Prayer & Giving

Is there a direct connection between our prayers being answered and how much money we give to the Church?  It seems like a silly question on the surface, but Metropolitan Isaiah raises an interesting point in his letter, when he talks about the habits of Orthodox Christians while entering the Narthex for Worship.  He says, “for the past forty years, they have rarely given more than a one-dollar bill when they light a candle in their Churches, as if what they are praying for is not that important.”  His Eminence clearly makes a connection here between giving and prayer.  The question is, what is the nature of that connection, and how can we as Orthodox Christians avail ourselves of the opportunity to grow from it spiritually?  The first thing we have to understand is exactly what happens when we enter the Church to begin our Worship experience.  The Orthodox custom is to take a candle, make a donation, light the candle, place it in the sand, offer a prayer, and proceed to venerate the Holy Icons.  Most Orthodox Christians approach this practice with the appropriate seriousness and reverence, even though some choose to hang out in the Narthex and gossip, instead of entering the Nave as they should.  The real problem is that many Orthodox see at least the donation part of this ritual from purely a consumeristic point of view.  In other words, they try to determine what the “fair market value” is for a candle.  They know roughly what the cost is to the Church, but they don’t want to seem cheap in front of their fellow Christians, so they settle on the lowest denomination of paper currency, the one-dollar bill.  As the Metropolitan often says, “George Washington lives in the Narthex!”  Some Orthodox apparently are totally unabashed when it comes to cost analysis precision.  It’s not uncommon to see quarters (among other coins) in the candle basket as well.  I guess we do have a fascination with our first President!  And don’t let the larger bills fool you.  They are usually from people who want “change” from the Parish Council members on duty.  From a truly Orthodox perspective however, the candle’s “worth” cannot simply be based on the economic forces of supply and demand.  The candle’s “worth” is tied up in our offering, not just of money, but of prayer, and ultimately Faith.  Giving, whether it be for the Stewardship Program, the Capital Campaign, or a candle in the Narthex, is a response to our Faith in Jesus Christ, and what He truly means in our lives.  Prayer, is an exercise of Faith.  It is how we communicate with God, verbally.  Our giving is another means of communication with God, non-verbal communication.  We give in response to all that God has done, continues to do, and even what we hope that He will do in the future.  Once we begin to see giving as an act of physical prayer, our attitude toward how and how much we give will also begin to change.  Soon, we may even come to realize that giving to our Church is not about a fair exchange of value for services rendered, but a real response to God working in us and through us.  Some how, George Washington doesn’t seem as appealing.  I think it’s time we welcomed some new Presidents into the Orthodox Church!  Next time we look at proportional giving, but for now, that’s My Two Cents!

