UP FRONT
STEWARDSHIP: Faith or Money?
Thomas W. Gornick

Stewardship is often branded as another word for money. Speaking the word stewardship causes some to roll their eyes and silently say, “Here we go again.” The reaction is not surprising since stewardship has been used over the years by some religious leaders as a nice way to talk about fiscal and budget issues, whether shortages or funding new projects. It becomes a fix for checkbook issues.

Background and Definition

With that perception in mind, in 1992 the bishops of the United States voted 208 to 12 to adopt and promulgate a pastoral letter, Stewardship: A Disciple’s Response. The letter defined and integrated stewardship as part of discipleship—a response to our baptism. In the pastoral they posed two questions: “Who is a Christian disciple?" and "Who is a Christian steward?” To the first they wrote that a disciple is “One who responds to Christ’s call, follows Jesus, and shapes his or her life in imitation of Christ’s.” To the second, a Christian steward is “One who receives God’s gifts gratefully, cherishes and tends them in a responsible and accountable manner, shares them in justice and love with others, and returns them with increase to the Lord.” The definitions of both discipleship and stewardship are shaped, guided, and lived out in relationship with God, his son Jesus the Christ, and our neighbor. Pope Benedict XVI stresses the importance of relationship when he writes in the opening of his encyclical Deus caritas est, God Is Love, that “being Christian is…the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction.” Stewardship is about a faithful relationship, wholeness, and holiness—a way of life.

The bishops’ stewardship pastoral letter surprises many who read it even now, more than fifteen years after it was published. In 1992, it also disappointed some, especially those who wanted a clear statement on giving and the need for funds. The letter came out of a time not unlike our own; many dioceses and the bishops’ conference faced serious financial crises. Ironically, the U.S. Bishops’ Ad Hoc Committee on Stewardship, created in 1988, had to finance its own work because the larger conference was broke and had recently cut positions. It was also a time when studies on religious giving were reporting that Catholics were offering a smaller share of their income to the church each week.

The tension can best be demonstrated by the reaction of Francis Butler, president of Foundations and Donors Interested in Catholic Activities (FADICA) and underwriter of the ad hoc committee’s work. He was quoted in a National Catholic Reporter article, “The bishops failed to tell people the serious crisis facing the institution.” (January 8, 1993) Butler thought the document was “idealistic and professorial.” The late Archbishop Thomas J. Murphy of Seattle, chair of the drafting committee, summarized the bishops’ understanding and the letter as quoted in Behind the Stained Glass Windows by John and Sylvia Ronsvalle, “[Stewardship] should be rooted in the Eucharist, in discipleship, in baptism—stewardship is meant to be followed as a way of life. There is a reality of the need for more resources in the church. What is needed, however, is a long–term faith response, not a quick fix.” In many talks, Archbishop Murphy called stewardship “a choice of the heart.”

Two words are important to our understanding—the Greek word “Oikonómos,” the other, gift. “Oikonómos” is best translated as one who manages or cares for the master’s wealth in the mind of the master. “Oikonómos” is used for example when Jesus answers the question, “Who then is a wise and faithful steward…” (Lk12:42-44; Mt 25: 14-30). Everything is from and through the Lord; everything belongs to the Lord as first proclaimed in Genesis. We are caretakers and stewards of all God’s creation and people. Everything we are, everything we have comes from the Lord as a gift to be used for the common good and returned with increase to the Lord (Mt 24:14-30). Gift humbles us to know the gracious God who has entrusted the earth and its fullness to us. The pastoral letter, later quoted in the United States Catholic Catechism for Adults, states, “Christian stewards recognize God as the origin of life, the giver of freedom, and the source of all things.” Both “Oikonómos” and gift are rooted in relationship. Both involve trust and accountability. Both serve as foundational concepts for Christian stewardship.

On any given day in the parish or diocese, stewardship is a challenge. On the immediate level there are ever growing needs for resources to support ministry and, the more difficult, forming ourselves and communities into disciples. Research and news stories on church giving continue to report that Catholics give less per capita than other denominational members. Briefly addressing the first, immediate fiscal needs should be approached with clear upfront communications. Families, when faced with financial difficulty due to an emergency, loss of a job or other situation, gather around the kitchen table. They talk, share, and then take appropriate action. In a parish when there is need, the pastor and leaders should immediately and with compassion gather the community around the altar and explain the situation and consider the future. Parishioners respect and respond to honest communication and inclusion in problem solving. This is addressing a fiscal issue; this is not the summation of stewardship. Calling a financial or increased offertory program stewardship confuses and misses the opportunity to form Christian stewards and connect giving with discipleship.

