Stewardship Tithing

From the very beginning God has asked men and women to care for this world and make it a good place to live. From time immemorial people have responded to the blessings of life by offering a sacrifice to God signifying their awareness that God is the ultimate source of all they have and that their time in this world is limited. To care for our world and to acknowledge in gratitude that God is the source of all and then share our blessings with others is called Stewardship. Indeed God gives it all and we are called to share.

Stewardship is a way of life that flows from gratitude. We are called to share a portion of:

• Our time by spending time in prayer.

• Our talent by working with others.

• Our treasure by donating to worthy causes.

To give 10% of one's first fruits to God, is called tithing and it is the way our ancestors in the faith expressed their gratitude to God for all they had received. Tithing is the Biblical norm.

Today the Church asks its members to be stewards. On the one hand this means we are to care for our world ecologically speaking. It also means that we are called to give sacrificially of our time, talent and treasure. Our parish, like other parishes in the Archdiocese, asks parishioners to give 5% of their time, talent and treasure directly to the parish and 5% to other charitable causes of their choice.

True Stewardship is planned, proportionate and sacrificial.
Dowload the worksheet.

• It is planned so that one does not give as an afterthought or only out of what is left over.

• It is proportionate to what one has received.

• It is sacrificial so that making this gift is a not only from one's excess but truly signifies that all has been received as a gift.

While the Biblical norm remains that of a tithe, one may choose to give more or less. Ultimately it is a question of what is in one's heart.