A little letter on giving

Transcription

1 A lttle letter on gvng Andrew sad to hm, There s a boy here who has fve barley loaves and two fsh. But what are they among so many people? John 6.9

2 The Docese of Sheffeld s called to grow a sustanable network of Chrst-lke, lvely and dverse Chrstan communtes n every place whch are effectve n makng dscples and n seekng to transform our socety and God s world. Yours Lord s the greatness, the power, the glory, the splendor and the majesty; for everythng n heaven and earth s yours. All thngs come from you, and of your own do we gve you. 1 Chroncles Contents 03 A lttle letter on gvng 04 God s gft to us 05 The gft of gvng 06 A story of dscpleshp 07 How we should gve as dscples of Chrst 08 Supportng one another 10 Facts and fgures 11 Steps nto gvng 12 The Common Fund 14 Planned gvng n your parsh 15 And fnally 2 A lttle Letter on Gvng The Docese of Sheffeld

3 A lttle letter on gvng... My dear ssters and brothers Ithank God for every one of you: for the gfts you brng to mnstry, for all you offer to the church of Jesus Chrst n the Docese of Sheffeld, for all the sgns of God s grace n you. May God bless you n all of your famles and n your home, n your work, n your servce to the communty and n your lfe as a parsh. May you contnue to fnd great joy n the gospel and n your Chrstan fath. I am wrtng ths lttle letter on Chrstan gvng to every member of every church across the Docese of Sheffeld n ths centenary year. I am wrtng especally to every PCC. I am wrtng to ask you to thnk through the way you gve fnancally as a household to your local church. I am wrtng to ask you as a parsh and benefce to thnk through the way you encourage everyone to gve and the way you contrbute to the Common Fund n the Docese. I am deeply thankful for all that you gve n so many ways. I am also prayng n ths centenary year for a step change n our fnances as a docese so we can plan for growth nto the future. Please jon me n that prayer and n ths journey. The Docese of Sheffeld A lttle Letter on Gvng 3

4 God s gft to us God has gven so much to us. Everythng we have s a gft from God s grace and bounty. God made us and all the world. We owe our very lves to hm. The beauty of the earth and skes s God s gft. God provdes for us n our daly lves. God has gven us our homes and famles, our work, our health and all the good thngs we enjoy. All that we have comes from God. Especally, God has gven to us the great treasure, the pearl of great prce, Jesus Chrst our Lord. Jesus was rch but became poor for our sake. He gave hs lfe for us on the cross so that our sns could be forgven. He loves us wth a love wthout measure or lmt. Through Jesus, God has welcomed us nto hs own famly as God s chldren through baptsm. Although we do not deserve t, we are part of the people of God, the church throughout the world. God has revealed hs ways to us n Scrpture and especally through Jesus Chrst hs Son. God has poured out upon us the gft of the Holy Sprt. Chrst comes to dwell n our hearts through fath. We are gven gfts for mnstry. We share n the gft of Chrst s body and blood n the Eucharst. We are called to share n lfe n all ts fullness here and n the lfe to come. St Jude's, Hexthorpe and St John's Edlngton n the West Doncaster Deanery have shared a prest for two years. A new vson for the parshes s beng developed through Msson Acton Plannng. New ntatves nclude runnng "Stay and Play" sessons n local chldren's centres, n some of the most deprved neghbourhoods n the Docese. A strategy to reach young famles wth the Gospel ncludes a Messy Church, varous other specal famly events. There s also outreach to sheltered housng schemes and nursng homes, support for three local schools, and much more - alongsde the daly worshp of almghty God. Common Fund enables ths work to develop and grow. 4 A lttle Letter on Gvng The Docese of Sheffeld

