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The Oxford Dictionary defines Stewardship as…the job of supervising or taking care of something, such as an organization or property (e.g., “responsible stewardship of our public lands”).

WHAT IS THAT “SOMETHING” AS IT RELATES TO OUR FAITH?

A biblical view of stewardship can be consciously defined as: “Utilizing and managing all resources God provides for the glory of God and the betterment of His creation.” The central essence of biblical world view stewardship is managing everything God brings into our lives in a manner that honors God and impacts eternity.

STEWARDSHIP IS OFFERING BACK TO GOD FROM THE GIFTS HE HAS GIVEN US.

Stewardship begins and ends with the understanding of God’s ownership of all:

• “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.” (Revelation 22:13)
• “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.” (Psalm 24:1)
• “To the Lord your God belong the heavens, even the highest heavens, the earth and everything in it.” (Deuteronomy 10:14)
• “The land must not be sold permanently, because the land is mine and you are but aliens and my tenants.” (Leviticus 25:23)
• “Who has a claim against me that I must pay? Everything under heaven belongs to me.” (Job 41:11)

Stewardship is further supported and sustained theologically on the understanding of God’s holiness as found in such verse as: Genesis 1:2^[1:2], Psalm 104, Psalm 113, 1 Chronicles 29:10-20, Colossians 1:16, and Revelation 1:8.

WHAT ELSE DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT STEWARDSHIP?

• Give with gratitude – “We thank you, our God, and praise your glorious Name …for all things come from you and we have only given back what is yours already.”  (I Chronicles 29:13-14)
• Give without show – “Let not your left hand know what your right hand is doing.” (Matt.6:3).
• Give with regularity in proportion – “Upon the first day of the week let everyone of you lay by him in store, as God has prospered him.” (I Cor. 16:2)
• Give liberally – “He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.” (II Cor. 9:6)
• Give cheerfully – “Let everyone give as his heart tells him, neither grudgingly, nor under compulsion, for God loves the man that gives cheerfully.” (II Cor. 9:7)

Giving to His Church is a way to thank God for His grace and generosity. The question is not, “What are the dues?” but “How can I thank God for my many blessings?”

When the Archdiocese instituted a change from “membership” dues to stewardship, it allowed you to offer and consider what you can give back, rather than be instructed how much is required. Pledge amounts vary from person to person and are a personal decision and commitment between Christ and you.  

Your annual Stewardship pledge, regardless of amount, still makes you a “member” of Holy Transfiguration.

• When you were baptized, oaths were made for you to serve Christ as your Lord and Savior for your entire life – So if you have not since rejected Him, you are still pledged to serve Him with your life and there is no better way to do so than serve His Church – His parish where His work gets done.
• To show Him that you love Him and thank Him for your abundant blessing, there is no better way to respond than complete the Stewardship Form and then indicate what you will pledge to Him throughout the year.
• It represents an active commitment and participant to be an active member in the life of the church.
• All adult children in your household, age 18 and over, should become a pledged member, independent of their parents. Husbands and wives should complete one Stewardship/pledge form together.s

• Each person 18 years and older should complete and return a stewardship form (including a joint form with his or her spouse) for the current or ensuing parish fiscal year (January 1 through December 31).
• Even though a young adult age 18 and over may not be able to give back to God monetarily, we encourage our young adult members to contribute time and talent and participate in the ministries offered to young adults. If you can afford such luxuries as cell phones, cable TV, dining out, then you should be able to pledge at least five dollars a week as your donation to the parish for Christ’s work. This amount will be less that any of these other expenditures each month.

The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America Parish Regulations requires us to fill out an initial pledge form and to recommit our stewardship pledge each year. The Uniform Parish Regulations (UPRs) and bylaws specify the following to be a member in good standing…

Each person who is 18 years of age or older, who was baptized according to the rites of the Church or received into the Church through Chrismation, who lives according to the tenets of the Faith, who abides by the UPRs and these Bylaws, who is active in the Parish, who cooperates in every way toward the wellbeing of the Parish and has completed and returned a stewardship form (including a joint form with his or her spouse) for the current or ensuing parish fiscal year (January 1 through December 31), is considered to be a member in good standing with the Parish.

• The Archdiocese Regulations requires us to fill out an initial pledge form and to recommit our stewardship pledge each year. The stewardship year is on a calendar year basis. Typically, the forms for the upcoming calendar year are distributed each December.
• What the Parish needs from its members change from one year to the next, so it is good for us to we re-examine our commitment to the Church (Christ’s Living Body on earth) each year.
• The parish receives accurate information about us and our families each year.
• Our circumstances may change year to year. Your ability to change your financial commitment and time and talent should keep up with your current needs.