Stewardship as a way of life will not happen with a single homily, announcement, bulletin notices, or another program. Stewardship is lived discipleship. The International Catholic Stewardship Council (ICSC) annually recognizes a parish with the Archbishop Murphy Award for outstanding stewardship. Every parish recipient in telling his or her story emphasizes that being a “stewardship parish” took years and was a long-term, continuing process.

Conversion

Stewardship begins in conversion; it is lived out in community and grows through communication, collaboration, and contribution. Conversion, metanoia or change of heart, is the first step that results in Christian vocation. “Mature disciples make a conscious decision to follow Jesus, no matter what the costs.” The Holy Spirit initiates conversion as gift. Pope John Paul II in the Apostolic Exhortation Christifideles laici, The Vocation and Mission of the Lay Faithful in the Church and in the World, outlined the process as listening to God and the church, prayer, reflection, discernment, and recognizing our place in the world in response to our unique call. The parish must be the place and resource for this process to happen. The parish must be focused on mission and be evangelizing. Accepting the call to conversion empowers us to join in the mission of Jesus for others and ourselves. The pastoral letter states, “Vocations are communicated, discerned, accepted and lived out within a community of faith which is a community of disciples.”

Community

Conversion joins us to a faith community. Believing begins with a welcome. The community supports each member through words and deeds. A dollar bill may be for some parishes the most representative denomination in the weekly offertory. The stack of dollars leads staff and counters to comment on the miserly giving. However, if you look at the dollars from the view of the givers, they can be a powerful message from the givers on their level of participation in the parish, and more important, how welcome they feel. Working with the rite of Christian initiation of adults has provided a wealth of stories about the importance of hospitality and welcome to building an engaged and active parish community. Most adults indicate they visit the parish on their own and contact staff independently before they actually make a commitment. They check us out. Will they “like” the parish or will they “fit” in? The fastest growing non-denominational churches make hospitality the foundation of their outreach and growth plans. Why do so many Americans pay three dollars or more for twenty-five cents’ worth of coffee at Starbucks? It is about the experience, environment, and hospitality created by the local store. Our human nature requires community. Believing flourishes with belonging. Church membership and participation are influenced by our materialism, individualism, consumerism, and services culture. Before parishioners give generously they feel welcomed and their needs are being met. Faith communities invite neighbors and themselves out of isolation and self-centeredness into life. Community is an essential ingredient to forming a “stewardship parish.”

Communication

Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini wrote in Communicating Christ to the World that basic to God’s communication with the human family is “its gratuity.” The communication event, the Incarnation, is a gift from God to all of us. Communication forms and deepens relationships. The pilgrim faith community requires each member to be open and in a dialogue of faith and love. Yet in parish life we are reluctant in so many ways to see all our communication, from proclamation of the gospel to the weekly bulletin notice, as part of a way of life we embrace and work at as disciples. We let Matthew’s admonition regarding alms, prayer, and fasting to not let the left hand know what the right is doing (Mt 6:3) guide communication, rather than being salt and light for the world (Mt 5: 13-14). Communication is essentially an evangelization activity. A great restaurant, movie or Web site quickly becomes a topic of conversation. We eagerly share our experience. How much more should we communicate the good news about the parish community and the faith story we share and profess?

Communication in the twenty-first century takes on more variety and complexity. It can also be a challenge and competitor to the gospel. John Paul II in Redemptoris missio, On the Permanent Validity of the Church’s Missionary Mandate, called the world of communication the Areopagus that is changing the world. Paul VI wrote in Evangelii nuntiandi, On Evangelization in the Modern World, “The Church would feel guilty before the Lord if she did not utilize these powerful means…it is through [the media] that she proclaims from the housetops.” Communication through the many media becomes part of the daily life of the parish through Web sites, newsletters, podcasts, catechetical materials, and more. The parish leadership informs the community about all of its activities using a variety of communication tools, becoming transparent, open, and welcoming. Parishioners and those seeking a faith community, especially the young, connect and network in various new ways. In 2003 Pope John Paul II offered daily electronic spiritual text messages to the Italian people; 50 percent of our children say the Internet is the most important medium in the home, in addition to having personal Web pages, and over a quarter of all Internet searches are questions of faith, spirituality, and religion. Stewardship grows by witnessing good news and the Good News. The new technologies will challenge and allow new and creative ways to make communication a significant element in parish life.

