New Life Church; Declining Revenue

New Life Church in Colorado Springs has had to lay off dozens of employees in the wake of the Ted Haggard sex & drugs scandal. The church has experienced a 12 percent decline in contributions.

"The reality is, we ask our people to be faithful stewards of their money and living within their means. We have to do the same," Brendle said.

Ross Parsley, the church's interim senior pastor, said some positions will be consolidated, and volunteers could replace some paid staff.

The 14,000-member church had experienced 22 years of attendance and financial growth, [associate pastor Rob Brendle] said.

The article does not say if the decline in contributions accompanies a decrease in church attendance. It would not be surprising if people have fallen away in the wake of the scandal. In fact, it is probably to be expected.

There are many people who are drawn to religious denominations and entities based on the personal magentism of a pastor or evangelist. This is not, strictly speaking, a negative. Trouble arises when the personality of the church leader becomes or remains the only reason for people to attend. People are flawed creations. They succeed and they fail. They rise and they fall. Ted Haggard is one who fell. If church members were attending New Life purely because of his presence, they were attending for the wrong reasons. Christians are called to seek the presence of God. Anyone following a man, be he Ted Haggard or anyone else, is asking to be disappointed. It is difficult to think of how the church could have addressed the scandal any better. With the assistance of Pastor Larry Stockstill, the head of New Life's board of presbyters, they took decisive action with regard to Haggard. His actions were not enabled or covered up in any way. He was removed from his position of authority, and then from the church altogether. New Life's actions in this matter were admirable, and deserve to be seen as such.

Looking at it from the outside, laying off 44 people due to a 12 percent decline in contributions seems a bit disproportionate, but you can't fault New Life for seeking to be a faithful steward of what it has. By keeping its eyes on Christ, I am confident that New Life can weather this storm and come out stronger on the other end.

h/t Echidne