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Managing the Household of Faith with Care
Recently, I spent time at St. Meinrad's Archabbey and seminary
in Indiana attending a "Healthy Congregations" seminar,
led by Dr. Pete Steinke. One of the topics we discussed was stewardship.
In short, churches prefer to ignore the issue of stewardship. Why?
Because stewardship has unfortunately become synonymous with money
and money is an emotional issue that creates a great deal of anxiety
for most people. Therefore, ignore it and stewardship goes away,
right? Not so fast. The word stewardship (oikonomie) simply means
"management of a household." Steinke writes:
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The Rev. Mark MacWhorter of First Christian
Church in Minneapolis, Minn., designs balloon creatures
for children at 2003 General Assembly. DHM photo by Angela
Herrmann.
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"Stewardship includes one's responsibility for every aspect
of individual and community life. It is managing every gift one
has to offer. Individual gifts are resources for the well-being
of all. The scriptures characterize human nature as communal and
interdependent. We are created to share our gifts, resources, and
selves with others." While the giving of our finances is certainly
a part of stewardship, it is merely one component of a much larger
issue. Let me share some "factoids" shared at the conference
regarding stewardship. These tidbits come from three sources: The
American Paradox (David G. Myers), Bowling Alone (Robert D. Putnam),
and Behind the Stained Glass Windows (John and Sylvia Ronsvalle).
I found this information fascinating and enlightening. What do you
think?
In America giving has been declining as a portion of income for
almost 30 years.
- Twenty-four percent of people give 45 percent of all charitable
gifts.
- The overall giving patterns of those never attending church
is 1.1 percent of income. The overall giving patterns of those
who attend church weekly is two times greater.
- The number of households making charitable gifts give proportionately
less, declining from 2.1 percent of income (1967) to 1.6 percent
(1997).
- Volunteering is among the strongest predictors of giving financially.
Sixty-three percent (63 percent ) of volunteers are financial
donors, only 17 percent of non-volunteers.
- People earning more than $100,000 annually give away the same
percentage of their income, 2.3 percent , as those with the lowest
incomes.
- In many congregations, the annual giving falls within the $200
to $1600 range, or about $16 to $35 per month, or $4 to $30 per
week.
- Volunteering has risen for the average American from six times
a year (1970) to eight times per year. But virtually the entire
increase is among people aged 60 and over. It has declined for
those aged 30 to 59, and increased slightly among 20 somethings.
- Forty-six percent who classified themselves as "highly
spiritually committed" were presently working among the poor,
the infirm, or the elderly, while only 22 percent of those "highly
uncommitted" were doing the same works of charity.
- Among one notable self-giving group—adoptive parents—63
percent reported attending worship services often.
- When asked, volunteers said they became involved because "someone
asked me." When non-blood donors were asked why they didn't
give blood, the most common response was "nobody asked."
- According to David Myers, "people who eat with friends
and are active in their churches are happier than those who don't.
Let's look forward to breaking bread and sharing a meal together
at our Lord's table this Sunday.
—Donald
Chase is pastor of Harrodsburg
(Ky.) Christian Church
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