The Affluence of the Greeks

Today we continue in our examination of Metropolitan Isaiah’s letter to the Faithful of the Metropolis of Denver.  His Eminence points out that the Greek Orthodox people comprise one of the four most affluent ethnic groups in the United States.  He makes this statement not simply as a course of fact, but rather to imply that despite the economic prosperity of our people, they are not being particularly generous to our Church.  Notwithstanding  His Eminence’s perspective as a Hierarch serving in this country for the past several decades, the facts themselves seem to bear this out.  Despite having more than 500 Parishes across the country, our Archdiocese’s entire national annual budget is a mere $18 million.  There are individual Evangelical Protestant congregations in the Fort Worth area that have annual budgets greater than that!  This, in spite of having a couple of billionaires, and several dozen multi-millionaires who claim Orthodox Christianity as their Faith, and Hellenism as their heritage.  It is not uncommon to see multi-million dollar gifts by these extremely wealthy individuals to secular institutions, while the Church struggles to make ends meet.  Lest we put all our problems off on the seven-figure-plus crowd, let us not forget the great American success story of our ancestors.  Our immigrant progenitors came here with nothing, yet produced generation after generation of educated, successful, and financially upward-mobile Greek Americans.  Our Parishes are filled with professionals, business owners, and entrepreneurs.  A college education is all but expected from our youth, and our Parishes themselves are being relocated to the suburbs to reflect the growing affluence of our community.  What’s the problem?  Where is the disconnect?  I attribute this disparity between the wealth of our Greek-American Orthodox community and giving to the Church to three main factors.  The first, of course, is spiritual.  Our people simply do not see giving to the Church as a spiritual imperative.  This is a hold-over from our immigrant beginnings and how our communities were organized.  I call it the “Country Club Effect.”  The Church’s expenses were totaled up and then divided among the membership in the form of “dues.”  You had to pay your “dues” in order to belong to the Church.  This type of giving structure, devoid of basic Stewardship Principles, caused a spiritual disconnect that still resonates with much of the older generation today, many of whom just don’t “get” Stewardship.  Why do Evangelical churches have so much more money than we do?  Certainly not because their membership is more affluent.  It is because giving for them is part and parcel of their spiritual life.  We, as the Orthodox Church, must seek to in every way possible, reconnect giving to the spiritual lives of our people by teaching, practicing, and promoting solid Christian Stewardship.  The second issue is trust.  In many cases, our people simply do not trust that the Church will use the money they give in the most effective and efficient way possible.  The reason for this is that the Church on a whole, has been slow to develop, implement, and promote good business and accounting practices.  Buzz words like “openness” and “transparency” have been picked up as the mantra of Church officials in order to address the concerns of potential donors.  The truth is that people want assurances that their gifts are going to make a real impact, and not simply be wasted on overhead and administration.  The Church, as the Steward of these gifts, has a responsibility to God, and to His people, to constantly improve it’s handling of resources, to not only insure their effectiveness, but the transparency of the process as well.  The third and final issue is opportunity.  Or in other words, utilizing giving strategies that make sense for the donor, not just the Church.  Usually we ask our people to give in only two ways - right now, or over a period of time.  Sometimes we add a third – leave the Church something when you die.  Simply giving sums of cash at certain intervals doesn’t always work for everyone.  The Church must be sensitive to the increasing complexity of our people’s financial structure, while at the same time, be willing to use more complicated (but structurally sound) giving vehicles that make sense for the donor and the Church.  This means that a solid financial relationship must be formed between Parish and Parishioner, that will allow for growth on both sides.  The bottom line is that our people love their Church!  They want to be generous!  I truly believe that.  Our job, as Church leaders and wise Stewards, is to recognize and remove the barriers that prevent our Greek-American brothers and sisters from giving as generously as they would like to their beloved Orthodox Church.  If we can do that, we just might see some amazing generosity.  Tomorrow, in Part III, we look at how our giving is directly connected with prayer, but for today, that’s My Two Cents!

The Importance of Stewardship

The letter of His Eminence Metropolitan Isaiah to the Priests and Parishes throughout the Metropolis of Denver (reprinted in this blog yesterday), has given me a lot to think about.  Not only as a Priest who serves under his Omophorion, but also as one who thinks, writes, and teaches about Faith and Finances.  The Bishop, as the head of the Orthodox Church, is also the primary teacher of our Faith.  He is most often the voice of God’s Wisdom, and as such, I have identified no less than ten topics contained in His Eminence’s letter that are worthy of further exploration.  The first of those, and the topic of today’s blog, is the importance of financial contributions to our Parish Stewardship Programs.  His Eminence laments the fact that some individuals in our Parishes choose to give their financial contributions not to the Stewardship Program, but to the Building Fund, or some other restricted fund.  The problem with this is two-fold.  From a practical standpoint, as he points out, this makes it extremely difficult for the Parish to cover it’s operational expenses.  Stewardship is the economic engine that drives the basic functioning of the Church.  While paying bills (the Priest’s salary, insurance, utilities, etc.) is certainly not “sexy,” it is definitely necessary.  Without those “nuts & bolts” the Parish simply cannot function.  It is we, the Stewards of our communities, who have to change our mentality when it comes to how we view these “mundane” things.  These are not just obligations to be taken care of, but rather essential elements of Christ’s ministry here on earth, through the Church.  Without those things, how will the Gospel get preached?  How will potential converts be reached?  How will the Faithful be ministered to?  Stewardship must be primary, because the mission of the Church depends upon it.  The second problem however, is of a spiritual nature.  Stewardship is our primary response to God’s blessings in our life.  Our financial commitment to our Parish’s Stewardship Program therefore, must be our primary response to God’s blessing of our financial situation.  We need to be giving back to God in a proportional way to the economic blessings we have received.  We should be giving on a percentage basis, working toward tithing (10%), if not already there.  Scripture tells us that first ten percent belongs to God.  By “diverting” that money to another fund of our choosing, something that we find more appealing, we have supplanted God’s intent for those resources.  Resources that belong to Him, not us!  We are therefore harming ourselves spiritually when we behave in this way, and far from our “generous giving” having the intended consequences, it has quite the opposite.  In other words, instead of drawing us closer to God, it actually puts a stumbling block between us!  The Church, no doubt, has many other needs, that may not be covered by our Parish’s Stewardship Program, yet.  These worthy programs must be funded by contributions over and above our Stewardship tithes and offerings, particularly from those with the means and the heart to give in a sacrificial way.  A consistent, concerted, and concrete commitment to our Stewardship Programs is a sure path toward not only personal spiritual growth, but solid Parish development as well.  Tomorrow we look at the affluence of the Greek Orthodox Community, but for today, that’s My Two Cents!