Yes! The online Stewardship/Membership form is at the top of this page.

• No parish can flourish without the unselfish donations of its members’ time and God-given talents.
• We all have talents that the parish can use, but those of us who are so fortunate to have been blessed with special talents need to share them with the parish to show Christ our gratitude for these blessings.
• Even if we live far from the church, there are several ministries for which we can join, lead and/or assist.

• The annual Stewardship pledge is geared towards the General Fund, which pays the ongoing operational expenses; such as Archdiocese fair share contributions, payroll, utilities, insurance, supplies, ministry, and other expenses. Your General Fund pledge needs to be submitted annually to assist the Parish Council in developing a budget as well as to establish your interests in participating in or assisting in our various ministries.
• The Capital Campaign (i.e. the Building Fund), pays for the physical upkeep of our buildings and campus; electrical/plumbing/HVAC/roofing repairs, construction projects, etc.

We recommend that you commit to a regular weekly or monthly schedule as this greatly improves our cash flow expectations to meet the church’s ongoing financial obligations, such as payroll, utilities, insurance, ministries and facility expenditures.

By using these methods, you will be able to see how much has been given at any time versus how much has been pledged.

1. Vanco Online Giving – This is the preferred method so as to limit the physical handling of checks and currency. Visit our GIVE webpage for a link to our Vanco page. You can then create your Vanco account.
   • Vanco gives you the ability to set up auto-pay with your frequency and amounts.
   • There is an option to choose to offset the Vanco fees for processing your payments.
   • Vanco also allows you to contribute towards many categories such as Candles, Capital Campaign (ie., the Building Fund), Green Lawn Cemetery Plots, Philoptochos and other ministry donations.
2. Set up regular bill pay with your bank. Your bank will mail the checks for you at no extra charge.
3. Mail in your contribution or drop off in the offering basket in the church narthex.
   • If submitting checks, please write separate checks for the General Fund and Capital Campaign (i.e., the Building Fund).

• The reason for stating the pledge amount on the Stewardship Form is to collectively enable the Parish Council to manage the parish’s expenditures more effectively during the year for which these pledges had been made.
• If parishioners make pledges that are lower than they know they will donate, these members are making the parish’s expenditures more difficult for the Parish Council to manage. Conversely, if parishioners make pledges higher than they will donate, they are also making the Parish Council’s forecasting of cashflow difficult.
• The best way to help the Parish Council to manage the parish’s operational costs is for parishioner to make pledges very close to what they will donate to the General Fund. If they realize later in the year that they will not be able to donate the amount they pledged or that their donations can exceed what they had pledged, they should call the office and tell the Office Administrator to change their pledge for the year.
• No one from the parish every sees a member’s pledge. Your information is kept in strictest confidence in our church office.

• The best approach is for the parishioner to pray to Christ for His guidance, and then pledge sacrificially for the work of His parish. However, the Stewardship Committee offers the following guidance and data:
• Generally, the amount needed to pay for general operation expenses increases each year, largely due to payroll and inflationary increases and to common budget items such as Archdiocese fair share contribution, utilities costs and facility maintenance. Our stewardship budget is increasing from $797,300 in 2023 to $882,000 for 2024 (an 11% increase) to help meet the increased spending needs.
• The average family pledge during 2020 was $1657 per year; roughly $30 per week.
• Most families pledge between $500 -$2,000 per year (67% of all pledged members).
• Individuals or couples living with just enough income to get by (living on social security only, the families lost one of their major incomes, etc.) may not have enough income to make monetary pledges and that’s OK. It is still important to turn in Stewardship Forms as the parish’s computer software will not count a pledge of zero as a parish member. These individuals and couples need to list a pledge of at least $1.
• If you can afford such luxuries as cell phones, cable TV, dining out, then you should be able to pledge at least five dollars a week as your donation to the parish for Christ’s work. This amount will be less that any of these other expenditures each month.

We understand that your financial situation can change and it may be difficult to continue to contribute according to your pledge amount. Or, you may be fortunate to be able to contribute more than you originally planned. In either situation, simply contact the church office and let the Office Administrator know what your new pledge amount should be for the remainder of year. Contact by phone (770-924-8080) or by email (office@holytransfiguration.info).