In Review
The Parish Health Ministry
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As we start a (secular) New Year it may be good to briefly review the basis for this ministry in the life of our Diocese. 
A few years ago the Diocese reviewed its budget, practices and tasks. In light of perceived declines in parish life and vitality, a clear view that the Diocese could and should play a role as a "parish development engine" began to emerge. A properly functioning modern Diocese should, it seemed, poffer ways to assist parishes in their daily efforts of worship, discipleship, fellowship, service and evangelization. The Parish Health Ministry was commissioned to maintain a focus on this developmental role -- to encourage parishes to build and maintain a focus on being/becoming vibrant, hopeful Christ-centered 21st century Orthodox communities.
To fulfill this mission we try to:
- Stimulate exploration and dialogue about models of life in good parishes.
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Connect to establish helpful relationships between parishes. Some parishes are gifted in communication. Others in discipleship. Others seem to effectively model fellowship and love. All have something to learn and to share with others as we "commend ourselves and each other and all our lives unto Christ our God."
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Share -- We try to be an available, active medium for exchange of effective practices, methods & tools in use by others that may have validity in your parish.
Build tools to address common needs.
As always we are willing listeners to suggestions of how to do this more efficiently and effectively.
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| Upcoming Events
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OK so let's start connecting --
Choral Workshop -- Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral Chicago IL; January 17, 2009
Holy
Trinity Orthodox Cathedral will host a choir workshop on liturgical
chant led by Mark Bailey. There will be plenty of opportunities to sing and
ask questions.
More info
Choral Workshop -- St Paul's Dayton OH February 21, 2009 NOTE CORRECTED DATE!!!2/21 Got it? St. Paul Orthodox Church in Dayton OH will be the site of a Columbus Deanery Choral Workshop on Saturday Feb 7 from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. The workshop, titled "Exploring the Ministry of Song and the Worshiping Community" will be led by Professor David Drillock. All choir members from nearby parishes are encouraged to participate. Workshop costs have been covered by St Paul's parish and other Columbus Deanery parishes. Attendees may make a free will offering. More infoChicago Deanery Domestic Violence Workshop Feb 28, 2009 1:00-3:00 PMSpeakers: Deacon Timothy and Beatrice Jones Location:
Holy Resurrection Orthodox Church,
Palatine, IL Open to everyone. Contact Fr. Thomas Mueller for more info - 414 671
5819.
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The 'Come and See' Video
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 In past issues of Parish Pulse we've pointed you toward various videos related to Orthodoxy. Some beautifully introduce the Orthodox Church but say little about the local parish -where real people experience and live the faith. Other videos introduce the atmosphere of parish life. Still others focused on the Basis of Orthodox Evangelization.
 We found this 25 second video on the website of the OCA parish in Claremont NH. Its great! Nice photos and video showing people entering the church with reverence, receiving communion, locally recorded background music, well narrated -- well done.
We have a number of Diocesan parishes working on videos as a way to present themselves to the world. Some are visual tours of their temple. Others will offer warm informative welcomes from the parish rector. Others will offer the stories of parishioners and their life as Orthodox Christains. All with the aim of helping people in their town to Come and See.
Your parish could have a video similar to this. You can do it! it just takes some effort!
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"Webinars"
Delivering Helpful Content to Strengthen Parishes via the Web
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We can only personally work with a finite number of parishes during the year -- usually facilitating weekend vision and planning, parish assessment and evangelization workshops. (We still have some time available for '09 weekends.) And we can only put so much information in Parish Pulse. (This one is probably a little long.)  One great way to deliver serious training and lecture style content at low cost to a reasonable number of people ( and with a flair) is via "webinars" -- web based, interactive sem inars . Webinars deliver audio, visual aids and attendee interactivity via the web, usually from a variety of select speakers with specific expertise. Attendees receive the presentation --and ask questions -- directly to/from their desktop. We're developing the concept for what can hopefully become a series of (free) webinars for '09. These will focus on a variety of topics of interest to parishes and parish leaders. Some sessions might be designed for clergy audiences, others for laity, others for both. Various topical series could focus on: - Pastoral Skills & tools (bereavement and grief, family issues, addictions, counseling etc.).
