Search
Close this search box.
EN ES
Search
Close this search box.
EN ES
Search
Close this search box.

Stewardship

Stewardship Overview: Phase 2

by

Imagine your Family of Parishes filled with people who live as disciples, are filled with gratitude for their abundant blessings and generously share their faith, lives and resources — not only within the Family but also in all aspects of their everyday lives. Your Family would be transformed through such living faith! This is truly possible when your Family of Parishes embraces stewardship as a way of life. 

During Phase 2, your pastor, stewardship champion and Stewardship Core Team will discern the vision for your Family — the future you will work toward as you bring stewardship to life in your Family of Parishes and among your people.

Discerning your vision naturally flows from leaders who live and grow as good stewards. Therefore, Phase 2 includes time for stewardship formation — first among the Stewardship Core Team, Family Leadership Team (FLT) and pastoral council, then among ministry leaders and those who are involved in ministries and organizations within your Family. Laying this solid spiritual foundation will ensure that stewardship is not viewed as a program that will run its course or as a thinly veiled means for increasing financial giving. The spirituality of stewardship is a deeper, lasting way of seeing and responding to God’s grace in our midst. 

0.1 Stewardship – Confirm Vision Assessment Complete

by

To prepare for Visio Day, it is beneficial to have an understanding of where your Family of Parishes stands in relation to each of the vision points in the Stewardship principle. Use the Family Vision Assessment Tool to isolate which vision points are strengths and which need attention as part of establishing a comprehensive vision for your Family. See the Vision Assessment Tool.

0.2 Stewardship – Reinforce from Phase 1

by

Just as your pastor, staff and parish leaders needed time to become familiar with stewardship as a way of life, so will your Stewardship Core Team, as this team will be key to the establishment of this spirituality in your Family of Parishes.

Stewardship Reversed

“More than a program or once a year report to the parish, stewardship is fostered as a spiritual way of life and becomes an expression of discipleship.” (Stewardship vision point)

Forming parishioners and your Family to live and grow as grateful disciples who are good stewards requires intentional, consistent leadership. It is crucial that stewardship is carried out in the spirit of servant leadership as an expression of discipleship. Taking time to form your Stewardship Core Team with a deep foundation of the spirituality of stewardship is sure to bear great fruit in the life of your Family of Parishes in the future. The Grateful Disciples formation programs in the materials tab provide this formation.  

In the fall of 2023, the Center for Parish Vitality will be hosting parish cohorts and stewardship teams in Grateful Disciples training. Details will be shared later in 2023.  

1.1 Stewardship – Visio Day

by

Visio Day provides an opportunity for your Family Leadership Team (FLT) to learn the importance of creating a vision for your Family of Parishes and how to best create, communicate and enact that vision within your Family. This one-day workshop will not create the final vision for your Family of Parishes but will jump-start that process and prepare you for the Family Visioning Process.  

Some Families of Parishes participated in Visio Day early in 2023. We encourage all other Families, not engaged in the Catholic Leadership Institute’s Next Generation Parish process, to attend one of the two sessions scheduled for fall 2023.  

Learn more.

1.2 Stewardship – Family Visioning

by

The Family Visioning Process follows Visio Day and is a comprehensive process to create a vision statement for your Family of Parishes. This process is designed to define your vision, build consensus around the vision with key leaders and assess the impacts of that vision for each Beacons principle within your Family. 

Refer to Leadership 1.2 for details on the Family Visioning Process.

2.1 Stewardship – Formation of Associated Team Members

by

Leading people to embrace stewardship as a way of life relies on substantial formation of leaders.

Stewardship Reversed

“More than a program or once a year report to the parish, stewardship is fostered as a spiritual way of life and becomes an expression of discipleship.” (Stewardship vision point)

Once your Stewardship Core Team has had time to focus on its spiritual formation, it is time to share the stewardship message with other key leaders, starting with your Family Leadership Team (FLT) and Family staff members. 

To-do: Continue stewardship formation and education for parish leaders, especially through a retreat focused on the spirituality of stewardship.

I am convinced that Beacons of Light, born of great hope, will enable us to form stronger parishes, centered on the Eucharist, that radiate the love of Christ and joy of the Gospel… God has abundantly blessed our first two centuries and will certainly bless the next.

— ARCHBISHOP DENNIS M. SCHNURR