The key message of the parables on stewardship is revealed the moment the master asks the steward to make an accounting of his service. The master expects the steward to have increased the goods of the enterprise and asks for proof of the steward’s industry. Some of the stewards are ready. Others are not.

Stewardship begins with receiving God’s gifts of time, talent, and treasure with gratitude. God’s gifts are given, not to be hidden for fear of loss, but to be shared out in the open for the good of all. We know that human beings flourish best in community where others can assist us, inspire us, and encourage us to live up to our full potential. When we help each other be accountable for our gifts, the good we are able to do increases. 

Our parish is making its first, formal Catholic Stewardship Renewal according to the best practices in accounting for our time, talent and treasure. That means that every parish family is being invited to formally commit to sharing their blessings generously, sacrificially and proportionately in justice and love with others. Families will fill out the time, talent, and treasure forms in their family’s Stewardship Renewal Packet and return them to the parish office.

Prayerfully filling out the forms and returning them to the office is a sign that you recognize that we need each other to stay faithful in our commitments.  This process helps you to COMMIT to using your time and talent for the betterment of the parish and the mission of the Church.  Your commitment of time for the Lord, especially in faithfully attending Sunday Mass, in daily prayer, and in faith formation will be the solid foundation of faith upon which we can count in our mission to bring others to Christ. Your commitment of talent is what makes us truly a community who believes that God has given each of us unique gifts to assist people who cry out in any need. The Ministry Guide is a great resource listing all the ministries of the parish, offering something for everyone to commit to.

Parish leadership, in the form of the Parish Council, the School Advisory Council, the Finance Council, and the Stewardship Council, will ensure that your commitment to sharing your talents with others in ministry and service is welcomed and put to good use. These parish groups  are essential to managing, coordinating, and strengthening our ministries. The commissions especially will be able to see the talents and interests of parishioners. Using your skills and abilities, we can improve and expand the services we offer to each other and the broader community in which we live.

PLEDGING  to stay current with your sacrificial gift of treasure that supports the parish’s work will let us continue our many ministries. Making your offering a faithful tithe of your financial resources is an act of faith. Tithing is also an act of worship. It is no accident that the fruits of our labor, the collection, are offered at the same time as the presentation of the bread and the wine. Just as bread and wine represent “the work of our hands,” money represents the results of our work. This monetary gift represents a gift of ourselves to God from hard work and sacrifice. Just as God transforms the bread and the wine and gives them back to us to share His life, God accepts our monetary gifts and transforms them into the work of the parish. 

The new stewardship model of tithing simplifies your offering for parish works and ministries, and those of the universal Church. Almost all second collections are eliminated; for example, the U.S. Bishops’ universal and emergency appeals. Your Quarter Sunday donations that support the parish’s direct charity should now be included in the total contribution that makes up your tithe. This will allow us to not only continue our customary charity in our local community, but expand our assistance as more parishioners engage in faithful tithing. Also, your contributions to the Diocesan Catholic Stewardship Appeal (CSA) are now part of your parish tithe. Additionally, while the parish will keep some of our traditional major fundraisers, our efforts for community building can be more focused without the complications of fundraising where the transactions of goods can sometimes overshadow the spiritual goals of our mission.

In turn, parish leadership will embrace stewardship’s requirement of greater transparency and accountability. The pastor, the parish staff, and the various leadership councils and commissions will continue to improve the communication, advanced planning, and processes of consultation that will strengthen trust that we are collaborating in a common mission. This is especially important in budgeting for our ministries. Engaging more parishioners in the work of the parish commissions will go a long way toward sharing the responsibilities of oversight of our ministries, identifying the concerns that arise throughout the year, and responding appropriately with the resources that are available.

Our support for the local Catholic Church in mid-Missouri, the Diocese of Jefferson City, will also conform to the stewardship model. The customary cathedraticum tax and other payments we made to support Diocesan operations and missions, and your CSA contributions, have been simplified to become our parish’s monthly tithe to the local Church. This model of tithing boldly professes the apostolic foundation of our Catholic faith, trusting in turn that our bishop is a good steward himself of all that Christ has entrusted to him.

At this time, with the receipt of the parish Stewardship Renewal Packet, we ask that you formally commit to sharing your blessings with our faith community. Each fall hereafter, you will have the chance to renew your commitment to faithful stewardship formally, even though your tithe, time commitment, and ministry might be largely the same. We suggest you use the following process to help you discern your stewardship commitment.

· REVIEW – Is my family actively participating in the life of the parish using their God-given talents and sacrificially giving our material gifts?
· REDIRECT – do we need to redirect our time, talent, and treasure?
· REAFFIRM – confirming our pledged commitment of time, talent and treasure.
· RECOMMIT – saying YES! We want to live the stewardship way of life and actively participate in the life of our parish.

The new Catholic Stewardship Renewal process is not simply an administrative exercise. It is an annual communal activity geared toward strengthening us on our road to discipleship, our parishioners’ way of proclaiming that we are part of the Mary Immaculate community. We support the parish’s mission and vision through our faith and commitment. It is an efficient way to show others they can count on us to participate in the evangelizing mission of the Church.