CP giving: 1.1% below last year
Year-to-date contributions through the Cooperative Program are 1.1 percent below the same time frame in 2005. As of Jan. 31, the year-to-date total of $65,872,491 for CP missions is $742,451 under the $66,614,942 received at the same point in 2005. For the month, receipts of $20,447,401 were 0.5 percent, or $104,444, above the $20,342,956 received in January 2005. Designated giving of $38,542,304 for the same year-to-date period is 2.5 percent, or $962,970, above gifts of $37,579,333 received at this point last year. The $27,952,975 in designated gifts received last month is $750,098 above the $27,202,877 received in January 2005, an increase of 2.7 percent. The Cooperative Program is Southern Baptists’ method of supporting missions and ministry efforts of state conventions and the Southern Baptist Convention.
Boehner elected majority leader
Republicans in the House of Representatives elected Rep. John Boehner of Ohio to be their majority leader Feb. 2. Boehner won a come-from-behind victory on the second ballot to replace Rep. Tom DeLay of Texas. He did so by defeating Roy Blunt of Missouri and John Shadegg of Arizona, two other members who, like him, have pro-life, conservative voting records. Boehner voted for the bill that was intended to save the life of Terri Schiavo, LifeNews.com reported, and he has voted against using government funds for embryonic stem cell research.
Online registration opens for SBC
Online registration for the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting in Greensboro, N.C., opened Feb. 1. Churches are able to register their messengers online at the SBC website, www.sbc.net, to avoid waiting at the counter upon arrival at the convention. Last year, the third year for the online service, 79 percent of messengers to the annual meeting in Nashville registered online, up from 57 percent for the 2004 annual meeting in Indianapolis. When registering online, the SBC website gives a church a “messenger reference number” form to be printed out and presented at the SBC registration booth.
Ministers Tax Guide released
Ministers can find additional help in preparing their 2005 federal income tax returns from GuideStone Financial Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention. The annual Ministers Tax Guide for 2005 Returns details recent changes to tax laws and their effect on ministers. An overview of the tax change highlights was written by Richard Hammar, a CPA, attorney and widely published author who specializes in legal and tax issues for ministers. The tax guide can be accessed in a computer PDF format by visiting the GuideStone website at www.GuideStone.org. Copies also can be obtained by calling customer service at 1-888-98-GUIDE.