The following is a letter from Metropolitan Isaiah of Denver, addressed to the Clergy and Laity throughout his Metropolis.

Beloved in the Lord,

In my pastoral visits to the holy parishes of this Metropolis – and I regret that I have not visited some of them in a while – I have become aware of a number of things.

First and foremost, I have realized that, with some of the smaller parishes with no full-time priest, some parishioners have a tendency to give their stewardship commitment to the building fund or some other restricted fund.  This is wrong.  Even though the building fundmay be smaller than anticipated, the individual contributions considered to be stewardship must be given to the operating account and none other.  Otherwise, those funds cannot be considered as a parish membership contribution, but only as an outright gift to the parish.

The fact of the matter is, when a parish does not have a full-time priest, and the stewardship is limited, that parish will never grow and will never be able to have an assigned full-time priest.  It will be in danger of becoming dormant.  This is why too many small parishes in the Metropolis have never grown.  They have remained the same for thirty and forty years.  Even now, there are no less than six parishes in this Metropolis which have never been full-time parishes.  Where is the blame in such a sad situation?

Of the four most affluent ethnic groups in the United States, the Greek Orthodox people comprise one of them.  Yet, for the past forty years, they have rarely given more than a one-dollar bill when they light a candle in their churches, as if what they are praying for is not important.  If our contributing parish members were to give even one percent of their income to their parishes, we as a Church would no longer have the deficits we continue to experience in our parishes.  Even those who could give most generously often prefer to depend on the annual parish festival to supplement the parish operating account.

Some of our church buildings are already inadequate for the parishes which are showing a pattern of growth.  It is particularly in these parishes that our people should demonstrate, even to the point of sacrifice, their love for the Church which our Lord Jesus Christ established for our salvation.  Saint John Chrysostom clearly states that God does not want to be indebted to us.  Therefore, He returns to the giver many times more than the giver gives to the Church.

As we witness the beginning of the end times, now is the time to express our love for God and the Church.  We can become more generous to the Church by not only duplicating, but increasing, our gifts to the Church, relative to the money we spend on entertainment and other non-essential expenses in our daily lives.  We can also consider setting aside a portion of our estate planning to be given to the parish that nurtured us and our children, as our forbearers did during the first thousand years of the Church, during the time of the Byzantine Empire.

People of the Church, resolve to show your love and devotion for the Church, which is the Ark of Salvation for God’s people.  By being more generous, you are assuring your parishes a healthy future, not only for yourselves and your families, but also for the increasing number of people who are seeking the original Church of Christ, the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.

With Paternal Blessings,

+ Metropolitan Isaiah of Denver

That’s his Two Cents!

