A special message from
Pope Francis:
“I invite all Christians, everywhere, at
this very moment, to a renewed
personal encounter with Jesus Christ,
or at least an openness to letting him
encounter them; I ask all of you to do
this unfailingly each day. No one should
think that this invitation is not meant
for him or her, since “no one is excluded
from the joy brought by the Lord”. The
Lord does not disappoint those who take
this risk; whenever we take a step
towards Jesus, we come to realize that
he is already there, waiting for us with
open arms. Now is the time to say to
Jesus: “Lord, I have let myself be
deceived; in a thousand ways I have
shunned your love, yet here I am once
more, to renew my covenant with you. I
need you. Save me once again, Lord,
take me once more into your redeeming
embrace” How good it feels to come
back to him whenever we are lost! Let
me say this once more: God never tires
of forgiving us; we are the ones who tire
of seeking his
mercy.
With a
tenderness
which never
disappoints,
Pope Francis
but is always
capable of
restoring our joy, he makes it possible
for us to lift up our heads and start
anew.”
The Joy of the Gospel (3)
“It is in giving that we receive…”
The words of Pope Francis (left) urge us to embrace
the spirituality of Christian Stewardship as our
way of life. By his words, Pope Francis
acknowledges that this is not always an easy way
to live - for we do stray and need to be brought
back to God’s embrace again.
Prayer is a critical component to living as a
steward. To help us on our journey to joy,
St. Francis of Assisi offers this prayer:
Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.
O, Divine Master, grant
that I may not so much
seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love;
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
it is in dying that we are born again
to eternal life.
It is in giving of ourselves that we
receive… God’s immense mercy,
forgiveness, love and joy!
A guide to
Stewardship Renewal
How
welive
live
How do
do we
Stewardship
wayofof
Life?
Stewardship as
as aaWay
Life?
What is JOY?
‘joy (noun) the emotion evoked by
well-being, success, or good fortune or
by the prospect of possessing what one
desires: a state of happiness or felicity.
(Adapted from Webster’s Dictionary)
If we look closely at this definition, we
see that joy is an all-encompassing state of
being. It is not fleeting or simply a mood,
but something that becomes a part of who
we are and what we exude.
We all know people who are constantly
searching for things, circumstances or even
other people who will bring them
happiness - and they may succeed in the
short-term - but the search always
continues. As Christian stewards we may
search for the tangible at times, but what
we truly seek is to fulfill our Baptismal
promise - to live as followers of Christ.
Christian stewards know that true
happiness, the kind that lasts, leads us to
joy. For example, we do feel good and
experience happiness when we help
someone, participate in ministry or share
financial support. However, as we
continue to pray, learn and share of
ourselves for the good of others on a
regular basis, we develop a desire to have
a deeper relationship with Christ.
“If you do not have a personal relationship with
Jesus, nothing else makes sense.”
Shared by Fr. Robert Romeo
As our relationship grows, so does our
gratitude, our giving and our blessings. On our
journey, more and more, we place our trust in
God; we try to discover who we have been
created to be and seek ways to thank God each
day for all that we have been given. Our
dependency and desire for material things and
fleeting happiness begins to diminish.
Pope Francis encourages us in his apostolic
exhortation: The Joy of the Gospel, “Sometimes
we are tempted to find excuses and complain,
acting as if we could only be happy if a
thousand conditions were met.” He goes on to
say, “Instances of joy flow from the infinite love
of God, who has revealed himself to us in Jesus
Christ. Thanks solely to this encounter - or
renewed encounter - with God’s love, which
blossoms into an enriching friendship, we are
liberated from our narrowness and selfabsorption. We become fully human when we
become more than human, when we let God
bring us beyond ourselves in order to attain the
fullest truth of our being.” (7-8)
Reread the above paragraph again, slowly.
What we seek, we already have: the infinite love
of God and with that the strength, courage and
means by which to fulfill our role here on earth!
We just need to allow ourselves to embrace it!
By committing ourselves each day to
stewardship as a way of life, we will be filled
with joy and therefore we will be given the
capacity and the mandate to spread that joy.
For “wherever the disciples went, there was
great joy.” (Jn 8:8)
Placing our complete trust in God,
the Source of all we are and all we
have.
Seeking ways to thank God for all
that we have been given.
Embracing that we are Catholic
Christian Stewards - disciples of
Christ 24/7 - not only when it is
convenient.
Finding time to pray; speak with and
listen to God on a regular basis.
Participating in liturgical, formational
and sacramental opportunities: Mass,
confession/reconciliation, Exposition,
parish missions, spirituality talks.
Sharing your Time and Talents:
within your family; through parish
ministries and activities; at work/
school; and in your community.
Developing a responsible plan and
contributing: to the parish weekly
collection; Catholic Ministries Appeal;
food pantry; thrift shop and other
areas that nourish and provide on a
consistent basis for those in need.
Attend faith formation opportunities
and other sessions to continue
learning and discovering the wonders
of our faith!
“The life of a Christian steward, lived
in imitation of the life of Christ, is
challenging, even difficult in many
ways; but both here and hereafter it
is charged with intense joy.”
(Stewardship a Disciple’s Response, USCCB 40)