A New Year – A Fresh Look

Our Orthodox Christian Tradition

Let me start by saying that what most of us consider Stewardship is really NOT!  The truth is, we don’t understand Stewardship, because we haven’t been taught.  The Church simply hasn’t taken the time, or made the effort, to explain this essential part of Her Tradition.  That is about to change!  WARNING – By continuing to read this article, you will certainly be challenged by it, and it just may change your life!

When most Orthodox Christians hear the word “Stewardship,” they think of the “financial system” that the Church has instituted in order to fund itself.  Like the “dues” of yesteryear, “stewardship” has become some amount of money that we must pay in order to participate in the life of the Church.  How often have families who have not been members for years, coughed up some quick cash, and labeled it “stewardship” so they can have their child Baptized?  This is NOT Stewardship, but rather “dues ala Priceline,” where you can name your own price for Sacraments!

Consistent members of the Church think of stewardship as their “regular” contributions to the Parish.  In most cases, this is NOT real Stewardship
either!  These Parishioners are simply making donations to a tax-deductible charity, in order to receive some sort of “religious” benefit.  It may sound harsh, but what is there to distinguish their contributions made to the Red Cross from those made to Holy Cross?  Those contributions made once (or twice) a year, from our excess income, tiny when compared to our other expenditures, devoid of God’s guidance and input, can in
NO way be considered true Christian Stewardship!

What is Authentic Orthodox Christian Stewardship?  First and foremost, it is the understanding and firm belief that everything, and I mean everything, belongs solely to God.  That’s right!  We own nothing!  You came into this world with nothing, and you will leave it the same way.  What you have in your possession right now will be in someone else’s hands when you’re gone.  In all my years in the Priesthood I have never seen a U-Haul trailer attached to a hearse!  No matter how much you accumulate in this life, you can’t take it with you.  Only God, the Creator of the world, and everything in it, is the One Who truly possesses anything.  Like it or not, this is the truth, the eternal reality.  If you can’t come to accept this you might as well stop reading right now, because the rest of this article won’t make any sense to you.

Now that you have chosen to accept reality, a second question emerges.  What about us?  If everything belongs to God, what is our role within creation?  God has created us to be caretakers, or Stewards, of His creation, which includes the material world.  He has placed the whole world in our hands and given us a sacred responsibility.  As His trusted servants, we are to be accountable to Him, but we will also be rewarded for our service.  The more worthy we are found to be, the greater the reward, and the greater the responsibility.  With your Baptism and/or Chrismation, like it or not, you were enrolled in service to Christ as a Steward.  Now you have a job to do!  The good news is that it’s never too late to start.

You may be asking yourself, “What are my specific responsibilities?”  God has given you a Stewardship over three specific areas in your life – Time, Talent, & Treasure.  All three are gifts from God.  He has first of all given you a certain amount of time on this earth.  You did not determine when you were born, no more than you can determine when you will draw your last natural breath.  Each of us is a unique creation, endowed with particular gifts and talents, specifically geared toward helping us accomplish our mission in life.  All of us have been given, yes given, a certain amount of God’s material resources in order to sustain us in this materialistic world.  Whether you slave away just to get by, inherited a bundle from your wealthy family, or find yourself somewhere in between, there is no doubt that the opportunities present in your life to make money come directly from God.  Be thankful that you are not living on less than a dollar a day like much of the developing world!

After giving us these three abundant blessings, God only has two expectations of His Stewards (3 for 2 – not a bad deal).  First, that we use our gifts wisely, not wasting our Time, Talent, & Treasure.  Second, that we give a portion of those gifts back to Him.  The first expectation is
usually understood fairly easily.  The second however, seems to draw some confusion and cause quite a bit of stumbling in our effort to be good Stewards.

Once you realize that what you “have” really doesn’t belong to you in the first place, that you are just the caretaker of someone else’s goods (namely God), it becomes absurdly easy to give some of it back to Him!  He was even kind enough to give us the Church for that very purpose!  We therefore have a vehicle, in the Church, to offer back to God, in concrete ways, a portion of what He has blessed us with.  For those who have traveled the road this far, the question in your mind right now is, “but how much?”  How much are we called to return to God?

Like most Orthodox Christian Theological and Spiritual issues, the answer is – it depends.  Yes, that’s right; Stewardship is both a theological and a spiritual issue!  We have covered the theological aspect, that part pertaining to God.  The spiritual part has to do with you!  How much is your salvation worth?  How much do you really love God?  Where is the evidence in your lifestyle?  I think all of us would agree that our eternal salvation is priceless by any worldly measure.  Thankfully, that’s God’s free gift to us (no payment necessary).  Our thanksgiving gifts to Him, for all that He has done, and continues to do, have everything to do with our spiritual maturity.

What we return to God in terms of our Time, Talent, & Treasure is the single greatest indicator of not only our Faith, but our faithfulness as well!
Our Stewardship is the evidence of Christ in our life!  Now it is time for you, the reader, to put this into perspective in your own life.  How much time out of each day do you devote to God?  What ministries are you invested in?  How much of your annual income do you contribute to the Church?  Examine the balance sheet of your life in all three areas, and determine if there are things you are placing before God.  Are we unwittingly worshipping temporal idols instead of the One True God?

Authentic Orthodox Christian Stewardship means putting God first.  Putting God first takes sacrifice.  Sacrificially offering back to God a portion of His blessings is our responsibility as Stewards of the Faith.  Take this opportunity to take a fresh look at your Faith, your life, and your Stewardship!  That’s My Two Cents!