…’Man shall not live by bread alone’…

As Orthodox Christians, we are holistic when it comes to the interpretation of Holy Scripture.  By this, I mean that we see Scripture as a whole, and interpret it through the entire experience of the Church.  We don’t extract and isolate a single verse, ripping it from it’s context, and then build a whole theology around it.  “Our” interpretation must be “checked-out” with the Church for it to be truly Orthodox.  That is one reason, I feel, that most Orthodox Christians are afraid to read Scripture.  They are afraid of getting it wrong!  What they fail to understand however, is that only by reading Scripture on a daily basis will we become familiar enough with it to ask the right questions, interpret it correctly, and then be able to apply it to our lives.  What does that have to do with the featured verse for today?  Good question!  I happened to come across this verse in my daily reading of Scripture.  Although I know that in this particular verse, Jesus is quoting the prophet to Satan in response to His first temptation in the desert after fasting for 40 days, and that it’s primary meaning has to do with Scripture itself, it struck me in a peculiar way as I read it.  My mind was is Stewardship mode (as it usually is), and the word bread reminded me of the old slang term for money.  Re-interpretation – “Man shall not live by money alone!”  How true is that?!  In today’s materialistic and consumeristic society, many people are simply trusting in their wealth.  As we have seen recently, fortunes have been lost in the blink of an eye.  There is no security in material means.  God is the only sure thing!  We need to live for, by, through, and with God, that’s the only true life anyway!  Money cannot be our savior, only Christ!  Now although it seems that I just did what I said we as Orthodox should not do, let’s examine this further.  I’m not saying that this “interpretation” is the primary one according to the Orthodox Church by any stretch of the imagination.  I’m certainly not going to go and look for sayings from the fathers to “support” my position.  However, when we read Scripture personally, for our own spiritual purposes, it will strike us in unique ways.  It will speak to us, and we can indeed find great value in that.  Is that “Un-Orthodox?”  Certainly not!  A careful reading of the fathers and Church history will illustrate what I’m talking about.  We can read Scripture with “Stewardship Eyes.”  In doing so, there will probably be some unique and valuable truths which Holy Scripture will offer us that have not been fully explored before.  That’s just plain exciting!  With these illuminations however, we must always make sure that they are consistent with our Orthodox Tradition.  In that way, we keep ourselves safely and securely within the bounds of Canonical Orthodoxy.  So remember, “Man shall not live by bread alone!”  That’s My Two Cents!

Matthew 21:33-42

Stewardship is not a passive activity!  The parable that Christ offers us in this morning’s Gospel lesson illustrates the fact that He expects us to work at it.  He indeed provides all the materials and the opportunity, but we are charged with actually making something of the situation.  Just as the householder provided the tenants with the vines, the press, and the season, God provides us with the raw materials for Stewardship in terms of time, talent, and treasure.  When it came time, the householder didn’t send his servants to the tenants to get his stuff back.  He sent them to collect a portion of the fruit, the tangible results that were produced from their labor.  In the same manner, God will not be expecting us to simply return what He has given us (how could we anyway).  He will expect from us a portion of the increase from our labor.  This understanding has serious implications for us.  First, we have to get to work!  We need to start employing our time, talent, and treasure in creative, and more importantly, productive ways.  Secondly, it’s the fruit that counts, not simply going through the motions.  If the tenants didn’t produce anything, no matter what they did, they were wasting their time.  We have to ask ourselves if how we are spending our time “for God” is actually being productive.  Are we using our talent to ensure the greatest productivity?  And are we putting our resources behind these efforts to guarantee production?  In other words, where is the evidence of our fruitfulness?  Finally, it brings up issues of quality versus quantity.  In terms of Stewardship, we want both!  We want to produce the best fruit possible, and the most we possibly can.  Some grapes are only good enough to be turned into raisins.  Some grapes are good enough to eat, sweet and juicy.  The best grapes can be turned into wine!  As we Orthodox know from our celebration of the Holy Eucharist, the human person is the only creature that can take God’s gifts of wheat and grapes, and turn them into bread and wine.  We then offer those changed gifts back to God, Who then changes then once again through the descent of the Holy Spirit in the Divine Liturgy, and transforms them into the Body and Blood of Christ, of which we partake.  In other words, Communion with God is not possible without the production of fruit!  So be active in your Stewardship of the gifts that God has placed in your life, and produce the fruits in their seasons.  You may just find yourself living to a ripe old age, tasting of God’s immeasurable sweetness from season to season.  But that’s just My Two Cents!

…they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy; and going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him.  Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.

