“Getting Our Own House in Order”
David T. Ball
Time and again, in a wide range of situations, we find ourselves humbled by the reminder that we should “get our own house in order” before we presume to criticize others. The phrase is derived from II Kings 20:1, in which the prophet Isaiah spoke these words to a gravely ill King Hezekiah: “This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.”
Putting and keeping our houses in order is a constant challenge in many areas of our lives. This challenge is especially difficult for churches, because rarely does attending to the details of church life seem as inspiring and, frankly, important, as more obvious and direct forms of Christian discipleship. But if our ministries are to flourish in the long term, our church houses need to be kept in order.
I have learned about a project with a group of Ohio churches that looked into whether these churches were keeping their houses in order in three areas: real property deeds; governance documents; and insurance policies. Of the 60 churches that participated in this study, only two (!) had their real property deeds in order. Many deeds contained a church’s former name, some churches could not even locate copies of their real property deeds, and some deeds contained significant errors. In one instance, it was discovered that a church had accidentally sold the lot on which the church stands rather than the parsonage lot!
Regarding governance documents, only about one-third of the churches were properly incorporated, including some that had been incorporated but had allowed their previous corporate status to lapse. When that status lapses, the church loses the liability protection that corporate status offers. To avoid that problem, churches should be on the lookout for corporate status renewal paperwork. It will be sent to the church’s statutory agent, and to avoid having it sent to a church member who has moved or who is no longer active, it is recommended that the address on file with Ohio’s Secretary of State be the church’s mailing address, or a post office box if the church doesn’t have a mailing address, or by listing “Pastor” at the parsonage address as the church’s statutory agent.
Finally, only about one-half of the churches had appropriate insurance, mainly due to the lack of coverage for sexual misconduct, pastoral counseling and directors and officers coverage. Churches are advised to meet with their insurance agent every two years to make sure that the policy limits are adjusted appropriately and that coverage is acquired for all foreseeable types of liability. We may assume that church members won’t sue, but that is not necessarily the case for non-members who are on the premises to use a day care center or a thrift store.
Keeping our church houses in order can be much simpler if we organize key documents into three types of files that are kept in a location that is well-known to the pastor and lay leadership. One should contain copies of all deeds to church property; another a copy of the certificate of incorporation; and another the church’s insurance policies, with current contact information.
We may not feel like we’re directly carrying out Christ’s mission on earth when attending to these details of church life. We recall that Mary, who sat and listened at the Lord’s feet, had “chosen the better part,” as opposed to Martha, who busied herself with keeping her house in order, one might say. But even if other forms of Christian discipleship are “the better part,” legal and insurance details remain an important part of providing a foundation for the ministries to which we are committed.
David T. Ball is Associate at the law firm of Schottenstein Zox & Dunn Co., LPA. He has a dual background in theology and law, with an M.Div. and a Ph.D. in theology, and a J.D. from Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California, Berkeley. In addition to several years of experience assisting religious organizations with a wide variety of legal issues, David has been a pastor and college chaplain. He may be reached at (614) 462-2700 or dball@szd.com.