Church of Scotland to Debate Cash Crisis Restricting World Mission

In the upcoming General Assembly of the Church of Scotland this month, one of the hardest discussions will surely be the cash crisis related to the controversial investment project in a hotel in Israel. The Church is under heavy criticism for misusing its funds to invest in a luxury hotel rather than supporting vital missions in less developed countries or other ministries. The debate has been raised since last year’s General Assembly.

According to a local newspaper the Sunday Herald, a new report to the General Assembly 2005 from Board of World Mission shows that the Israeli hotel development project will drain the Kirk of a further £555,000 by the end of this year. This will include £380,000 unpaid interest on a loan made by the board to the resort, and £175,000 in trading losses for this year alone.

The board admits that the development "inevitably has a negative impact on its work elsewhere in the world".

The hotel project commenced in 1999, and since then the Board has spent over £10m in converting a former Kirk hospital at Tiberias in Israel into a luxury hotel in an attempt to enhance the dialogue between Jews and Arabs. However, due to political and social instability in Israel, the hotel finally opened in October 2004 after a number of long delays.

Last year’s General Assembly decided to cut the budget of the Board of World Mission, which oversees missionary work, by £426,000 as part of overall savings of more than £800,000. Many have attributed the cash crisis to the Israeli investment failure. A dozen overseas posts which have been cut including funding for HIV/AIDS workers in Africa. This year, a further £555,000 loss has caused a growing row among missionaries.

Despite the cash crisis that has been increasingly hampering world mission development, Convener of the Board of World Mission, the Rev Alan Greig, has insisted on continuing the project, according to the Sunday Herald.

Rev Alan Greig explained, "The Tiberias project has not even been opened for a full year, so we have to give it a chance. It was never intended that it would take funds away from the work of the board, but when the project started in 1999, it was impossible to predict events in the region."

Furthermore, he refused to speculate on whether objectors to the project will protest at the continued draining of funds at the General Assembly.

On the other hand, the Sunday Herald reported that the Board of World Mission will change its title to the World Mission Council in a few weeks as the Church of Scotland undergoes a restructuring exercise aimed at cutting costs.

The General Assembly, which meets each year in Edinburgh, has the authority to make laws determining how the Church of Scotland operates. This year's General Assembly will commence on Saturday 21st May and close on Friday 27th May.