Reformed vote on new statutes
The seven parishes in the city of Winterthur want to work more closely together and strengthen the joint association.
–The new association statute provides for an expansion of the joint office of the seven parishes by 280 percent.
Photo: Madeleine Schoder
In autumn 2020 the members of the seven Evangelical-Reformed parishes in Winterthur clearly refused to merge. The opponents were convinced that it was better for the church to renew the existing association than to merge.
In the meantime, the association’s statutes have been revised – as promised at the time. Seen, Oberwinterthur, Mattenbach, Veltheim, Stadt, Töss and Wülflingen will vote on May 15th. The approval of all municipalities is required for the entry into force.
Expand joint office
The new statute envisages strengthening cooperation in administration, human resources, IT and public relations. The existing joint office will be expanded and a commission will be created to initiate city-wide projects.
With the increased cooperation, the Reformed are reacting to two opposing developments. On the one hand, the church has expanded its offerings for young and old, for example. On the other hand, with the number of members, human resources and, as a trend, tax revenue dwindle.
The individual parishes remain independent in the election of church officials and pastors. The properties remain the property of the municipalities, which continue to decide on the local offers and the use of a large part of the finances.
Additional rental income
The planned expansion of the office from 400 to 680 percent of jobs will cost around 350,000 francs, the work of the new commission up to 30,000 francs. Overall, the association board and the central church care expect additional expenditure of 450,000 francs a year.
Those responsible are hoping for additional income of around CHF 130,000 from the centralized letting of the parish buildings and residential properties. The bottom line is that the planned expansion of the association is estimated at 320,000 to 360,000 francs. Most recently (2021), the association’s expenses amounted to almost 2.6 million francs.
A “parliament” with 21 members
The “parliament” of the city association will now be called the city synod, previously it was called the central church care. The 21 representatives of the synod will in future be elected at the congregational meetings and no longer determined by the church authorities as was previously the case. The members of the synod are now also given the right to make suggestions and to request an answer from the board.
If the statute is accepted, each of the seven congregations will have three seats in the synod. So far, the larger municipalities were allowed to provide more representatives. The city association will continue to be managed by a seven-member board of directors, in which “if possible” each municipality and the parish convention will be represented.
As part of the public consultation, 30 written comments were received on the first proposal for the statute. This was then adjusted selectively. For example, an even greater expansion of the office was rejected. This was because “too much centralization and possible patronage of the communities” was feared. The Central Church Council finally approved the revised statute by 13 votes to 0 with 2 abstentions.
David Herter is head of news for the city and region of Winterthur. He trained as a machine mechanic and founded a music club, is a father and trains young handball players. He has worked as an editor and journalist since 1999. In 2007 he graduated from the journalism school MAZ.
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