Passionate Steward - 10th Anniversary Edition

Recovering Christian Stewardship from Secular Fundraising 23
In the wake of the current scandals concerning the sexual abuse
of young men and women, the Church will find itself lost if it
continues to rely upon providing reasons and tools to induce people
to give. In April 2002, The New York Times declared that the
Archdiocese of Boston was in critical financial trouble because
people had stopped putting money in the collection plate to protest
the way Cardinal Law had handled cases of abuse. While it is
understandable that grief may lead people to imprudent acts, it is
necessary to wonder if a well developed steward would ever withhold
gifts to God because of human sin. Sadly, with the current trend to see
giving through the lens of a “Donor Bill of Rights” it is
understandable how a donor could withhold an offering for political
gain or cause.
Once stewards learn to think of themselves as mere donors,
and of their money as leverage, it is a short step to the erosion of our
ability to continue to provide for ministry, feed the hungry, clothe the
poor, and shelter the homeless. Depriving the Church of one’s gifts
only exacerbates the problem: the Church is now guilty not only of
misconduct, but of failing to fulfill its mission—which, according to
the commandment given through Isaiah, is to care for the poor, the
widow and the orphan.
How we emerge from this state will say much about our
values and character as a community of faith. Our future depends
not upon treating our financial problems like ciphers to be solved,
or seeing parishioners through a utilitarian lens as the answer to our
financial problems. We must help every individual Christian
understand and embrace the idea that our vocation calls us to give,
give freely, give generously, and most importantly, to give joyfully
in praise of God, and in support of the Church which continues to
preach the Gospel, and strives to turn away from evil to do good.
Should we continue to embrace those secular fundraising
practices which have taken root in our house, our credibility will
only continue to decline amongst the faithful. For example, in the