- Leadership concepts and tools (the what's and who's of effective parish leadership; leadership and followership)
- Tools of effective parish administration,
- Evangelization (American
Religious Landscape; Implications for Orthodoxy in America, active listening, sharing our faith with others etc.)
- Understanding other faiths -- Orthodoxy and Islam
These sessions can be attended live or they can be archived and you
could 'tune in' (download) during one of those "can't sleep" nights. (Some might
be a sure cure for insomnia!) Do you have thoughts on desirable topics? Speakers? The whole idea? Let us know. |
Want More "Mileage" from Parish Pulse?
Print the PDF and Bulletin Inserts
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Some
have suggested that we mail each parish (e.g.) 25 hard copies of Parish Pulse for distribution. Here is an easier and less costly solution.( Less for us, more work for you.) Download the "pdf" copy of Parish Pulse here -- and copy it to your heart's content. Or forward email the html
version or send simple emails to non-subscribed parishioners with the
"link" in it. Others have suggested re-purposing the articles in some
way perhaps to be used as bulletin inserts. We like that idea -- but seemingly every parish bulletin is different size and shape. We'll see what we can do. |
Parish Health Model
Focus Area: Christian Formation; Subarea:Financial Generosity |
 The Diocese's Parish Health Inventory Model outlines eight essential focus areas for building strong parishes. Each area is broken down into three to six subareas that are described in terms of descriptors, good practices, discussion questions and potential metrics. We plan to regularly explore a particular focus area or subarea in Parish Pulse. In this issue we will explore in some depth the subarea titled " Financial Generosity" which is one of the areas under the primary topic of Christian Formation. |
Parish Stewardship Laying a Foundation
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Pre-Requisites - You Can't Start With Money
Parishes
often ask us for help with "stewardship". No surprise. Budgets are tight.
As we write this article the economic news seems worse daily. Numerical decline has hit many parishes. Parishes are
squeezed. 
Taking action to build stewardship (read 'increasing income from more and
larger donations, offerings and pledges') is, as you know, a difficult task. New stewardship practices rarely produce short term financial results. In some cases, these efforts produce undesirable
side effects since people misinterpret the
motivation for the request or effort.
A root
cause of the problem is that many of us have an incomplete or inaccurate
understanding of Christian stewardship -- wrongly equating "stewardship" only
with money. Often the way stewardship discussions are handled in parishes
contributes to this misconception.
Total Stewardship
When parishes
ask for help with stewardship we try to remind them that the first, and never
ending, step in strengthening stewardship in the parish is to help the
community understand that stewardship is basically making a fundamental
commitment to work with God in our whole
lives. Stewardship is about more than money.
At the risk
of overly simplifying an important and very rich subject the following are (as
we see it any way) a few of the key points:
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A steward is one who carefully and responsibly
manages entrusted resources or delegated authority on behalf of the interests
of another -- the Master. A steward in the ancient world was a master slave who
acted in the master's name and managed the master's affairs. But he wasn't the
master. Christian stewardship, then, is working with God to responsibly manage
all of our God-given resources.
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 As Christians we acknowledge God as Creator and
Owner of all. We realize that none of our words, actions, powers or properties
are our own, to do with as we please. We receive them from God. We possess them
- but they are not really ours. The resources
we enjoy - and from which we give - are ours only by derivation. All blessings
flow from God.
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Each
and every person made in the image of God is placed on this earth as a tenant,
or in the words of St. Paul, a "sojourner." If we are tenants, it is incumbent
upon us to return what is not ours to the rightful Owner in a condition at
least as good as we received it, if not better.
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We recognize that giving belongs to God's very
being. When we give freely and generously, we act as God acts. We are sharing
in the work of God.
- Often we use the tri fold term time, talent and treasure to describe this giving back. These are good elements to focus upon
but true Christian stewardship is even broader -- a commitment of our entire life.
On Going Formation - Not a Stewardship Drive
If you were to take an advanced
500 level college course as a freshman you would likely be unprepared to
appreciate, understand and apply the material. Likewise without laying the proper
foundation, efforts to strengthen financial generosity in and toward the parish
can, and likely will, be misunderstood.
Improving stewardship is part of a comprehensive effort toward
parish renewal. Increased stewardship (financial and otherwise) is a result -- not a first step. It is
something the parish works on twelve months of the year -or at least well in
advance of the annual stewardship drive.
