Settings and configuration
Settings is where admins shape Forge to fit your church — your organization details, who can do what, the words you use, and which features are turned on. Most of this is set once and revisited only when something changes.
Organization settings
Your organization details appear on statements, messages, and reports, so they're worth getting right early. From Settings you can set:
- Organization name and logo.
- Primary address.
- Contact information — phone, email, and website.
- Default timezone.
- Default currency.
Team management
Bring your staff and volunteers into Forge and control their access from Settings > Team.
- Go to Settings > Team.
- Click Invite Member.
- Enter the person's email address.
- Select the role or roles to assign.
- Send the invite.
They'll receive an email with a link to create their account. You can remove access here later if someone leaves.
Roles and permissions
Roles control what each person can see and do. Forge includes roles suited to common jobs, including:
- Admin — full organization access.
- Finance — contributions, funds, pledges, and reports.
- Pastor — messaging, pastoral care, and engagement.
- Staff — operational access to most features.
- Ministry Leader — ministry-specific access.
- Volunteer Coordinator — volunteer scheduling and team messaging.
- Facilities — assets and facility requests.
- Auditor — read-only access to all data.
To change someone's role, go to Settings > Permissions, find them in the list, edit their role assignments, and save. Changes take effect right away. A person can hold more than one role, in which case their access combines the roles.
Terminology customization
Churches use different words for the same things, and Forge can match yours. In Settings > Preferences you can rename terms across the app — for example:
- "Member" to "Congregant" or "Parishioner."
- "Contribution" to "Donation" or "Gift."
- "Service" to "Mass" or "Worship."
Once changed, your wording appears throughout Forge, so the app speaks your church's language.
Turning features on and off
Forge is modular. You can keep the features you use front and center and set aside the ones you don't, so your team isn't navigating past tools they never touch. Adjust this from Settings as your needs change.
Preferences
Beyond terminology, Settings > Preferences is the home for organization-wide defaults. Set them here once and they carry through the rest of the app.
Tips
- Set your organization name, logo, timezone, and currency before you generate statements or send messages.
- Assign the narrowest role that lets someone do their job. You can always add more access later.
- Customize terminology early so your team learns the app in your church's own words.
Common questions
Who can change settings? Settings are an admin responsibility. Admins have full organization access.
Can someone have more than one role? Yes. When a person holds multiple roles, their access is the combination of all of them.
Will renaming terms break anything? No. Terminology changes only affect the labels you see. The underlying data stays the same.
Was this helpful, or missing something? Let us know.