FOR BAPTIST MINISTERS

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 74, 18 June 1927, Page 27

FOR BAPTIST MINISTERS

£300,000 PENSION PLAN A crowded session of the annual assembly of the Baptist Union at the City Temple, London, unanimously approved the council's scheme for the superannuation of ministers and their To enable a minister to retire at 65 years of age a capital sum of £300,000 is to be raised this year. This sum. with a contribution of 5 per cent, on ministers’ stipends (half to be paid by the minister and half by the church) will enable the scheme to be launched. The aim is to provide at the outset a retiring allowance at 65 of £55 a year for ministers and a pension of £35 a year for the widows. Later it is hoped the allowance will be £SO and £4O. The Rev. M. E. Aubrey, secretary of the Baptist Union, made a moving appeal for united efforts to raise this large sum. “We want.” he said, “one penny a day from each of the 200.000 members in the churches to which this scheme will apply. ‘’That means that a man must give up two cigarettes of a popular brand each day, and a woman to whom these last remarks do not apply must give up one chocolate cream a day.” Mr. Aubrev held up a silver-wrapped Chocolate the value of which he declared to be lid. “I wish,” he added, “that for sermons on five barley loaves and two fishes our ministers would substitute ‘live chocolate creams and two cigarettes.* “We are one ol the few denominations that makes no provision for our aged ministers. When the Government introduced their contributory pensions scheme we could not persuade the Ministry of Health that Baptist ministers were workers.” (Laughter.) At the close of the discussion an appeal was made to start the fund at the meeting, and delegates were invited to sign forms provided for the purpose. Within a short time over £lß,oou was promised. Th€' campaign v.-ill be vigorously carried on by churches all over the country, and it is hoped to start the superannuation scheme at the beginning of 1928.