Those of us who hold positions of responsibility in our churches will by now have started the difficult job of working out the impact of coronavirus on our churches’ finances. I am doing the same, and wondering what this will mean, both in the short to medium term and in the long run.
Like many, my church has a variety of income sources We are largely supported by donations, boosted by some letting and activity-based income. The donations are received both electronically and – to a somewhat lesser extent now – in cash. Many churches have suffered from cash not being collected, but we hope and pray that old-fashioned envelope giving will return when we can meet again. The loose plate cash and cancelled letting activity is money lost forever, which in my church means a 10-20% reduction in income.
In the medium to long term this will hopefully recover, but will we then suffer from reduced regular donations from people who have lost their jobs and perhaps fewer one-off gifts from those who remain in employment, but miss out on hitherto regularly-expected annual bonuses?
