Annual Conference Isn't for the Poor

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Last week, I attended the Annual Conference to which I am a Lay Member. I’ll admit it; I’m an Annual Conference geek. Worship, bible study, legislation, ordination – it all can make a heart strangely warmed. But there’s something about this time of year that makes me uneasy: the price tag.

You see, it’s a costly endeavor to be a Member of Annual Conference. First, there’s the registration fee ($159). Then there’s the meal options (ranging from $19-$42 if you eat on-site; the “best deal” meal plan is $140). Rooms at the host hotel are $169 a night. The lowest parking rate is $26 a day. The least amount one could spend this year for my Annual Conference –with no meals and no parking and sharing a room for 2 nights – is a whopping $328. Add on $10 per meal for 5 off-site meals (and that’s inexpensive), the total becomes $378. This doesn’t include transportation costs or parking (I took the train and a cab to Conference, for a total of $50). My math totals out at a conservative amount of $428. If I want a Conference Journal, that’s another $22. And you always need a little spending money for Cokesbury, right?

I don’t consider myself poor by any stretch of the imagination. And I’m blessed that my congregation is able to cover costs of registration, housing, and a couple meals. But for many smaller or struggling congregations, $428 is a good chunk of change. I’m certain that for some congregations it is the expectation that the Lay Member would cover these expenses from his or her own finances.

Assuming a Lay Member is able to finance their participation in Annual Conference, most will have to take 2-3 vacation days from work. If you’re a minimum wage earner ($7.25/hour), you’d need to work almost 60 hours (pre-taxes) to pay for going to Annual Conference!

I realize this is only one example of my specific Annual Conference. Many Annual Conferences have taken an opportunity to meet on college campuses instead of in expensive hotels. Special meals are often held at local congregations. Carpooling, room sharing, and staying in the homes of friends are often creative options for cost savings. But as The United Methodist Church continues to talk about our growing need to diversify membership, we seem to have forgotten that poverty is still a reality in our communities and in our congregations. If Annual Conference is a costly endeavor, the cost is reflected in the membership of Annual Conference. Often young adults are unable to participate fully because of costs; economically disadvantaged persons don’t even see participating as a possibility because of the price tag.

Our Annual Conferences must begin to see our witness holistically. Annual Conferences that cost over $400 per individual send a message that The United Methodist Church is a place for the upper- and middle-classes. But John Wesley, founder of Methodism, rallied against a church that didn’t have poverty as its central focus. And Jesus reminds us, “the poor will always be with you.” But will they be with us at Annual Conference?

 Chett Pritchett is Interim Executive Director for the Methodist Federation for Social Action. He is a graduate of West Virginia Wesleyan College and Wesley Theological Seminary, and is a member at Dumbarton UMC in Washington, DC.