THE Methodist Church has received £415,000 from the Government for overseas missionary work, its annual conference in Bangor, Co Down, was told yesterday.
The church is holding talks with the human rights and women's sections of the Department of Foreign Affairs on the possibility of pursuing human rights projects abroad in areas where the Government has no diplomatic missions.
The Rev Fred Munce, minister of Joanmount in north Belfast, said that the Government had an annual budget for human and women's rights of more than £100 million.
"We are right at the forefront of this work", he told the conference. "There is a reputation within Dublin circles that Methodists do things well, that we do not set out to proselytise, we do not see people merely as a label, but rather we see each person as an individual."
The Republic contributed £3 for every £1 donated by Methodist members to help the world's deprived and beleaguered, Mr Munce said. Presenting the church's World Development and Relief Committee report, he said that the £415,000 received from Dublin was being spent on projects in Peru, Jamaica, Bosnia, Romania, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and elsewhere in Africa.
"The conference should be aware that, as far as I know, we are the only church that receives this sort of funding, the 75/25 per cent arrangement", he added.
Earlier, the conference was told that an appeal to congregations for a 10 per cent increase in contributions to the Home Mission had been met with a 2 per decrease. The Rev Paul Kingston, presenting the report, said: "If this were to continue, it is going to place the mission of our church in a very serious position."
The church is looking at the possibility of appointing a full time prison chaplain following the closure of Crumlin Road jail in Belfast in April. The proposal, which follows a request from the Northern Ireland Office, was referred to the General Committee for further consideration.
The Rev William Lavery, part time chaplain to Maghaberry prison, near Lisburn, said that the addition of remand prisoners who formerly would have been housed in Crumlin Road had made his job impossible without assistance. He urged the church to accept the offer to have a fulltime official looking after the pastoral needs of prisoners.