The Anglican Church of Canada reports deficit

Monday, 9th June 2008
By: George Conger

The Anglican Church of Canada reported its fifth straight year of financial deficits last week, with expenses exceeding income in 2007 by £394,000.

In a presentation to the members of the Council of General Synod (CoGS) --- the Canadian church’s governing body between meetings of General Synod --- church treasurer Peter Blachford noted the lose [sic] would have been £1 million had not the church received a refund from the Canadian government on funds paid in to the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement --- a government organized fund to compensate those abused in church affiliated schools.

A major cost in 2007 had been losses related to the closure of the Anglican Book Centre (ABC), the church’s Toronto-based bookstore, which was sold to the Lutheran bookseller, Augsburg Fortress Canada.“We knew we would have to clean up before turning it over to Augsburg,” Mr Blachford told the Anglican Journal. Costs for travel, upgrading the national church’s computer system and expenses related to General Synod’s triennial meeting in Winnipeg made 2007 a “transition year. It was a year of shifting into a new year with a new primate; it was a year to clean up the ABC.” the rest