STEWARDSHIP 2024
“The Church: The Soul of A Nation”

From the Stewardship Committee

We are beginning a new stewardship campaign (The Church: The Soul of a Nation) where we hope to substantially increase our total annual giving. In the last few years, we were able to achieve minor increases in parishioner giving which barely kept up with increased costs; however, in the last 12 to 18 months inflation has overwhelmed us, just like it has to you. At present, our resources are being stretched to their limits. As a result, we have not been able to complete long overdue repairs and improvements. For example, the boiler and air conditioning systems are 20 to 30 years old; the gutter system needs addressed, and the flat roof over the Narthex is due to be replaced. If you’ve followed along each month in the Link under the Money Matters section, you are already aware that our year-to-date pledge income is behind where it’s been projected to be and our expenses are expected to exceed their budgeted amounts. As a result, we’ve had to dip into our savings more than we anticipated. For these reasons, your generosity this year is particularly crucial. We’re asking all our members to increase their pledges by 10 percent. We know it’s a stretch to ask for this large increase, but we believe it’s the right thing to do.

We realize that household budgets often have little wiggle room so we are grateful for pledges in any amount. Some may be in a position to pledge more than that, while for others this may not be possible. If you are new to our parish or if you have never pledged, we hope you will also make a commitment to our community with a show of financial support. Together our annual contributions make it possible for us to worship God, grow in faith, and serve our community and each other. We cannot do that work without your participation, and one way to do that is through our financial commitment to it.

Thank you for everything you’ve done in the past year; for your kindness, generosity, and most importantly for your prayers for our community. Christ continues to be our source of light and strength, guiding us to a bright future.

In the coming weeks, you will hear presentations at weekend liturgies and receive other communication to encourage responsible stewardship among all members of our parish family. Consecration Sunday will follow after that on November 12, 2023, when we will celebrate God’s abundance in our lives.

This flyer provides both online and paper pledge instructions. Please visit the Christ Episcopal Church website where you can use the “EZ Pledge Button” to document your pledge for 2024.

Thank you for your continued support of Christ Episcopal Church!

David Bischoff, Stewardship Committee chair

Melissa Keebler, Stewardship Committee member

Sandra Shoucair, Stewardship Committee member

Almighty God, we thank you for all the gifts You have given us: our lives, our loved ones, all that we have and all that we are. Most of all, we thank You for Jesus, your Son and our Redeemer, who came among us to show us the way to eternal life. Jesus was the perfect steward of your gifts, showing that complete trust in You is necessary, and that giving of self is a most important part of following Him. May the offerings of our time, our talents, and our material resources be made in the same spirit of sacrifice that Jesus taught us by His life and death for us. Amen. – Thomas Merton

From the Rector

Dear Friends:

I have always been fascinated by the writings of the nineteenth century French historian and political writer, Alexis De Tocqueville. Published in 1835, Democracy in America is his most well-known work, in which he shared his assessment of the viability of the American political system. One of his most enduring insights was his observation that the expansive freedoms enjoyed by Americans could only be sustained if there was a unifying, non-coercive cultural mechanism by which individual actions were both freely restrained and morally informed. He located such a self-regulating cultural force in the pervasive influence of the Christian faith.  He was very much concerned that without such a “soft” and unifying restraint, intellectual anarchy, division and chaos would ensue.  No doubt he would point to St. Paul’s words, “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything.

I agree.  Through the church, our faith has formed the soul of this nation for most of her history. The function of the church over time has not only been to proclaim the message of salvation in Jesus Christ, but also to animate and unify the underlying spirit of her people.  Yes, we have secular laws that regulate conduct, but there are no laws that form us in the ways of civility, love, mercy, grace, dignity, compassion, or decency.  Those are the more important inchoate and unseen spiritual qualities that are learned in relationship with God and neighbor and which form, tacitly, the soul of a people. It is this soul that binds us together. It is the only way a free democracy survives.

Unfortunately, the healthy synthesis of freedom, restraint and unity has unraveled. We wring our hands every day over the increasing disunity, polarization and hostility that we see at every level of our politics and culture. Loneliness is at an all-time high, as is anxiety, depression, and aimlessness.  Healthy consumerism has been replaced by a mindless and superficial obsession with material things.  Not surprisingly, national church attendance has been declining for decades and is now at an all-time low. Such decline is both a symptom as well as a cause of our current disunity.

All of which is to say that the church is more than a charitable institution. Your pledge of time, talent and treasure to the church is more than the preservation of a parish or a denomination. It is nothing less than a pledge of support to maintain all the pillars of the democratic freedom we all enjoy and for which so many have fought. 

Please give generously for yourself, your families and for the future health and well-being of the church and the country we love, so that our light may continue to be a beacon of life and hope for the world.

 In Christ,

The Rev. Canon James D. Shoucair

Some Frequently Asked Questions:

Q: What is a pledge?

A: It is a deliberate response we choose to make to God’s grace in our lives. It is a statement of our support for God’s work through Christ Church. It is a commitment we make to our parish community.

Q: How much should I pledge?

A: Only you, after prayerful consideration, can answer that question! It might help you to reflect on:

• How Christ Church supports you in your spiritual journey.
• What Christ Church means to you in your daily life.
• How you want to support the ministries of Christ Church.

Q: If my life circumstances change, may I change my pledge?

A: Absolutely. Your pledge is not a legal promise, but is a joyful support for the ongoing life of the church. You may change it (down or up!) at any time!