For Orthodox Christians, daily Scripture reading is essential.  The Holy Scriptures not only remind us why we do things in a particular “Orthodox” way, but they also support us in the “doing” of those things that are spiritually beneficial in our lives.  This passage from the Gospel of Matthew is particularly insightful if you have ever wondered why we take up a collection after the Divine Liturgy.  The first thing to notice is that when the Wise Men finally found the Savior, they were excited!  They were not simply happy because they had achieved their goal and found what they were looking for, but they rejoiced because of what this splendid event meant for all of mankind, as well as themselves.  How many of us, especially if we are adult converts, have felt that same joy about finding Orthodoxy?  Or if we are “Cradle Orthodox,” have experienced similar feelings by rediscovering our “First Love?”  It is with this great joy in their hearts that the Wise Men did what came naturally, they worshiped the Savior.  The house of course represents the Church (the House of God), where we as Orthodox also find “the child with Mary his mother.”  Icons of the Theotokos with the Christ Child abound in Orthodox Churches, particularly in the apse, the holy of holies.  The question is, do we bring that same joy to our own worship experience on a weekly basis?  Do we worship simply out of a sense of obligation, or out of a sincere thankfulness just for the opportunity?  Only with this attitude of love for God and joy in our hearts will we ever come to truly appreciate the third component of this passage.  As part of their worship experience, these Wise Men offered the Savior gifts, very precious gifts.  These gifts were no doubt used to fund the Holy Family’s extended stay in Egypt, but that’s not the point.  As part of their love, joy and thanksgiving, these men felt compelled to give material gifts with which they had been blessed, back to their God and Savior.  What greater example can we have, as Orthodox Christians, than to combine our joyful worship to our material sacrifice?  Our material offerings to Christ, through His Church, are nothing more than a joyful thanksgiving response to what He has done in our own lives.  We are indeed blessed to have the opportunity to give in connection to our most sacred responsibility and privilege, which is worship.  So the next time you are in Church, and the Divine Liturgy comes to a glorious conclusion, and the Parish Council passes the tray for our weekly offering, don’t let yourself hold feelings of resentment, or even ambivalence.  Remember the Wise Men and their example, and make the most of your opportunity to give.  In this way you too will become Wise Men, fulfilling the Scriptures, and maximizing your opportunity for spiritual growth.  That’s My Two Cents!

Stewardship is the Key

The life of an Orthodox Christian is exemplified by Stewardship.  Everything that we have, and indeed everything that we are, is a gift from God.  Our life, our faith, our families, our careers, our wealth, our possessions – all gifts from our Benevolent Creator.  This fact is readily understood and accepted by most Orthodox Christians.  What we have a harder time with is the notion that we don’t really “own” anything.  “Ownership” is a concept that is foreign to Orthodox Christianity.  God is the only true owner of everything, because only He is the Eternal Creator.  Only He can bring something into existence and control it’s circumstances for all eternity, because He is the Everlasting God.  Only when we come to terms with this reality can we truly understand the concept of Christian Stewardship.  God, as the Owner of all things, has chosen to place some of them into our hands, in order that we might take care of what truly belongs to Him.  This is what it means to be a Steward in a truly Orthodox sense – a caretaker relationship, whereby we not only safeguard the things that belong to God which He has placed in our hands, but the responsibility to return those gifts to Him at an increased level when He so demands them.  As a Steward, we will be called to account for what God has entrusted us with.  Our job is not simply to hang onto God’s stuff, but to employ the gifts that we have been given, so that their increase might bring glory to our Master.  This means that everything we have been given, has been given to us for a purpose – God’s purpose.  Our job is to first find that purpose in our life (another gift), and then fulfil it to the best of our ability by being a good steward.  The purpose of my own ministry, and particularly Ecclesiastical Consulting, is to use the gifts and talents that God has placed in my life, to help Orthodox Parishes and their Parishioners become the best possible Stewards that they can be.  The goal of every Orthodox Christian must be to use our time, talent, and treasure in a way that increasingly glorifies God.  Good Stewardship, of all God’s gifts, is the key to an inspired and authentic Orthodox Christian life.  That’s My Two Cents for today.