Wednesday, April 23, 2008

We've Hit the Blog-o-Sphere

Check out Andrew Thompson's comments on our proposal.

Living Wage Calculator

Nick brought to our attention a great website that puts this proposal in perspective and offers another way to figure our potential income. Here it is. Its a living wage calculator.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Agenda for 08-09 School Year

Our fledgling group met today to discuss what we needed to talk about next year. Here's what we came up with in the order that they came up (and not necessarily by order of priority):

1. Connection to other groups/movements (Order of St. Luke, Benedictines, Neo-monastics, UMW Monastery, etc.)
2. What to do with debt?
3. Roles (exploratory, novice, etc.)
4. What do with excess money?
5. How to navigate the boundary between hospitality and the parsonage?
6. What are the various forms of hospitality?
7. Should a rule or covenant be specific and detailed or broad and general?
8. What to do when a spouse doesn't "buy in"?
9. How to plan for children's colleges, emergencies, or big expenses?
10. What should an average budget look like?
11. Does the "minimum" conference salary have any room for negotiation? (i.e. more children, graduated tithe?)
12. How would we support one another within the order itself (emergencies, etc.)?
13. How will we navigate the large geographic distances between us?
14. Will there be annual meetings and what will they look like?
15. How will we handle accountability?
16. Sharing Tips for simple living
17. Beginning now to be transparent with our personal budgets
18. A theology of evangelism, making disciples, witness
19. How to witness to the church as a whole?
20. What would lay-chapters look like?
21. What would non-UMC chapters look like?

And then very practically
1. We will meet bi-weekly next school year at one another's homes for potluck dinners
2. We will share the responsibility of writing/authoring a covenant

Did I miss anything?

A Theoretical Budget Proposal

Here is a draft budget proposal for what it might look like to live with the guidelines from the Order of St. James. Its not perfect and some of it is not even filled in. But there is $8000 left unallocated in the end. So there's plenty of wiggle room.

Income
Monthly Yearly
Salary

35,329
Housing Allowance
10,000
Health Insurance

12,200
Pension

5200
Continuing Ed


Travel Expenses


Etc.


Total Income 62,729




Expenses
Monthly Yearly
Auto Fuel 150 1800
Insurance 63 756
Service 200 2400
Taxes 6 72
Saving 100 1200
Auto Total
519 6228
Blessings Tithe 294 3532
Cash
20 240
Clothing
42 500
Dates Weekly 80 1040
Anniversary 17 200
Birthdays 8 100
Dates Total
105 1340
Entertainment
20 240
Food Eat-out 25 300
Groceries 400 4800
Food Total
425 5100
Household Haircuts 15 180
Computer 15 180
Maintenance/Repair 40 480
Operations 40 480
Postage 9 108
Yard 10 120
Household Total 129 1548
Insurance Disability 13 154
Home Owners 42 500
Life 38 453
Medical - Church 1000 12,200
Medical 167 2004
Insurance Total 1260 15311
Medical Dentist 33 400
Doctor 20 240
Medicine 30 360
Medical Total
83 1000
Housing
833 10,000
Pension
433 5,200
Savings


Taxes


Utilities Landline 30 360
Cell 30 360
Electric 60 720
Gas 100 1200
Water & Sewer 30 360
Utilities Total
250 3000
Vacation
83 1000
Loans/Debt


Grand Total 4496 54,239

Some Quotes on Money

While Wesley's "Make all you can, save all you can, give all you can" was generally looked down upon in our Ethics class and in Kelly Johnson's Fear of Beggars book, I believe that these presentations of Wesley's Sermon On The Use of Money were more caricatures than full engagements with what Wesley has to say in this sermon; especially in the context of the rest of his life. Read the whole sermon. It is well worth the time. Here is a quote from Wesley's Sermon that I think summarizes this idea of an Order of St. James:

"Gain all you can, without hurting either yourself or your neighbour, in soul or body, by applying hereto with unintermitted diligence, and with all the understanding which God has given you; -- save all you can, by cutting off every expense which serves only to indulge foolish desire; to gratify either the desire of flesh, the desire of the eye, or the pride of life; waste nothing, living or dying, on sin or folly, whether for yourself or your children; -- and then, give all you can, or, in other words, give all you have to God. Do not stint yourself...to this or that proportion. 'Render unto God,' not a tenth, not a third, not half, but all that is God's, be it more or less; by employing all on yourself, your household, the household of faith, and all mankind, in such a manner, that you may give a good account of your stewardship when ye can be no longer stewards; in such a manner as the oracles of God direct, both by general and particular precepts; in such a manner, that whatever ye do may be 'a sacrifice of a sweet-smelling savour to God,' and that every act may be rewarded in that day when the Lord cometh with all his saints."

Then the other day I was reading from C.S. Lewis' Screwtape Letters and came across this advice from Screwtape (the senior devil) to his mentor, Wormwood (the junior devil) regarding the Christian Wormwood has been given to tempt (please excuse Lewis' gender specific language):

"If, on the other hand, the middle years prove prosperous, our position is even stronger. Prosperity knits a man to the World. He feels that he is 'finding his place in it', while really it is finding its place in him. His increasing reputation, his widening circle of acquaintances, his sense of importance, the growing pressure of absorbing and agreeable work, build up in him a sense of being really at home in earth, which is just what we want. You will notice that the young are generally less unwilling to die than the middle-aged and the old."

And lastly, I was reading from Psalm 62 this morning:

"Though wealth increase, set not your heart upon it" (62:12).

Saturday, April 12, 2008

Want to post?

If you want to post on this blog, send me an email and I'll add you as a contributor.

Non-UMCs, Non-clergy, etc.?

Can those who aren't UMCs or clergy participate? Absolutely. I imagine a lay chapter, a chapter in each denomination, and so on. This is a big vision.