The Pension Boards has been selected to receive a $1 million implementation grant from Lilly Endowment’s National Initiative to Address Economic Challenges Facing Pastoral Leaders.

The grant will fund development and implementation of a “faith and personal finance” initiative intended to strengthen ministry in the UCC by:

• increasing and enhancing financial literacy among UCC authorized ministers, with a particular emphasis on ministers from historically underrepresented groups;
• assisting UCC ministers and their congregations, Associations, Conferences, and the National Setting of the Church in “breaking the conspiracy of silence” that exists around pastoral finances;
• providing financial assistance to UCC authorized ministers toward repayment of educational debt and seeding of pension funds;
• engaging key lay leaders in UCC churches in collaborative efforts to identify and address the connection between pastoral financial challenges and congregational financial challenges; and
• launching a major fundraising campaign to solicit major gifts that will enable the long-term sustainability, and continued expansion, of the program. 

“This is a strong affirmation of our work – what we have accomplished so far, and what we can accomplish as we move forward,” said Pension Boards President and Chief Executive Officer Brian R. Bodager. “I look forward to our continued work on behalf of those who serve our Church.”

Please check back for additional information about the program, which will be available on the website in the coming weeks.