Conversations part 2

[Trevor Mattiske]

The time:
A regular meeting of the parish, to discuss church finances and the budget.

The place:
The church hall.

The players:
Members of the parish, including the priest, the parish patriarchs and matriarchs, and some of the laity.

The debate:
"After paying the stipend and essential maintenance on the buildings, there isn't much left over."
"Fred XXXX has put up a motion to have the paving in the rose garden replaced."
"We have a request from some of the Youth Group for help with travel to the NCYC youth conference in South Australia."
"We can't afford to spend money on both."
"The rose garden is looking neglected. It is the first thing that people see when they come to church."
"I don't see the point of giving money to the youth - they never stay when they get older."
"Some of the older members are disappointed that no-one is taking care of the rose garden and grounds these days."
"Those young people don't show any loyalty to us."
"The rose garden is a tangible asset. Youth activities aren't."
"We should do something about the seats around the garden. They are in a bad state."
"I'm sick and tired of giving money to the Youth Group. We get nothing back."
"Some of our parents put a lot of time into the rose garden and the church grounds. For their sakes, it should be better looked after."
"Why don't the Youth Group raise the money themselves?"
"The rose garden used to be one of the glories of this church. I am ashamed of it now."
"We should not bribe the youth by giving them money to go on trips."
"The original design for the church included a stained glass window on the north facing wall. It has never been installed. We need to put our money into things like that."
"Giving more money to the Youth Group is putting good money after bad."
"The rose garden is a better investment. I'm sure that's what the majority of the congregation want."
"There's only 4 or 5 in the Youth Group these days."
"Bricks and mortar. That's where this parish has to put its money."
"That NCYC is run by the Uniting Church, isn't it? Surely our young people can go to something run by our own church."
"We must look after the church and the grounds so that we have something to hand on to the next generation."

The outcome:
The paving contractor finished the new paving and borders of the rose garden a couple of weeks ago.
There was a bit of money left over, so one of the seats in the garden was replaced.
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