When we hear the word “stewardship,” we often think of money first. Money talks, does it not? But what is “stewardship” really? It is the response of a grateful heart for all of the gifts bestowed upon us by God. (www.rcan.org)

Rev. Michael Ward, Pastor of Saint Cecilia Parish in Kearny, New Jersey, says:

Stewardship is a way of life, a way of discipleship. Jesus has asked us to love others as he has loved us. He gave himself for us. Stewardship calls upon us to give of ourselves for the wellbeing of others, the wellbeing of our community, and of our parish. The 3 Ts can encompass our entire life. There are no limits on the ways in which we give of ourselves. The biblical principle of tithing calls for a return of the first 10% to be returned to God. This can be done with time, talent and treasure, and does not necessarily mean that the entire 10% goes to the parish. There are many worthy causes. The usual suggestion is 5% to parish community since it is part of the community we live in, the other 5% to other worthy causes. However, so often it is the last 10, 5, 1, .02% that gets given. Stewardship calls for us to plan on how much we plan to give in a given timeframe as a part of our budgeting process. In this way, through our parish and other charities we give to God first.

Often, money is the driving force behind the activities in which we participate, but there are other ways to practice stewardship. Individuals and families can be “stewards” by offering their time and talent if they are unable to offer monetary donations.

Time is perhaps the greatest gift we have to offer other people. Parishes need people to perform service work. Some individuals have certain talents and skills that are also needed. For example, my parish is currently working on some building renovations. We are in need of painters, carpenters, and electricians to help with some of the work. We have been fortunate enough to have volunteers offer to help, to give of their time and to share their skills and talents with us.

Talents can be shared by people who volunteer for different ministries in the church: lectors, eucharistic ministers, religious education instructors, choir members, and more. In any given parish setting, this list is a long one!

We all recognize parishes need money to operate. People sometimes moan and groan when an announcement is made about a “special collection” in church. There are even some people who don’t give to the normal weekly collection because “the church has enough money.” I have heard sharp criticisms of the fact that the Roman Catholic Church (i.e. the Vatican), is the richest entity in the world. People decide that they do not really need to give money to their local parish for that reason. Of course, there are other reasons some people do not put anything in the collection basket. Some people simply do not have the means to donate. Some families struggle to provide basic necessities and to make ends meet. More often than not, these families feel guilty about the fact that they have to let the collection basket pass by.

The ideal situation or scenario is to have a parish full of “people who can give all three of the “T’s”, time, talent, and treasure. Unfortunately, we do not live in an ideal world. Parishes will need to count on people who can find a healthy and manageable balance between all three “T’s.”

Stewardship: Implications for Youth Ministry Leaders

• How do we encourage young people to be responsible stewards of their time, talent, and treasure?
• As we build ministry teams of adults and teens, how do we encourage people to be healthy in their level of involvement and commitment?
• No youth minister can do it alone. We all need other willing people to share their time and talents with us to make our programs better.
• Many youth activities depend on the financial generosity of parishioners and well-wishers. As fundraisers are a big part of youth ministry, do we approach this from a perspective of stewardship? How do we ask teens to “fund” the other activities and ministries of our parishes?

The three "T's" are all about collaboration and a healthy balance needs to be found among the three to make youth ministry as effective.