Catholic Stewardship of Emotions during Tragedy and Disaster

 

When Natural Disaster Strikes

When a natural disaster strikes, there are no easy answers.  The pain is so horrible and so raw that the mind begins to shut down. One question those of us a step removed from disaster need to ask ourselves, is how do we as good stewards handle the emotional impact of tragedy?  There are many very human reactions.  As a young person, I tried to hide from tragedy, never listening to the news, plugging my ears so I didn’t have to hear about anything that was sad. As a youth and young adult, I told myself that it was someone else’s problem and not my worry.  I built a thick shell and only acknowledged the bright side of life.  I learned that hiding from the bad in this world, or making it someone else’s problem didn’t make it go away. Sooner or later, we all have to face sadness and tragedy in our own lives, those of our loved ones, even our community and we need to be good stewards of our emotions to do that in a healthy way.  After working in a parish for many years, listening to stories of sadness that inevitably come to a church, helping to prepare funerals for old and young alike and being part of a community where I was aware of the tragedy and the joy in people’s lives, I learned through my dear Pastor and parish staff friends that turning to God is the only light in the darkness.  It is only right that we pray our way through tragedy in our own lives and in the lives of others.  Whether we are first responders, collectors of needed items, listeners to others grief, or givers of money, we are good stewards of our own emotions and warriors to help those hardest hit, if we pray without ceasing for God’s peace and presence in the midst of disaster.  A better person than I said:

“Jesus did not come to explain away suffering or remove it.  He came to fill it with His presence.”  Paul Claudel     This is not a pat answer or just easy words to say.  We are challenged to believe those words. I have heard many say when they look back on terrible tragedies in their lives, that God must have carried them through because without Him life would have been impossible.  Let us ‘steward’ (take care of) all who are suffering by responding as best we can by holding them continually in prayer.

Catholic Stewardship of Time and Talent

Archdiocese of Seattle Stewardship of Time and Talent

The date is fast approaching when our parishes will be called upon to begin their Stewardship of Time and Talent campaign.  We are excited about this pairing and look forward to seeing how our parishes customize their materials to incorporate both.

Speaking of materials….we are rolling out our new artwork during this Time and Talent opportunity.  We hope all of you notice our new text drawn from John 3:16.  We welcome your comments. 

Click on hyperlink below image for more info and to order your Time and Talent materials.

 

http://clients.printwest.net/customers/seattlearchstewardship/

Choose Username from Drop Down Menu

Password is:  ps2014

 

 

LA Religious Ed Congress

St. Charles Borromeo

Patron Saint of Catechists

 

I recently was fortunate to attend (for the first time) the LA Religious Ed Congress.  I walked through what seemed like miles of booths in the exhibitors’ hall.  Many of those booths were full of materials from publishers offering resources to help catechists.   While I think a catechist who lives and understands stewardship as receiving gratefully, cultivating responsibly, sharing lovingly, and returning generously and communicates that through their catechesis is what is needed, often it is helpful to have additional resources.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   

Here are a few of the more popular resources:

      ·         Taking Care of Gods Gifts (OSV) – for younger kids

·         7 Steps to Becoming Financially Free (OSV) – for adults    
 

·         Stewardship, A Way of Life.  Four Faith Sharing Sessions (Liturgical Press) – for adults

·         Catholic Strengths and Engagement Community website

·         Stewardship Bulletin Inserts (Parish Publishing)

·         A Catholic Kids Guide to Stewardship (Twenty Third Publications)

·         The Bible Speaks of Stewardship – A Four Session Study (Twenty Third Publications)
 

If anyone has used any of these resources, or has other ideas for resources, please let us all know via the comment section below.  Thank You.  Scott Bader

 

 

 

Catholic Stewardship Gardens

 

 

Gardens for Good!

 

Holy Cross Potato Harvest

 

Gardening is a great idea to bolster up becoming a good Catholic Steward.  Growing our own food is helpful for mind, body and soul.  The smell of the warm earth, the anticipation of crops, the act of planting a seed, all these things remind us that the Lord has blest us with all that we need.  He even sends the rain to nourish our crops (especially here in the Pacific Northwest.)  And…if we do  have a dry spell, water is only a hose-length away.  At harvest time, we have the opportunity to cook, eat and freeze or can our own produce and most gardeners will tell you that it tastes that much better for having grown it themselves. 

As Catholics we are called to be good Stewards of all that we have.  To what else does Catholic Stewardship call us?  In the US Bishops Pastoral Letter on Stewardship, we are called to receive God’s gifts gratefully, cherish and tend them in a responsible manner, share them, and return them with increase to the Lord.  What??? Share them?  We planted them.  We watered them.  We weeded them.  We harvested them.  Aren’t they ours?  If we are trying to be good Catholic Stewards, the answer is no.  Who do they belong to? … God, of course.  In the Pastoral Letter, we are called to share a planned and proportionate amount of what we have with the rest of the Body of Christ.  As we write this blog, several parishes who do just that, come to mind.  Holy Cross, Lake Stevens grows potatoes in an otherwise unusable portion of their property, giving away to local food banks over 72,000 pounds of potatoes.  St. Thomas More, Lynnwood has a Community Garden and gives 90% of their harvest to the Lynnwood Food Bank.  St. Thomas, Tukwila provides the ground for local refugees to grow their own food.  St. Stephen the Martyr, Renton asks parishioners to tend a given portion of the parish grounds creating a chance for gardeners to garden and the parish to save financial resources. These are but a few of our local parishes following the call to be good stewards of their land.  Are you a gardener?  Do you reap a harvest that you can share in a planned, proportionate way?  Right now is the time to begin planning summer gardens.  Perhaps you can plan a garden where you share some of your crops with the less fortunate in your area.  Remember what our Lord said, ‘‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.’” Matthew 25:40.  Gardening for Jesus!  A good Catholic Stewardship concept!  Please let us know of your good stewardship efforts.
Any material in this blog can be re posted or used in any publication.
 



