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 laws from how a minister is disciplined to the specific responsibilities of its bishops.
It even sets out the procedure for how to handle Sunday collections - at least two people have to gather the proceeds, it is then locked in a safe or put in a drop safe. At least two people must count the proceeds and sign a receipt for it, after which the money is then deposited in the bank.
But laying down these laws is not enough for the fastidious Methodists. The church requires its officials to demonstrate that they know its procedures by completing an Institutional Competency Assessment, which is basically a series of questions on church governance, once a year.
On top of this, it also produces a Yearbook that contains the financial information of its controlling body, the Connexion, along with an extensive report on the church's activities.
It's obvious the Methodists do not believe in taking shortcuts when it comes to governance. "There has to be transparency. We cannot have situations that do not reflect how funds are used. After all, accountability in financial matters is a core value for church integrity," says Anthony Tibbit, the chief financial officer of the Methodist Church of Southern Africa (MCSA).
So with such a commitment to good financial governance, it should be easy to work out what the Methodist Church in SA is worth. But that turns out not to be the case. In the federal structure of the MCSA its churches, or "Societies" in Methodist parlance, take responsibility for their own finances. Consequently there are no financial statements for the church as a whole.
However, the figures presented in its 2007 Yearbook published by its secretariat body, the Connexional Office, provide some details.
The Connexional Office administers insurance cover on church properties to the value of R3bn - giving some indication of the value of the church's property portfolio. It holds the title deeds and administers 1 400 properties.
It pays salaries to about 1 200 employees and administers two pension funds and one provident fund that had a combined value of R712m in assets at end-December 2005.
But despite its ability to administer these sizeable assets, the structure comes with administrative challenges. Each Society needs to have people capable of handling finance. This discrepancy in skills led to the creation of the Centralised Accounting Organisation, which provides an accounting services to under-resourced churches. The Connexional Office also provides lay people in poor churches with financial training.
However, the MCSA has found that not even these extensive financial controls are an insurance against wrongdoing.
A few years ago its then secretary, Rev Ross Olivier, compiled a report for its 2003 conference in which he expressed concern that some of its districts had shown "flagrant disrespect" for the MCSA's regulations and "complete contempt" for its Laws and Discipline.
Olivier was particularly angry over a district paying a minister directly and not via the Connexional Office. He said this practice could have ended in tears as it was not clear if any deductions were made from the minister's salary. "Was tax deducted and reported to the revenue service? Will the minister concerned come crying to the Connexion when retirement day dawns, asking why the pension is so small?" he asked.
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