DON'T MENTION THE MONEY
By Nicky Smith
It is almost impossible to talk to Ray McCauley, the founder of the Rhema Ministries, about anything financial. Throughout an interview with the FM, he kept moving the conversation away from the church's finances towards theolo...

GUARDING THE GUARDIANS
By Larry Claasen
"You cannot question God's anointed." That was the curt response when members of a small house church in the south of Johannesburg questioned their pastor over his management of the church and the way he dealt with its money. The pastor founde...

BIG BUSINESS
By Nicky Smith and Larry Claasen
The Zion Christian Church (ZCC) is the biggest in SA. The 2001 census recorded 5m members. But not all these people fall under the largest of the ZCC churches, under Bishop Barnabas Lekganyane, which was the church the FM approa...

A QUESTION OF CONSCIENCE
By Larry Claasen
"When the colonialists arrived, they had the Bible and we had the land. Now, we have the Bible and they have the land." The old African saying rings, for many churches, uncomfortably true. "The church... benefited from dispossessing...

A DIFFERENT METHOD BOOK
By Larry Claasen
Methodists live by the book. But this time, it's not the bible. It is called Laws and Discipline and it governs financial reporting and the behaviour of church officials. The document is detailed. It lays down the church's la...

HARD TO SEE THE LIGHT
By Larry Claasen
"Can we look at your financial statements? " is an odd question to ask a preacher. It turns out that few faith-based bodies are asked this by anyone outside their organisation. They were mostly unsure how to respond. The responses f...

NOT AN OUTRIGHT NO
By Nicky Smith
The vast Chinese Buddhist temple in Bronkhorstspruit offers "Buddhism-Lite" retreats to harried city dwellers and more intensive training to those looking to become monks. The Fo Guang Shan Nan Hua Temple African Buddhist Seminary a...

PAY 'N PRAY
By Nicky Smith
How do the Jews do it? Ian Maltz, executive director of SA's largest orthodox synagogue, Cape Town's Green and Sea Point Hebrew Congregation, says most synagogues raise the bulk of funds through annual membership fees. He says that ...