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Stewardship - 2007

Summer has ended and the pace of life is back in high gear. This is especially true at Trinity Cathedral, where we are beginning a new church school year and all of the programs and ministries of the fall season. So, of course it is time to kick off the annual Stewardship Campaign. Look for announcements of upcoming stewardship events in the Carillon and the Sunday bulletins. For now, please consider the following as we begin our Stewardship Campaign for 2008. 

Simply stated, stewardship is an expression of gratitude to God. It reminds us that we are the administrators, not the owners, of our assets. It fills a need deep within each of us to worship God and to thank God for the abundant blessings showered upon us.

Stewardship is based on the fact that all that we have and all that we are comes from God. We commit ourselves to stewardship as a way of thanking God for all his blessings; returning to God a portion of the time, talent, and treasure allotted to us:

Each week, we choose what will be done with the 168 hours we have available to us. Good stewardship of time means we will share some of that time with God in prayer, praise and thanksgiving, and some time caring for the needs of others.

Every person has a flair for something. Good stewardship of talent means we identify our talents and use them to glorify God and to help other people.

Although the amounts vary significantly, we all bring some kind of revenue into our households. Good stewardship of treasure means we intentionally plan to donate a set percentage of our income to the church and other charities. As a final act of stewardship, we should prayerfully consider leaving a portion of our assets to the Church in our wills.

-adapted from the R.C. Diocese of Lubbock, TX 

On a spiritual level, Trinity recognizes financial generosity as central to the Christian faith. The concept of charity as part of stewardship dates to the Church's earliest days, when the first Christians became widely known for sharing their wealth with others. Now more than ever, Christians must honestly confront the issue of money as part of their faith journey. The faithful use of one's own money and the spiritual responsibilities associated with honoring God's abundance is a crucial challenge for a church and its followers. When done reverently, pledging helps one develop an appreciation for the proper role of money in one's life. Each year, Trinity asks its members and friends to assess their financial priorities as part of their faith, in the hope that we can better understand God's role in our lives. The following perspectives are offered as we all reexamine how we can support Trinity in 2008.  

In recent years we have asked members why they give to Trinity Cathedral. Their answers varied, but all expressed the belief that Trinity is a special place, one worth supporting. More importantly, they all said that their gifts to Trinity, over time, give back to them a sense of fulfillment and belonging to a community that is often lost in the busy comings and goings of life in Silicon Valley. 

Many longstanding members see pledging as a non-negotiable part of their membership at Trinity. They are a part of the Trinity community and feel they have a responsibility to keep the church together and help its ministries grow. They have seen Trinity through some good times as well as some tough times. Keeping Trinity vibrant, supporting the outreach, music and new ministries, as well as the physical structure, is important to them. 

Newer members see their pledge as a first step in getting involved, but also as an expression of trust in the church itself. It's their main outlet for charitable giving. They often feel safer giving to the church than to other places because they know where their money is going, feel good about where it's going, and know that it's going to a good purpose. 

Several members have noted that it can be a difficult leap of faith to pledge, particularly for the first time. It can be a real challenge to entrust our hard-earned money to others, even to our church. The fact that pledging is a spiritual as well as a financial decision does not make it any easier. Like every other church, Trinity has to try to challenge its members while still allowing them to find their own way to be generous. Money is a delicate subject; it is a very emotional issue with people, especially when it's tied up with spiritual considerations. 

Deciding exactly how much to pledge each year can be its own challenge. Every year members look at what they can afford, consider things like their annual incomes, expected expenses, and tax consequences, and try to figure how to do as much as they can. Many of our members said they started out giving small amounts, and worked to increase their giving each year. Many increased their pledge when they got an increase in income.  

Members who have been pledging for several years said that pledging not only gets easier over time, but its meaning starts to change, almost deepening, into an important devotion of faith. "The older I've gotten, the less I've seen this as a duty and the more I've seen it as a privilege. It's like I start to see more and more how lucky I am to be able to share what I have." Other members noted that their interest and even their approach to pledging can change as they get more involved with the church and its various ministries.

Both new and longstanding members of Trinity have expressed a sense of optimism for Trinity’s future, especially given the recent growth in new membership, new ministries and our involvement in the downtown community.  

"I would encourage people to give out of a sense of gratitude, of blessing," said one member. "Think of how many blessings you have. We can all sit down and think of 100 ways in which we’ve been blessed. Then try to put a monetary value on that. So much of what we've been given is priceless. If you have your health, what price would you put on that? Or think of those you love and those who love you. You don't want others to love you out of some kind of obligation. That's how God works, too. God wants us to love him out of the abundance of our hearts." 

Stay tuned for coming attractions of the Stewardship Campaign for 2008. If you are interested in stewardship or in helping Trinity's pledge campaign, please do not hesitate to contact Charles Key, Rosemary Joy or Diane Bird.

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