Have you made your contribution?
In an effort to be more transparent, the Finance and Administration office is going to be consistently sharing where we are as a conference are in regards to the giving versus what is needed fo…
Apportionments allow us to do together what no church, district, or annual conference could do alone.
Watch the 2024 Apportionment Video Message from Bishop Dan Schwerin
What is Connectional Giving?
Connectional Giving is one of the founding ideas that the United Methodist Church was built upon.
Participating in connectional giving helps us to be in mission with people and congregations around the world - giving every church, regardless of size, a larger mission footprint.
Connectional giving includes Apportionment giving (Northern Illinois Conference Fund and General Church Apportioned Funds) as well as Mission Link (The Advance) giving.
Connectional Giving demonstrates our connectedness to one another, to God and to the body of Christ.
Why Give to Apportionments?
Apportionment giving is based upon the desire to meet the needs of God’s family NOT just in our neighborhoods, but around the world. Apportionments are also based on our need to give in order to be spiritually healthy, complete children of God.
We send the Apportionment funds out of our blessing that Christ might be known in transformative ways. Apportionments provide avenues for giving so that we can be strong local churches & annual conferences and a strong connection throughout the world as we seek to be in mission and ministry together. The funds demonstrate our connectedness to one another, to God and to the body of Christ.
What are Apportionments?
Apportionments are the way that congregations are connected to the conference and the world. Apportionments are used to fund the global mission and witness of our church, to help provide the necessary structure to respond in moments of crisis locally, nationally, internationally, and to develop and nurture the leaders we need today and tomorrow.
The basic idea behind apportionments is that local congregations send some of the money they collect to accomplish things that are either beyond their ability to do as individual congregations or that can be done more effectively or efficiently together. Apportionments allow the church to produce goods and services funded by all for the benefit of all – collective goods.
The connections of the church are more than institutions; the connections are the means God uses to convey grace to the world.
Are These "Special Gifts”?
Apportionments are not to be considered “special gifts,” but rather, they are similar to our tithes that we give to our local church. These funds are to be set aside and given first priority in our church budgets.
Apportionments are our first-mile of mission giving. They form the framework for the rest of our connectional ministry and mission. First-mile giving ensures 100 percent of gifts to Advance Specials, United Methodist Committee on Relief, Imagine No Malaria, Love Offerings, Special Sundays and many others that benefit the desired mission or ministry.
We encourage all churches to go the second mile to become a Mission Links church by participating in The Advance mission giving and continuing to support the good work across the connection.
How are Apportionments Calculated?
Northern Illinois Conference Fund Apportionments are derived from the financial experience of your local church. It takes the previous five years of metrics into consideration. The highest and lowest numbers of the five are removed, and the other three years are averaged.
Your church’s General Church Apportionment is a percentage of each local church's share of the requested amount from the general church, calculated using the same formula as Conference Fund Apportionments.
Apportionments denote an understanding that the purpose of the church is not just to care for its own members but also to reach out beyond itself to engage with the world, to minister to the world, to be in mission to the world.
Watch for additional apportionment information to come in early 2025.
