Crystal Cathedral Cuts Jobs as Donations Lag

The Crystal Cathedral has eliminated 37 jobs to make up for a “significant” shortfall in donations in recent months that church leaders blame on the economy’s downturn.

Six percent of the 600-member work force at the Garden Grove church and “Hour of Power” television show is being cut through layoffs and attrition, church officials said.

Cuts include closure of an infant care nursery and elimination of 12 positions on Executive Pastor Glenn DeMaster’s staff. An assistant to the church’s founder, the Rev. Robert H. Schuller, also was laid off.

Over the last five years, the “Hour of Power” television audience has been relatively flat at 1.3 million, as has attendance at the Crystal Cathedral, which averages about 8,000 each Sunday.