5 Clfton St James, s n one of the most deprved areas of Rotherham. Despte ths, the church s thrvng and has developed strong lnks wth local schools and wth chldren n the area through the meda of musc and song. The congregaton has grown sgnfcantly and the church s ncreasngly seen as a centre for communty actvty, pastoral care and worshp that s engaged wth the real ssues affectng those who lve there. Common Fund s a vtal resource for msson and mnstry n ths benefce. The Gft of gvng & sharng God calls all hs people to be lke hm and to share n ths gft of gvng. God gves so much to us God calls us to gve back to hm. It s more blessed to gve than to receve. (Acts 20.35) Gvng s an antdote and a medcne to the greed around us and wthn us. Where your treasure s there wll your heart be also. Matthew 6.21 Jesus and gvng A sxth of Jesus recorded sayngs and more than a thrd of hs parables are about the relatonshp between a person and ther money and possessons. How many can you name? Gvng s as much a part of our worshp as our prase and prayer. (Hebrews 13.16) There s real joy n seeng others blessed through our gvng. Gvng helps us feel connected as the Body of Chrst across the Docese. Gvng helps all of us be nvolved n God s work. We are stewards of all that God has gven us and one day we wll gve an account of our stewardshp to God. (Matthew ) The Docese of Sheffeld A lttle Letter on Gvng 5

6 A Story about dscpleshp Luke tells ths well known story about gvng: Jesus looked up and saw rch people puttng ther gfts nto the treasury; he also saw a poor wdow put n two small copper cons. He sad: Truly I tell you ths poor wdow has put n more than all of them; for all of them have contrbuted out of ther abundance, but she out of her poverty has put n all she had to lve on. Luke Ths s more than a story about gvng. Ths s a story about dscpleshp. The words at the end of the story mean, lterally, She threw n her whole lfe, all she had. To be a dscple of Jesus Chrst means to love God wth all our heart, all our soul, all our mnd and all our strength. It means to offer our whole selves back to God n lovng servce. At the end of every Eucharst we make an offerng of our own lves to God n the words of ths prayer, taken from Romans : Almghty God we thank you for feedng us wth the body and blood of your Son Jesus Chrst. Through hm we offer you our souls and bodes to be a lvng sacrfce. Send us out n the power of the Holy Sprt To lve and work to your prase and glory. Amen. Part of the offerng of our whole lves s to offer our tme n God s servce, our dfferent talents n God s servce and our money, our treasure, n God s servce. It s only through the gvng of church members that the work of the local church and the church across the docese s sustaned and can grow. St Peter's Greenhll s reachng out to people of all ages n ts communty. Through work wth toddlers, chldren, young adults, and the elderly the church s seekng to create ways people can explore the Chrstan fath and belong to a vbrant Chrstan communty. The church s very dverse, but unfed n ts desre to share the Good News. The Common Fund s a vtal resource for msson and mnstry n ths benefce. 6 A lttle Letter on Gvng The Docese of Sheffeld

7 How should we gve as dscples of Chrst? The New Testament teaches us that a Chrstan should gve: In proporton to our ncome In a regular and dscplned way In a way that s realstc to the need In secret Wth joy Each of you must gve as you have made up your mnd, not reluctantly or under compulson for God loves a cheerful gver. 2 Cornthans 9.7 The Docese of Sheffeld A lttle Letter on Gvng 7

8 Supportng one another In a local church we all gve n proporton to our ncome and support one another n partnershp n God s msson We gve n the same way as dfferent churches n the famly of the Docese. Our 180 parshes and benefces are very dfferent. Some are n wealthy areas but many are n very poor communtes. Some are large congregatons, others are small. DONC ROTHERHAM SHEFFIELD 8 A lttle Letter on Gvng The Docese of Sheffeld

9 We need to support one another as a famly 1.2 mllon people lve n the Docese 176 parshes 209 churches 40 schools servng 8,300 chldren 20,000+ worshppers 13,000 on electoral rolls 136 stpendary clergy n parshes ASTER KEY: Archdeaconry of Doncaster Adwck-le-Street Doncaster Snath and Hatfeld Tankersley Wath West Doncaster Archdeaconry of Sheffeld & Rotherham Atterclffe Ecclesall Ecclesfeld Hallam Laughton Rotherham 200 actve clergy (ncludng SSM and actve retred clergy) 15 chaplans n hosptals, prsons and unverstes 400+ lcensed lay mnsters Church Wardens & offcers accordng to fgures for 2012 Adult weekly attendance grew by 3% across the Docese from 2011 All age weekly attendance held steady Around half of our benefces are now seeng growth n ther worshppng congregatons and that number s ncreasng. Two thrds of benefces saw some ndcatons of growth n Contnued growth s only possble through careful, responsble mutual support. The Docese of Sheffeld A lttle Letter on Gvng 9

