BOP Tax Guides for 2011

Tax Webcast and Guides for the 2011 Tax Year Now Available

To help ministers and churches understand the latest tax law changes, the Board of Pensions has released new and updated resources in the Tax Resource Center for members, treasurers and administrators, and mid-councils on Pensions.org:    

• The 2011 “Tax Tips for Ministers and Churches” webcast features the Board’s education specialists, Steven Fleming and Rod Sewell, who provide important information from tax expert Richard R. Hammar, J.D., LL.M., CPA, specific to ministers and churches. The webcast is prerecorded for easy, 24/7 access. No registration is necessary to view it.
• The Tax Guide for Ministers for 2011 Returns provides recent tax information for active and retired ministers to review when filing their federal income tax returns. It will also be mailed to active and retired ministers in late January.
• The Federal Reporting Requirements for Churches: What You Need To Know in 2012, including tax code changes made at the end of 2011, is designed for church treasurers and business administrators. It contains step-by-step wage reporting and withholding instructions and information about situations specific to filing various federal forms.

The information provided in the above-described resources is not intended as a substitute for legal, accounting, or other professional advice that you may require while preparing your tax returns.

It's Time to Renew!

I hope each of you had a good start to the year!  If you are like me, the year is off to a fast pace with more than most of us can handle. In December, you received an email from the APA office with a membership renewal form for your 2012 membership dues.  I hope by now you have filled out your form and sent it in.  The deadline for regular dues renewal ($75) is January 31, 2012.  After that date, a late fee of $10 applies. As a reminder, if you are a retired member, your dues are half the regular dues ($32.50) but must be paid to remain active.  Life members are asked to fill out the form and sent it in, even though you do not have dues, so that addresses and other information can be updated yearly. For those of you who did not renew your dues last year (2011), to remain active, you will need to pay for both 2011 and 2012 in order to gain certification and vote at meetings.  If you cannot remember if you paid or not, please feel free to contact me. Two upcoming dates that you need to get on your calendar: The Florida Regional Conference is scheduled for May 16-20, 2012 in Sarasota Florida.  Check the Florida Region website in early February for more informaiton. The APA National Conference will be held September 12-16, 2012 in San Antonio, Texas. I look forward to seeing all of you at the conferences and please remember this is a great time to recruit a friend to bring with you!  You get to spend time with a friend and we get a new member! Blessings, Nancy Fine Membership Chair Florida Region of the Administrative Personnel Association of the Presbyterian Church (USA)

Make a Commitment to Invest in Your Continuing Education

Every January, many of us tend to make a new year's resolution.  Whether it is to lose weight, exercise more, spend more time with family and friends, reaffirm our commitment to God or grow as an individual by taking education classes, we look at January as a way of starting the new year with a commitment. This sense of a new beginning also applies to our professional lives and with the lives of those we work with each and every day.  As support staff: secretaries, day care workers, bookkeepers, office managers and administrative assistants, your church is counting on you to begin this new year with a new sense of commitment.  The commitment of enhancing the skills that you already posses by having your church fund your membership to the Administrative Personnel Association of the Presbyterian Church (USA) as well as budgeting for you to attend an APA conference.  This investment for you as support staff, a mere $75 for the membership dues and approximately $500 for attendance at an APA conference, is a great way to start off this new year. This year's Florida Region Conference will be held from May 16th through May 20th in Sarasota. The registration form will be posted on the Florida Region's website at the end of January  This is a great gift that your church can give you. Allow your church the opportunity to reaffirm their commitment to you and your organization by encouraging you to make the resolution that this is the year that you are going to start the process to become more educated about Presbyterian Church USA history, theology and polity. Contact Barbara Prieto, Florida Region President, at 305-666-8586 to find out how you can begin this new year right by becoming affiliated with this great association. Nancy Fine Membership Chair Florida Region of the Administrative Personnel Association of the Presbyterian Church (USA)

Gracious Separation

How does the Gracious Separation Effect the Administrative Personnel Association?