 



Catholic Stewardship - Children Lead the Way

Immaculate Conception-Our Lady of Perpetual Help School -  3rd Grade Banner 

 
 

Forming Good Catholic Stewards

When we think of forming good Stewards, where should we start?  Immaculate Conception and Our Lady of Perpetual Help School in Everett has the right idea.  To form good Stewards they began at the beginning!  Third Graders at the school, created a Stewardship banner and had a Stewardship Prayer Service.  See below for how they began their prayer service.  Good Stewards in the making, indeed!  Please share with us any stewardship formation gems your parish or school might have by contacting parishstewardship@seattlearch.org.
 

Catholic School Stewardship Prayer Service

Student:  Good morning.  Welcome to our Stewardship Prayer Service. Stewardship is how we take care of everything God has given us.  God has given us a lot.  He has given us life.  He has given us family like moms and dads, grandmothers and grandfathers, or others who care for us.  God has given us a great world to live in and friends to share it with.

Student: Stewardship comes from the word steward.  A good steward is one who does a good job taking care of something.  If we want to be good stewards for God, we must take care of the many things God has given us.  That includes friendships and family, our gifts and abilities, our money and our world.  We respond to God’s great gifts by giving back to Him.  God is happy when we take care of these things and in return give to Him.

Student:  In order to be a good steward you must share yourself in prayer, service and giving.  There is nothing too big or too small for God.

Student:  God listens to ALL prayers.  God is always there willing and eager to listen to what we have to say.

Student:  God gives everyone the ability to do something well.  Use your abilities to serve your family, community and church.

Student:  Be giving of what God has given you.  Give your time, talent and treasure.  Give to make your world, your community, your school and your church a better place.

Student:  Be trustworthy; be a hard worker; be kind to others; be kind to the earth; be generous; and follow the Ten Commandments.

Opening Hymn (Please Stand) Choose your own hymn

Opening Prayer

Student:  We begin our Stewardship Prayer Service In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Good and loving God source of every grace and blessing.  We bring you thanks as we gather today to thank you for the many gifts you have given us.  We seek to be good stewards, Lord.  Bless us as we gather to share Your gifts.  Send us Your Spirit and be present among us – in the mouths of all who speak, in the ears of all who listen, as the heart of all we say and do, we ask in Jesus’ name.  Amen

 

(Customize Prayer Service as to the needs of your community)

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Great Evangelization Resource for Parishes

Welcome Newcomers Back On The Path

 

During Lent it is not uncommon – and hopefully we expect – to see the faces of those who rarely, if ever, come through our doors.  We want to encourage as many people as possible to come into our churches during Lent and Easter.   I’ve found a great deal of resources and inspiration from the Paulist Evangelization Ministries.  If you haven’t checked out the Paulist’s and their evangelization resources, or haven’t checked them out in a while, I’d encourage you to do so – especially during a season when we hope to see so many unfamiliar faces.  http://www.pemdc.org/    Sign up for their weekly Evangelization Exchange email.

Ash Wednesday, Stewardship and You

 

What does Ash Wednesday have to do with Stewardship?  We talk about Stewardship all during the year, so why does Ash Wednesday have such a powerful link to being good stewards.  Maybe it is because, it is the day when we are told, ‘remember, human, that you are dust and to dust you shall return.’  Humbling?  Absolutely!  But, maybe that’s what we need to hear.  This life is fleeting.  Our life with God is eternal.  He has given us everything that we have on this earth, we take care of it for a short time, then we return to God and everything here still belongs to Him. How will God judge the care we have taken of all that is His?  When our bodies are dust, will this world be a better place for us having been here?  Perhaps, we can make a commitment this Lent, to love and care for all that has been given to us, so that on leaving it behind, God will say to us in heaven, ‘Well done, good and faithful Servant.’   

St. Paul and Stewardship

 

The Apostle Paul

We learn from St. Paul, in this last Sunday's second reading from First Corinthians, that all good stewards must care for their gifts responsibly.  A crucial line is, 'it is of course required of stewards that they be found trustworthy.' 1 Corinthians 4:2, but what does that mean for us?

Perhaps, it is easier for us to understand, when we recall that God is just giving us temporary custody, as stewards, as caretakers, of all that we have.  Everything really belongs to God and ultimately must be returned to Him!

As stewardship leaders in our parishes, it is our role to remind our parishioners that all of us must examine how trustworthy we have been in using the gifts God has given each of us, according to His purposes. After contemplating below, feel free to use in the stewardship section of your bulletin or wherever it may help your parishioners:

As we read the below scripture from St. Paul, let us examine our hearts to see if we are using our resources in a responsible way.  In any area for which we find ourselves wanting, we can ask the Lord to help us be trustworthy stewards of the gifts that we have been given.

1 Corinthians Chapter 4: 1-5

Brothers and Sisters:
Thus should one regard us; as servants of Christ
and stewards of the mysteries of god.
Now it is of course required of stewards
that they be found trustworthy.
It does not concern me in the least
that I be judged by you or any human tribunal;
I do not even pass judgment on myself;
I am not conscious of anything against me,
but I do not thereby stand acquitted;
the one who judges me is the Lord.
Therefore do not make any judgment before the appointed time,
until the Lord comes,
for he will bring to light what is hidden in darkness
and will manifest the motives of our hearts,
and then everyone will receive praise from God.

Any material in this blog can be re posted or used in any publication.