Collaboration

Collaboration is the fourth behavior that builds a community of disciples living a stewardship way of life. It involves, according to the U.S. bishops, “the work of creation, redemption, and sanctification; [it] involves stewardship in the most profound sense.” In today’s parish two obstacles to collaboration stand out—an attitude of ownership and time. Several years ago in a gathering of parish leaders to discuss the challenges with some new outreach initiatives, a parish leader stopped the discussion when she indicated that the real issue for change was the successful resolution of the dispute over whether to serve Folgers or Starbucks coffee with the doughnuts after Mass. It seems in her parish the older established members of the parish had been drinking Folgers since anyone could remember, and some younger families new to the area had donated Starbucks. Some parishioners were even suggesting the new families have a separate gathering place. Acts 2 models the inclusive church we long for, where all things are shared in common. In baptism we are called by name to collaborate in the mission of Jesus. The Second Vatican Council renewed and affirmed the role of all the faithful in the life of the church. A stewardship community grows and is strengthened through collaboration. Ministry is shared and not “owned.” Our Christian witness is not determined by the parish activities we control. Discipleship requires us, the bishops remind us, “to put aside the craving for domination, possession and control.” Parishes usually find themselves somewhere between little or no collaboration and active full community involvement. A commitment to be a stewardship community mandates a conscious decision to work with one another. It requires an intentional action on the part of all to involve all. It results from a full understanding of “Oikonómos”. The mission, church, and parish are not ours. They belong to the Lord and we are the stewards.

Collaboration becomes more critical when we consider time and the schedules of our parishioners. In 1998, American Demographics reported that Americans spend more time traveling to and from work than eating meals. In 2004 Nancy Koehn of the Harvard Business School said on National Public Radio’s “Morning Edition,” “We’re working harder between home and work, sleeping less, feeling overstressed. We’re actually quite tired and we’re feeling the pressures.” Anna Quindlen in a 2005 Newsweek cover story described the life of today’s mom falling “somewhere between the Stations of the Cross and a decathlon.” Stewardship of time must include, family, work, prayer, and a sacramental life. Our parish plans and activities must look at the intense, over-committed lives of our members. Time is a limited gift—168 hours a week. Family, faith, and work thrive when lived in partnership with God, sharing in a divine-human collaboration. How do we minister to and with the busy, the stressed, and over-committed? Collaboration empowers all members to give the time they have available and know it will be respected and valued.

Contribution

Some parish leaders want to concentrate their stewardship efforts on one specific obligation—contributions. For our consideration, it has been left to last. Sharing our gifts comes out of our baptism and is truly the result of parishes that focus on conversion, community, communication, and collaboration. Sharon Miller, associate director of Auburn Seminary, in a study on the reasons for religious giving, found that Assemblies of God and Mennonite congregations gave significantly more than Catholics or Presbyterians. The more generous congregations gave out of relationship with God and recognition that God was the giver of all things —”Oikonómos” and gift. For Catholics, the strongest motivators were paying bills and obligation. The Gallup Organization has also found that those who say they are spiritually satisfied and fully engaged in their faith community are the most generous with time and money.

We began our discussion with the perception that stewardship is about money. Generous sharing of resources, specifically treasure, constitutes only one element of discipleship. Full participation in the mission of Jesus results in sharing our whole being, not just our coin. Saints Paul and Peter tell us we are a community of gifts and our gifts are to be used in service to others (1 Cor. 12; 1 Pt 4:10). Parish stewardship, the bishops say, “means cherishing and fostering the gifts of all, while using one’s own gifts to serve…” For example, when a woman walks in to register at the parish office and indicates she would also would like to volunteer, how do we encourage and raise up the variety of talents and gifts she offers? Do we immediately respond based on first impressions and our agenda or do we take the time to discover a person with unique gifts to offer our community? The traditional gifts of time, talent, and treasure—gifts originally given by a gracious God—must be valued and used in a responsible manner for the common good.

Getting Started

Where do we begin? Stewardship begins in silence. We must initially act like Mary rather than Martha, sitting at the feet of Jesus, the master (Lk 38:10-42). Archbishop Thomas Murphy said we begin any stewardship process or formation “by prayerful reflection and reading of the pastoral letter itself.” He posed the question, “What do I own, and what owns me?” The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops published a tenth anniversary edition of Stewardship: A Disciple’s Response and included a resource manual. It is available in English and Spanish. The process begins with the pastor and staff prayerfully reading the pastoral. The second step is to walk with parish leaders, councils, and committees through the letter. Sharing the vision will take time. Be patient; resist every urge to skip to the resource manual to start “doing.” Consider including Go and Make Disciples: A National Plan and Strategy for Catholic Evangelization in the United States as a companion resource. The two documents provide foundational ideas and direction to build up a community of disciples. Stewardship begins with God through the power of the Holy Spirit. We are invited to come, see, believe, and serve. Jesus is the way. Stewardship challenges us to respond yes, regardless of the costs.

Deacon Thomas W. Gornick is Director of Evangelization for the Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon.