The Church of the Advent
Stewardship 2017
thy hand is open wide to satisfy the needs
of every living creature: Make us always thankful for thy
loving providence; and grant that we, remembering the
account that we must one day give, may be faithful stewards of
thy good gifts; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and
reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and
ever. Amen.
O
MERCIFUL CREATOR,
Collect on Stewardship
A MESSAGE ON STEWARDSHIP
FROM THE TREASURER
“[The Christian Knight of Faith] will have the power to concentrate
the whole substance of his life and the meaning of actuality into
one single desire. If a person lacks this concentration, this focus,
his soul is dissipated in multiplicity from the beginning, and then
he never manages to make the movement [of faith]; he acts as
shrewdly in life as the financiers who put their resources into
widely diversified investments in order to gain on one if they lose
on another.”
Kierkegaard, Fear and Trembling
“A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways.”
James 1:8 (KJV)
As Treasurer of the Church of the Advent, I am tasked with
organizing the secular financial affairs of our parish in order to support
our physical plant and especially our historic church building, our clergy
and their ministry, our rich worship and music programs, and our
outreach, mission work, and fellowship opportunities.
Many of you have likely heard me speak in past years of the fact
that our sources of funding to support these expenditures break down
in a way that I think is useful for us as a parish to keep in mind. The
ongoing costs of supporting our physical plant are borne largely by
those who came before us in the form of gifts they left to our
endowment. These funds pay for the substantial upkeep required to
maintain and happily occasionally to improve our historic building, and
for such ongoing costs as heat and electricity to make the space
functional for our use. By contrast, the cost of our current
programming—of our worship, our music program, our clergy, our
church staff, our Christian education, our missions and outreach, and all
other aspects of our vibrant life as a parish—are supported by the
annual donations of current Advent parishioners.
The policy of the finance committee is to propose a balanced
budget for our parish each year that considers the current needs of our
parish with a view also to its future life, and I am pleased to report that
in 2016 we once again appear to be keeping very close in our
expenditures to our approved budget for the year. The management of
our financial resources is conservative and sound, and I hope this gives
parishioners confidence that their contributions are respected,
meaningful, and directed ably by the Vestry to further the Advent’s long
tradition of Christian witness in and for the city of Boston.
It is easy, in speaking of finances, to fall into the language of the
world—to speak of prudence, diversification, the hedging of risks,
returns on investments—and it is certainly meet and right that all these
things should have their place and their season in the secular
management of our parish. Yet our commitment to God ultimately
requires a different calculus. St. Matthew famously instructs us that a
man cannot serve two masters, he cannot pledge his fealty to both God
and Mammon, while the Epistle of James reminds us that such a doubleminded man lacks the stability that comes from simple faith in the risen
Lord, the confidence of a man who has built his house on a firm
foundation.
In the task of faith, shrewdness and the clever hedging of our bets
give way to simplicity, trust, commitment, and confidence in the
promises of a God for whom all things are possible. In this stewardship
season, as each of us in the parish considers a pledge of resources to
support our communal life over the coming year, returning to God some
portion of those blessings he has bestowed upon us, may we recall the
simplicity of faith that is a sure harbor and ready stay in a shrewd age.
And may our church be a place where all may come and be at rest, as
we quietly and diligently, with our mites and millions, labor at the
common task, our only task, of preparing in prayer, hope, fellowship,
obedience, and love for a kingdom that is not of this world.
May God bless the Church of the Advent.
Yours in Christ,
Adam C. Rutledge
Treasurer
GOD, Father of all mercies, we thine unworthy
servants do give thee most humble and hearty thanks for all
thy goodness and loving-kindness to us, and to all men. We
bless thee for our creation, preservation, and all the blessings of
this life; but above all, for thine inestimable love in the
redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ; for the means
of grace, and for the hope of glory. And, we beseech thee, give
us that due sense of all thy mercies, that our hearts may be
unfeignedly thankful, and that we shew forth thy praise, not only
with our lips, but in our lives; by giving up ourselves to thy
service, and by walking before thee in holiness and righteousness
all our days; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom with thee
and the Holy Ghost be all honor and glory, world without end.
Amen.
