2023 MNYS Assembly Fees

A Word About Synod Assembly Fees

Dear Friends in Christ,

We are called to look for opportunities to be in communion as fellow siblings of Christ, to serve out the mission of his Church, and live out the Gospel. Our assembly is our biggest opportunity to fulfill this call. In many places throughout our synod, church and family budgets are strained, especially in wake of the COVID-19 crisis. The MNYS Office of the Bishop and the Synod Council are aware of these financial realities. We take seriously the responsibility of planning synodical events that are within an appropriate financial level. 

At the end of our last in-person assembly, the Office of the Bishop sent a survey asking our highest governing body if they would like a similar experience for the following assembly: the assembly overwhelmingly expressed their desire to have a similar experience. Knowing how COVID-19 has affected our congregations, our team has worked tirelessly to provide the same experience at nearly the same cost. The cost-comparison chart below shows the difference in synod assembly fees since our last (two-day) in-person assembly in 2018. 

Synod Assembly Cost-Comparison

2018 Two-Day Assembly	2023 Two-Day Assembly
Regular Registration: $175/Voting Member  $75/Visitor	Regular Registration:  $200/Voting Member  $100/Visitor
Room Rate: $158/night	Room Rate: $189/night
Meal Plan: $150	Meal Plan: $175

 

As you can see, the costs associated with our synod assembly here in Metro New York have only increased by a small percentage when compared with the current US inflation rate. This lowered rate is thanks to the Synod Council who have approved the cost absorption of part of the registration & meal plan tickets. 

I am very grateful for our events team and their incredible skills, which have enabled us to fulfill the assembly’s expectations without additional costs—despite current inflation rates. Our hope in having a biannual assembly is a more economical situation to lessen the way of any financial burden not only for the Office of the Bishop but also for our congregations, which now can budget for half of the expenses every year.

These fees are a symbol of our partnership in the Gospel TOGETHER and will allow us to:

• Contract with an audio-visual company that creates a more inclusive experience that accounts for our members with hearing and visual disabilities
• Contract with a digital voting company that provides fair and transparent legislative processes (reference and counsel votes, elections, etc.) during our plenary sessions
• Contract with an expert parliamentarian to ensure our business is conducted in accordance with Robert’s Rules of Order
• Enable the Worship Committee to work closely with partners to provide an enriching journey while lowering costs
• Provide visual content — which is an integral part of an assembly — and comprises the majority of the assembly resources 
• Address several administrative costs associated with the biggest and most important event in the life of our synod 

We are excited to finally have an in-person assembly this year; however, we are taking the necessary steps to maintain the financial health of our synod. We appreciate the work of all those who made past assemblies possible and recognize all those behind the scenes making this year’s assembly equally successful.

We value our time together and are expected to create the same sense of community as we have in our previous in-person assemblies.

We want to ensure that our congregations and leaders are not restricted from participating due to financial limitations. If a voting member from your congregation is in need of financial assistance to cover registration fees, please contact fill out the form HERE.

Thank you for allowing us to be Church Together, and let’s continue to #LiveLikeChristInOurCommunities.