10 St Cuthbert's, Fr Vale serves a mult-cultural area of Sheffeld and s currently engaged n an ambtous Communty Centre development project. Fve years ago, the parsh lstened to local people's opnons about what s essental to communty lfe. As a result, the church buldng s beng extended to provde a communty ktchen and meetng room, tolets and a food bank store. A youth cafe s also planned. In Fr Vale, 40% of chldren lve n poverty and 45% of adults have no formal educatonal qualfcatons. Common Fund s exactly what s needed to help parshes lke ths to pursue ther vson of servng ther communty for Jesus Chrst. The Church of England s gudance, through our General Synod, s that members of the Church of England should am to gve away a tenth of ther ncome: 5% 5% should be gven to and through ther local church should be gven to other good causes Although we are a relatvely poor area, Chrstans n the Docese of Sheffeld are already very generous and gve, on average, 3.9% of ther ncome to and through the local church. Ths s very generous and has been sustaned even n the dffcult economc clmate of recent years. However, n order to sustan and grow mnstry n ths Docese n the future n a sustanable way, I am askng all Chrstans to revew ther gvng every year to see f we can acheve that standard together of 5% of our ncome gven to and through the local church. The total amount gven to churches n recurrng ncome across the Docese n 2012 was 7.5 mllon. The total amount gven by churches to the Docese was 4.4 mllon 10 A lttle Letter on Gvng The Docese of Sheffeld

11 Steps nto gvng Many people make gradual steps n ther gvng. It s an ndvdual decson. Everyone s crcumstances vary. Don t feel pressured by others. Pray about your gvng and talk t over wth your famly. If the rest of your famly are not Chrstans that wll clearly affect your own gvng Casual gvng (whatever you have wth you when the plate comes round) Responsble gvng (plannng n advance to set asde some money each week) Proportonate gvng (gvng a set proporton of your money every week or month dependng on your ncome). We all need to move beyond the stage where we are gvng to God our loose change or what we can spare. Ways of gvng You can gve n every church n a number of ways: Through cash n the offertory Through a weekly envelope scheme By standng order through a bank All Sants Church n Woodlands and Hghfelds s buldng a church Famly of all ages seekng to bless and help ther communty wth practcal acton. Pckng up ltter s Good News! Wthout the Common Fund t wouldn't be able to resource mnstry n a former mnng vllage n the top 5% of deprved areas. If you pay ncome tax you should consder sgnng a Gft Ad form (ask your church treasurer). Your local church s able to reclam an extra 2.50 for every 10 you gve n ths way. Across the Docese n 2013, local churches reclamed 1, last year. The Docese of Sheffeld A lttle Letter on Gvng 11

12 The Common Fund We are changng our system of mutual support as a Docese ths year to the Common Fund. Every parsh s asked to decde how much they are able to gve for the support of mnstry. Your PCC wll be asked to make ths decson for 2015 by June For a more detaled explanaton, see our docesan webste for the downloadable artcle, "How Common Fund Works : How we calculate the costs of mnstry The cost of keepng a full tme stpendary mnster n post for a year s 57,000. Ths s not the value of ther stpend but stpend plus penson plus housng costs. Ths drect cost comes to 45,000. The addtonal 12,000 ncludes The cost of clergy tranng (ncludng provdng around 15 stpendary curaces across the Docese) The essental central costs of runnng the Docese (property, fnance, legal costs and advce, safeguardng, church buldngs, archdeacons, communcatons) The total budget for the Docese s 7 mllon The costs of provdng key support to parshes to help them grow and develop A contrbuton to the central costs of the Church of England To sustan the Docese wth our present number of clergy (and to grow our clergy numbers) we need over 5 mllon to come from Common Fund contrbutons. > Goole St John the Evangelst, Snath and Hatfeld Deanery, s seeng young famles jon the church through the new Famly Servce, t has gone from strength to strength and some parents are now beng prepared for Confrmaton. The Common Fund s a vtal resource for msson and mnstry n ths benefce. 12 A lttle Letter on Gvng The Docese of Sheffeld

13 We receve a grant from the Central Church Fund through the Church Commssoners because we are n a poorer part of the country. Ths s currently about 2 mllon per year. We receve another 1 mllon per annum through fees and nvestments. Makng your Common Fund decson Some parshes are net gvers to the lfe of the Docese and some are net recevers. Ths s rght: we am for mutual support and to help one another. However every parsh needs to be responsble n ts fnances and gve frst prorty to the nvestment n mnstry through the Common Fund. We ask every parsh to contrbute as a mnmum your 2013 contrbuton plus two years nflaton for 2014/15. However we also ask that you try and ncrease ths contrbuton ether: To decrease the amount you need to depend on other parshes to support mnstry n your parsh or; To ncrease the amount you are able to gve to support mnstry n other parshes. Your PCC wll be provded wth some smple fgures to help you see these fgures broken down for your own church. Martjn Mugge, Curate at Wombwell, has poneered a new Tea Tme Servce, Refresh, and has been apponted Chaplan at Jump Workng Men s Club. Common Fund s a vtal resource for msson and mnstry n ths benefce and to support curaces across the Docese. Mutual support to grow a sustanable Docese As every PCC revews ts contrbuton every year and gves generously, we hope we wll be able to mantan and eventually to grow stpendary mnstry across the Docese as a whole. But we can only do that f every church plays ts part Please consder whether your PCC can make ts Common Fund contrbuton monthly to the Docese by standng order to enable us to plan responsbly as a Docese. A frst step would be to ask as many members as possble of your planned gvng scheme to make ther offerng by standng order, so that you too can plan n advance. The Docese of Sheffeld A lttle Letter on Gvng 13

14 Planned gvng pont. The best tme s probably n October as your PCC thnks ahead to next year. n your parsh Every parsh church needs a moment n the year when we challenge one another to revew our own gvng to and through the church. Ths should be a normal part of church lfe. Everyone s fnancal crcumstances change. It s smply good housekeepng. Please plan ths nto your church year at some It s good and helpful to lnk gvng wth themes of dscpleshp and also a vson for what you want to see God do through your parsh n the next year. In our annual cycle of the year we shall add, n October, a moment for every parsh to thnk about stewardshp and renewal, to pray about your budget for next year and nvte people to gve. The Docese wll provde some smple materals for you to use whch are downloadable from the webste. Buldng relatonshps wth the wder communty and celebratng past and present have been key themes n the Manor parsh, leadng to growth n both numbers and dversty. A developng shared famles and chldren s project; a communty remnscence and local hertage programme; work wth schools and an nclusve, open church communty have all contrbuted to ths growth. A hghlght of 2013 was an 80th annversary celebraton wth a church-shaped cake and lvely Zmbabwean sngng and drummng. There s hope, vtalty and the potental for growth n ths urban estate parshes. A Common Fund n whch churches contrbute accordng to ther means, s a vtal tool n ensurng a contnung Chrstan presence workng for the growth of God s kngdom n areas lke the Manor. 14 A lttle Letter on Gvng The Docese of Sheffeld

15 And fnally... Thank you once agan for gvng tme to read and work through ths lttle letter on gvng. God has gven so much to us. We have so much to be thankful for. We have so much to gve to one another and contrbute to the whole body of Chrst and to God s msson for the world. Please take ths aspect of Chrstan dscpleshp serously. In ths centenary year, let s make a step change together and put the fnances of every parsh on a stronger footng for the future. Wth love and prayers for all you do and are. +Steven Sheffeld The Docese of Sheffeld A lttle Letter on Gvng 15

16 Help for the journey The Docese of Sheffeld s called to grow a sustanable network of Chrst-lke, lvely and dverse Chrstan communtes n every place whch are effectve n makng dscples and n seekng to transform our socety and God s world. All the resources you need to help PCC treasurers and parsh Gvng Offcers are on the Docesan webste at: The Parsh Support team stands ready to help your parsh and msson partnershp to move forward n gvng and stewardshp Contact the team at Church House on where ts members wll offer support and gudance.