This is an "exclusive" post -- I don't think I have communicated it before, in spite of its significance. At the close of my city ministry, the Church sent me more than ten-thousand words of attorneys' letters. It was a blizzard. "Astounding", wrote the Church's tax adviser. This in spite of the Church, historically, having a policy of "no attorneys". What was it about? I was to set aside (quote) "any claims of whatsoever nature and howsoever arising from the contract of employment". To put it too simply, the letters effectively scrapped many years of pension -- a massive loss to myself, and a massive gain to the Church. As for the rest -- a greater sum than the pension -- I would see this only "upon signature of this agreement". It was, so to speak, holding a gun to my head, and I wasn't in a position to delay. I asked city attorneys to take it in hand -- and my costs soared, at more than R1 000 an hour -- yet my attorneys were kind. The letters from the Church, in the meantime, looked strange all over. We challenged the attorneys (two law firms): among other things, who goes there? Was this really the Church? One attorney abandoned his demands (quote) "entirely without prejudice". I wondered what I had spent my money on. The other vanished completely when my attorneys sent him the following request (one may click on this to enlarge). I still await the pension, among other things.
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