NASHVILLE (BP) – Contributions to Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) missions and ministries through the Cooperative Program (CP) totaled 98.38 percent of the budgeted goal through the third quarter ending June 30, SBC Executive Committee President Frank S. Page has announced.
The $141,298,445.60 the Executive Committee received during the first nine months of the fiscal year, Oct. 1-June 30, for distribution through the Cooperative Program Allocation Budget is 1.62 percent short of the $143,625,000 year-to-date budgeted amount.
The total represents money received by the close of the last business day of June and includes receipts from state conventions, churches and individuals designated for global and national Southern Baptist ministries.
The total is $776,707.46 or 0.55 percent less than the $142,075,153.06 received through June 2013 of last fiscal year.
Designated giving of $173,373,521.37 for the same year-to-date period is 1.89 percent, or $3,335,228.70, below the $176,708,750.07 received at this point last year. Designated giving only includes monies received and distributed by the Executive Committee and does not reflect designated gifts contributed directly to SBC entities. Designated contributions include the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions, the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions, Southern Baptist Global Hunger Relief and other special gifts.
June’s Cooperative Program allocation receipts totaled $15,379,938.50. Designated gifts received last month amounted to $25,278,846.78.
The SBC allocation budget goal for 2013-14 is $191,500,000, an increase of 1.86 percent over the $188,000,000 budgeted goal for the previous year, and is distributed as follows: 50.41 percent to support more than 4,800 overseas personnel with the IMB; 22.79 percent to help fuel North American evangelism and church planting through the North American Mission Board; 22.16 percent to help underwrite low-cost ministerial preparation and theological education through six SBC seminaries; 2.99 percent to the SBC operating budget; and 1.65 percent to promote biblical morality and religious freedom through the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. ν