DO WE HAVE A CHOICE?

            Bishop John J. McRaith, an original member of the U.S. Catholic Bishops’ Ad Hoc Committee on Stewardship, had this to say: “Once one chooses to become a disciple of Jesus Christ, stewardship is not an option.”

            This statement by Bishop McRaith summarizes what I believe is important to understand about stewardship: it is intrinsically linked to discipleship. Too often, we view stewardship on one hand as fund raising and talking about money, and if we are really profound, as a way to give back to God a portion of what God has given to us. On the other hand, we look at discipleship as a way of being in relationship with God. Both of those things are correct (partially), but we miss the fact that both of them, stewardship and discipleship, have to work hand in hand. There isn’t a choice.

            Discipleship requires us to surrender ourselves. Once we become disciples of Jesus Christ, then we realize our responsibilities and work

·         on being God’s hands and feet in the world, on sharing the love and the good news of Jesus Christ with the world,

·         on being in service to the world, and

·         on making disciples of Jesus Christ in the world.

·         But, as disciples, we also have a responsibility to share part of what God has given us.

 

            Nothing that we have is ours. We can’t work hard enough or long enough; we can’t buy enough stuff; we can’t….essentially, the operative word is WE. None of it is ours. We don’t have the power all on our own because everything is God’s. God loves us so much that he gave us grace (unearned), gave us Jesus Christ to forgive our sin (unpunished), essentially God gives us everything!

            In a stewardship message that I shared earlier in the month, I used the example of ten apples. All ten apples are given to us by God, and God loves us so much that we are allowed to use nine apples any way we want. We are only asked to offer back one of the apples so that God’s work in the world can be accomplished.

            Note the word offer? It would, of course, be a whole lot easier if God simply gave us the nine apples and kept the other one for God’s self. But that’s not what happens. Because we are in partnership with God, we HAVE to be part of it and we do that by making the offering back to God…not because God needs anything from us, but because we have to make that offering in love and as disciples.

            “As each one has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewardship of God’s varied grace.” (1 Peter 4:10)

            So using the gifts we receive shows us being disciples and being good stewards. How? Stewardship: A Disciple’s Response gives various examples of the works, services and ministries of a good steward:

·         Evangelism and witness to the Gospel

·         Faith formation

·         Stewardship of the church

·         Stewardship of simplicity of life

·         Stewardship for ecology of the globe

·         Witness in the marketplace and institution

·         Financial accountability in person and parochial affairs

·         Stewardship of collaboration in church life and ministries

·         Stewardship of social justice and the work for peace.

            Do you suddenly feel the need to look back at the series of blogs I did earlier in the year about John Wesley’s Manifesto? I did, because so much of it seems to match, doesn’t it?

            So, as disciples, we are stewards. As stewards, we are disciples. There isn’t a choice. You can’t be one without the other. May it be so!