Conditions Which Constitute
OBSTACLES
To Effective Stewardship Education
In the Congregation

Conditions Which Facilitate
EFFECTIVE
Stewardship Education
In the Congregation

The priest has not made a clear decision about his/her own giving.

The priest is a tither or is committed to a plan of increased proportionate giving with tithing as a minimum goal.

The priest is conflicted about his/her role in leading the parish into more generous giving.

The priest is willing to witness publicly to his/her own understanding and practice of financial Christian stewardship and to invite parishioners to re-examine their own.

Vestry members have not made a clear commitment personally to proportionate giving and as a result give mixed signals to the parish.

Vestry members are committed to proportionate giving as the pattern of their own financial Christian stewardship and give clear encouragement to their fellow parishioners to do the same

There is little sense of an expanding mission vision to which parish leaders are committed which would require or justify increased contributions.

Opportunities are provided annually for parishioners to talk through their decisions about giving with their fellow Christians.

Parishioners are sent out to ask for pledges from other parishioners without adequate understanding and skill for this task.

Before members visit other members they are given the training necessary to approach this task with clarity and confidence.

Stewardship development plans are haphazard and poorly thought out.

A careful plan is developed to carry a stewardship education effort through to a successful conclusion.

There is little improvement from year to year in a parish’s ability to carry on effective stewardship education.

Careful evaluation at the conclusion of the program enables a parish to build on successes and benefit from mistakes from year to year.