact, it's a motivator to want to support them!
I know the many missionaries (who raise their own support) working for Campus Crusade for Christ are also struggling financially. But this doesn't say anything about the Corporate exec's. As a donor, I'd like to know, and I prefer to give to those organizations who want to disclose form 990's. That's just my opinion, and something I think worth sharing.
Summary: The missionaries for CCC do good work, and desperately need your support. I'm just disappointed that CCC doesn't file a form 990, which they could if they wanted to (there's no law saying they can't, just that they don't need to, because of the classification that they chose to operate under).
Plans on my next show. I was arguing with my seminary professor this morning. It made me realize that I need to back up a notch on my "greed topic." I assumed we were all on the same page, and I could launch into some current-day examples of excessive compensation. But now I see that most people aren't aware of greed. I'm going to back-up and go over the many Scriptures and our Lord's teaching to establish the point that our culture is immersed in the love of money and "the finer things of life." I think our church culture has been successfully invaded by the love of money, from two sources:
1. Capitalism (deeply embedded into the minds of those in the USA)
1. Capitalism (deeply embedded into the minds of those in the USA)
2. The "Prosperity Gospel"
How much is too much for a minister? My (Leadership class) Professor says the amount doesn't matter; it's the heart that counts. The Bible doesn't say how much is too much. What about half a million dollars (like John Hagee)? That's too much. So where do you draw the line? I guess it just wasn't thought out... maybe my show will start people thinking about these things...
I hope to throw in a few modern examples, and again show others how to look up this information for themselves. Since looking into these form 990's, there are some organizations that have really turned me off (like "The Bible Answer Man"), and some others that have really impressed me (like "NW Medical Teams").
How much is too much for a minister? My (Leadership class) Professor says the amount doesn't matter; it's the heart that counts. The Bible doesn't say how much is too much. What about half a million dollars (like John Hagee)? That's too much. So where do you draw the line? I guess it just wasn't thought out... maybe my show will start people thinking about these things...
I hope to throw in a few modern examples, and again show others how to look up this information for themselves. Since looking into these form 990's, there are some organizations that have really turned me off (like "The Bible Answer Man"), and some others that have really impressed me (like "NW Medical Teams").
...Bernie
"Providing free materials for spiritual growth"
posted by FreeGoodNews.com | 2:08 PM
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