A
LMIGHTY
– A General Thanksgiving, Book of Common Prayer
Our first encounter with the Church of the Advent was in 2006. As
newcomers to Boston eager to find a spiritual home, we stepped into
the sanctuary of the church and were enveloped by a sense of God’s
presence that permeated the space like the incense from the mass.
Even more than the power of the sermon and the beauty of the building
and the mass, we felt God’s presence within the vibrant community of
faith that quickly welcomed us into the fold. Through our participation
in Theology on Tap, small groups, and teaching in the church school, our
lives have been blessed and enriched by profound and lasting
friendships with others on a similar journey to deepen their relationship
with Christ.
In 2014, we welcomed our daughter, Selma, into our lives and by
extension, into the life of the church. During her baptism, as we
thanked God for the gift of water that brings transformation and rebirth
into her life and ours, we were also grateful that she will grow in God’s
knowledge and love within the walls of our beautiful church building
and community. As we promised to care for the spiritual well-being of
our daughter and her tiny body, we were reminded of our responsibility
to care for our larger church body at the Advent, to ensure that others
may likewise encounter God’s beauty, transformation, and redemption
for years to come.
Our responsibility of giving time, talent, and treasure to our church
is not an easy commitment to make. We are fortunate in so many ways,
but I imagine that we are not alone in thinking that the soaring costs of
housing, food, and childcare in Boston make tithing to the church
difficult. But this very struggle makes giving so important. The church
has needs that can only be met by us and by each member of the
community as a whole. Additionally, if we are feeling financial strain,
imagine what others in the city are experiencing—our gifts allow the
Advent to respond to the needs of those suffering in our surrounding
community. We make our pledge with Christ’s question from our
baptism in mind: “Do you put your whole trust in my grace and love?”
We pray that our giving will be an act of faith in the power and love of
Christ and in the building up of his Kingdom on earth.
Jason, Carolyn & Selma Lewis
Giving to the Church of the Advent and other charitable causes is an
important part of my faith. Jesus’ injunction to give ten percent of my
income is a daunting challenge that I still strive to live up to, but I find
that striving brings me closer to God and to living more fully as a
Christian. It is a very tangible way to love my neighbor as myself. As
Proverbs puts it, those who are “kind to the poor lend to the Lord.” My
pledge to the Advent is a very important part of my annual loan to the
Lord, because the Advent is an institution that helps to bring Christ to
the city of Boston through word and deed. More than that, my pledge
is a sign of my membership in a community that helps bring me closer
to God through fellowship with other Christians. Together, through the
Advent, we can all accomplish more than any of us would be able to on
our own.
Kara Rodgers
Pledging to the material support of the Advent is central to two
overlapping commitments we make as members of this Parish. First,
giving—in a meaningful way—of the resources with which we have
been individually blessed is a way each of us responds to Our Lord’s
individual call to us. We render back part of that which we have been
given as the Good Servant put to use the talents entrusted to him by his
master. Second, contributing to the present-day financial needs joins us
in a very real and practical way with other members of the Advent
community across not just the present-day membership, but also across
time. Our forebears built and endowed our beautiful Church and
established its traditions of worship, service, and teaching to be a gift to
us. We have a responsibility to ensure its continued thriving, and to
understand that we, like they, are stewards for those who will come
after us. The annual giving we each pledge in stewardship season is key
to embracing that obligation willfully and joyfully in all aspects of our
lives together at the Advent.
Tom Brown
*
What follows on subsequent pages is the practical mechanics on
pledging and how it works at the Advent. If you have been pledging for
decades, you may skip the rest of the brochure. If you haven’t, or if you
have questions about how pledging works at the Advent, please read
onwards!
In any case, please return your pledge card to the Advent in a
collection plate or by mail, no later than November 27, the First
Sunday of Advent. You may also pledge online on the church’s
website, www.theadventboston.org.
**
MEMBERSHIP AT THE ADVENT
Anyone is always welcome to worship at the Advent. And as we all
hear from the pulpit every Sunday, we very much try to extend a warm
welcome (and generally succeed, I think!) to all of our visitors. Once a
visitor becomes more than just a visitor, however, and decides to make
the Advent his or her Christian home, then it is time for that visitor to
become a member of the Parish.