            What do I do if my church is leaving the denomination under the Gracious Separation Agreement and I am a member of the Administrative Personnel Association of the Presbyterian Church (USA)?  Can I still remain a member of the association?  And, why should I remain a member if my church is leaving?

            The APA has a membership option for you if your church is leaving under the Gracious Separation Agreement.  You can retain your membership and your certification credits by becoming an Affiliate Member. 

            The courses offered through the APA apply to many areas of your job as staff member in a church.  Administrative classes cover such topics as Conflict Management, How to Run a Meeting, Newsletters and Bulletins, Personnel Issues, Risk Management, Stewardship Programs and Capital Campaigns, and many, many more topics that are relevant to your job.  Spiritual Studies has classes on Bible history, Biblical Interpretation and Theology.  And, of course, the Technology classes are a must for any church staff person.  By continuing your membership with the APA, you can use the skills gained through the APA to help you and your church.

            If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact Barbara Prieto, the Florida Region APA President at 305-666-8586 or rivierachurch@bellsouth.net.

Nancy Fine

Florida Region Membership Chair of the Administrative Personnel Association of the Presbyterian Church (USA)

www.floridaapa.org

The Twelve Days of Christmas

Merry Twelve Days of Christmas! And remember, the 12 days of Christmas are the 12 days following December 25th. The Christmas Season runs until Epiphany, January 6th. 

Have you ever wondered what leaping lords, French hens, swimming swans, and especially the partridge who won't come out of the pear tree have to do with Christmas? 

From 1558 to 1829, Roman Catholics in England were not permitted to practice their faith openly. Someone during that era wrote this carol as a catechism song for young Catholics. It has two levels of meaning: the surface meaning plus a hidden meaning known only to members of their church. Each element in the carol has a code word for a religious reality which the children could remember.

• The partridge in a pear tree was Jesus Christ
• Two turtle doves were the Old and New Testaments
• Three French hens stood for faith, hope, and love
• The four calling birds were the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John
• The five golden rings recalled the Torah or the Law, the first five books of the Old Testament
• The six geese a-laying stood for the six days of creation
• Seven swans a-swimming represented the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit - Prophecy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership, and Mercy
• The eight maids a-milking were the eight Beatitudes
• Nine ladies dancing were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit - Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control
• The ten lords a-leaping were the Ten Commandments
• The eleven pipers piping stood for the eleven faithful disciples
• The twelve drummers drumming symbolized the twelve points of belief in the Apostles' Creed

5 Year End Tips for Your Facility

Hello,

I thought item #5 and the bonus tip might be of interest to you. 

Grace and Peace,
Barbara Prieto,CA III - Administrative Coordinator
President Florida Region Administrative Personnel Association of the PCUSA

5 Year End Tips for Your Church Facility

Directory for Worship - Part 1

This is Part 1 in a series by David Gambrell, Associate for Worship, in the PCUSA Office of Theology and Worship
Article from the presbyterianleader.com

What is the Directory for Worship?
The PC(USA) Constitution consists of two parts that are usually found in two separate books: the Book of Confessions and the Book of Order. The Book of Order is organized in four sections: Foundations of Presbyterian Polity, the Form of Government, the Directory for Worship, and the Rules of Discipline. 
 
The Directory for Worship provides a theological understanding of worship that is founded on Scripture and rooted in the history and tradition of the church. In contrast to a prayer book or service book, our Directory for Worship provides no liturgical texts, such as prayers or responsive readings. Rather, it seeks to articulate the principles and practices underlying faithful worship in the Reformed tradition. The Directory for Worship allows for a certain degree of freedom within form—not prescribing fixed prayers but offering broader guidelines. Worship leaders are wise to use the Directory for Worship and the Book of Common Worship together, like a compass and a map; the former points to general principles and primary things, while the latter offers specific directions for particular services.