 Giftedness
How can we underscore the idea of stewardship equating to more
than money? Many parishes, instead of, or in addition to, talking about and asking for money ask parishioners for a commitment of time for support of various
parish and other ministries.
As a foundation they support this request with Giftedness
seminars and workshops to help members evaluate and discern their God given
gifts, skills and talents and how these can be focused toward God. The results of these sessions can be eye opening for attendees. One attendee summarized the experience as follows:
"Our giftedness workshop allowed me to take the first step in addressing that part of me
I never paid much attention too. With this new knowledge I am now able to
invite God to assist me in the development of my gifts."
A Job for Everyone
A number of parishes in our Diocese, admittedly not always with total success,
focus on getting to a point where each parishioner has a clear job or role that
they contribute to the parish and its ministries. Since it is well known that
people are more likely to financially support causes to which they
have a real and active commitment the stewardship of personal time can be the
leading edge toward stronger financial support of the parish.
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Building Good Financial Stewardship Practices
Tips from Experts
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Hopefully the above summary reminded all of us that
"stewardship" is not totally or perhaps even mostly, about money. Nonetheless, encouraging and developing generous support of parish budgets and ministries is critical to living a life in Christ.
The following are a few (twelve actually) programmatic elements -- principles and practices --that have helped parishes and
parishioners to become more financially generous. Afew come from our experience. Most are liberally borrowed from the advice of experts. As always because these may have worked for others does not assure they will be effective in your parish. It always depends on local conditions.
1. Establish Trust --- Good Parish Fiscal Management
The first
step to strengthening income from tithes and offerings is impeccable fiscal
management in the parish. (Perhaps the OCA's recent turbulence makes the following paragraphs obvious. Nonetheless we type on.)
If the
parish appears to be poorly managed, parishioners --particularly in difficult
times -- are reticent to make contributions. All it takes to get parish financial stewardship
efforts sidetracked is one or two fumbled questions about budget status or
mistakenly allocated expenses. Confidence erodes quickly.
Consider
these points:
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Focus on clear, open, understandable management
and reporting of the finances and administrative practices of the parish. Some parishes offer detail but the complexity
is astounding and the basic story seems to get lost.
- Keep people informed of parish financials
throughout the year. Provide this in bulletins, newsletters or parish website
monthly and
quarterly financial updates. Keep these simple, short, understandable and
regular. Don't dwell or harangue --inform.
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Be sure to provide a clear thorough
year- end report. Make sure that it is audited, that the audit report is broadly
available and its recommendations followed.
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Take particular care in managing
restricted and temporarily restricted funds. Clearly call these out in year end
reports. Communicate with donors about their desires on spending of these
restricted donations. Don't accept
donations if you cannot agree to their restrictions.
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Scrub the budget. Nobody likes waste so be
diligent in finding areas where savings can occur -- without compromising
the fundamental mission and vision of the community.
2. You Have to Ask
We would
probably all like to believe that our
parish has done such a good job of stewardship formation that we will
consistently receive generous, important, meaningful donations from all members
with little or no effort. This may be the case in some parishes but they are
the exception.
Fr. Anthony
Scott of Stewardship Advocates
an Orthodox priest and consultant and editor of the book Good and Faithful Servant - Stewardship in the Orthodox Church cites research i
To read the complete article click here for the online pdf version.
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Stewardship Resources
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Much
of what we covered in the above articles has been liberally borrowed from other
sources most Orthodox, some Protestant and Roman Catholic.
Here are some good sources that can probably be far more valuable than anything we've written.  - Fr. Anthony Scott - The Orthodox priest Fr. Anthony Scott is principal in the consultancy Stewardship Advocates. This group is available for assistance in building/rebuilding parish stewardship approaches and to manage capital campaigns. Their website has many useful articles.We are aware of at least two Diocesan parishes who have engaged this group.
- Good and Faithful Servant- Stewardship in the Orthodox Church - Fr Scott is the editor of
this excellent book which is a compilation of articles from various well known Orthodox writers. Order here.
- OCA Stewardship Handbook - We couldn't find it at OCA.org so we've posted it on the Diocesan website -- here.
- Church School Lessons - You can find some age related church school lessons on the topic of stewardship from the Antiochian Archdiocese here.
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