To be a member of the Church of the Advent, one must commit
both to regular worship at and regular financial support of the Parish.
At the Advent, as is the general Episcopal tradition, we commit to
support the church financially with a pledge of giving for the upcoming
year through the annual Stewardship Campaign.
By our Parish by-laws, only members of the Parish who make a
recorded financial contribution are allowed to vote at the Annual
Meeting, and only financially supporting members of the Parish may
serve as Vestrymen and Officers. By Parish tradition, we have extended
this requirement to the other ministries in the Church, from acolytes to
ushers to readers to church school teachers, and on and on, all of whom
must also be pledging members.
Membership in the Parish is a way of formalizing your spiritual
discipline of regular worship in and regular support of God’s holy
church. If you have not supported the Advent financially in a regular
way, but think of it as your church, your spiritual home, or your
Christian family, this is an especial call to you.
***
PLEDGING
A pledge card is enclosed with this brochure. Cards are also
available at the back of the church or you may contact the parish office
to get one. You may also pledge online on the church’s website,
www.theadventboston.org, and click on “Pledge Online” and follow the
instructions.
Once you have made the decision to pledge, hopefully prayerfully
and joyfully, you can fill out your card and return it to the Advent in a
collection plate on any given Sunday, with the First Sunday of Advent,
which is November 27, being the deadline of sorts. We make the First
Sunday of Advent our deadline for three reasons:

First, and most important, it is important simply to have a
deadline so that we can hold ourselves accountable, rather than
ignore the question of the disposition of our worldly treasures
until some vague moment in the future when we might want to
face it.

Second, that date is our Feast of Title and Dedication, we being
the Church of the Advent, and so it is a fitting date to dedicate
all of the pledged giving we have done as a Parish family
through the Stewardship Campaign to God’s holy church and
her work.

And third, practically, if we know the pledging total by that
date, it can help the Vestry more fairly budget for the upcoming
year.
There are a few questions the pledge card will ask, other than the
amount of your annual pledge—such as whether you want to pay
weekly or monthly, or whether you want envelopes for your pledge or
not. You may answer these as you like, as there are many ways to
follow through on your pledge.
****
RECORD-KEEPING
Once your pledge card is received by the Parish, it will be recorded
in the Parish office. It then becomes your responsibility to fulfill the
pledge during the upcoming year. Some people put a check weekly or
monthly in a pledge envelope and drop it in the collection plate. Others
simply have their bank or online bill-pay send a regular check. If you
give cash, though, it is important to put the cash in an official pledge
envelope so that it can be recorded as given by you, and count toward
your pledge.
Your financial contributions will be recorded by the Parish office
toward the fulfillment of your pledge. A statement will be mailed to you
in April, July, October, and early in December, with a record of your
pledge and your donations to date, so that you can keep track of how
you are doing on your promise, or make sure that the Parish office
hasn’t missed something (which very rarely happens, I am pleased to
say!). And, of course, every January the parish office will send you a
statement for tax purposes.
*****
QUESTIONS OR DISCUSSION
Members of the Stewardship Committee would love the chance to
talk to you individually about stewardship and giving at the Advent. As
we have said before, our Stewardship Campaign is not first and
foremost about collecting dollars to pay for the church’s electric bill,
though that is important. It is about giving all members of this our
Christian family a formal opportunity to deepen our relationship with
God through the sacrificial giving that our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ
asks of each of us. Let us all use this Stewardship Campaign as a chance
to examine our relationship with money and all worldly things, and to
ask God to help us redirect our eyes and our hearts to those things of
eternal value.
If you would like to speak with a member of the committee, please
feel free to do so directly, or contact the office if you would like to have
someone contact you.
MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE
Barbara Boles
Michael Gnozzio
David Lapin
Philip Le Quesne
Peter Madsen
Meg Nelson
Frederick Ou
Virginia Pierce
Kyle Pilares
Paul Roberts
Kara Rodgers
Adam Rutledge
Steven Sayers
Fr Allan Warren
Fr Sammy Wood
Thatcher Gearhart, Chairman
(cover photo by Julianne Turé)