 Broken Covenant and now broken fiduciary duty  The Layman – Volume 41, Number 1 – Posted January 28, 2008
In this issue of The Layman, we focus on Katrina and the $23 million contributed to Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) after the horrific storms of 2005. Katrina truly was the storm of all storms – causing a loss of more than 1,800 lives. Damage losses from Katrina far exceeded the combined losses from the next 10 most powerful storms in the history of the United States. Some 350,000 homes were totally destroyed by hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The stories in this special section describe in graphic detail the devastation and how the world was turned upside down for those people in the path of the storms. $12 million remains in the bank Of course, as usual, Americans rose to the occasion – giving direct help if they were able to do so and reaching for their checkbooks to provide the relief that was so desperately needed. The needs were, and still are, staggering. Think about how the families were shaken by those more than 1,800 deaths. And it is hard to conceive of 350,000 homes suddenly made uninhabitable, with major damage caused to countless other homes, churches, commercial and government buildings. In the aftermath, the opportunities to help also were countless. They still are. And now we learn that $12 million of the $23 million collected by PDA is still in the bank. We also learn that requests for funding from PDA turned into a bureaucratic nightmare. With the overwhelming needs of these suffering souls, how can there be any rational explanation for holding back these funds for more than two years after the disasters? Surely, PDA officials had compassion for those in need. Surely, they must have understood that the donors sent the money because, as they watched their TVs and witnessed the incredible devastation, they were compassionate and simply wanted to help. Surely, they did not believe that the donors would want the money held for future hurricanes. Broken fiduciary duty Recipients of donations have a fiduciary duty to spend funds in accordance with the wishes of the donors. In other words, if a charitable organization seeks contributions to provide disaster relief and donors make gifts in response, the charity is obligated to use the money for that purpose. If they don’t, there is a breach of fiduciary duty. PDA was entrusted with the funds and they had a moral and legal responsibility to carry out the wishes of the donors. It is true that the donors did not tell PDA to spend the money in a specific way and by a certain date. But it is implicit in a disaster that donors expect funds to be spent to aid the victims without undue delays. Certainly, the donors never would have expected $12 million of the $23 million to be still sitting in the bank two years later! PDA has broken its fiduciary duty to the donors and, in doing so, has been irresponsible in coming to the aid of people in dire need. Broken Covenant Broken Covenant: Signs of a Shattered Communion by Parker T. Williamson, recently published by Reformation Press, provides some clues as to what may have gone wrong with the Katrina affair. Williamson, the most knowledgeable journalist on the history of the Presbyterian Church (USA), traces the causes of the decline of the denomination since 1926 through the infamous 2006 General Assembly. In his historical account (349 pages), he chronicles how an alien faith invaded what once was an institution that was rich in tradition and theologically sound. The book is thoroughly documented with more than 700 footnotes. Broken Covenant starts with 1926 because this was a watershed moment in the life of the denomination in that presbyteries began to ordain persons who would not specify the essential tenets of what they believed. A new Jesus was born – one who was not a savior to those who did not know they needed to be saved. After the 1920s, Williamson shows us how the church began to allow the world to conform the church to its values. Then, the Confession of 1967 is explained as a major event that diminishes the authority of Scripture. So now, without the Jesus of the Holy Scriptures and without the Bible as the Word of God, the Presbyterian denomination was headed for decline and disaster. The book goes on to document how the national leadership took the church into the realm of liberating the oppressed of the world through an indictment of capitalism in lieu of proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ as the way of salvation. Major theological and moral issues are covered in detail, such as the denial by PCUSA leadership that Jesus is God in the flesh, the promotion of non-Biblical positions on human sexuality and the PCUSA’s strong pro-abortion agenda. The book provides numerous examples of how some Louisville staff have acted in defiance of the General Assembly when decisions are made by that body that do not align with the liberal agenda of the bureaucracy. Connecting the dots So now, let’s connect Broken Covenant with Katrina and PDA’s broken fiduciary duty. It all boils down to trust. PDA was trusted by its donors and the victims to do the right thing. Denominational leadership overwhelmingly has proved that they are not trustworthy with protecting the most sacred of all things – the foundations of our faith. They have twisted our denomination into something that does not remotely resemble Christianity. Of course, I am not speaking of those in the PCUSA who have remained faithful to the essential tenets of the Reformed faith. The broken fiduciary duty of Katrina is a result of the broken covenant within the PCUSA. Sadly, some of those in PCUSA leadership who administer disaster relief funds are not worthy of our trust. Note: You can obtain a copy of Broken Covenant by calling (800) 368-0110. I promise you that you will find clear and convincing evidence that the PCUSA has abandoned Biblical Christian faith. Stephen G. Brown is a member at First Presbyterian Church in Haines City, Fla. A Presbyterian elder, he is the chairman of the board of directors and chief executive officer of the Presbyterian Lay Committee. |
||
| Respond
to this article Previous columns by the PLC chair Home · News · PLC Publications · The Presbyterian Layman Online Reviews · Archives· History of the Lay Committee · Feedback · Links |
||
