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An Episcopal Bishop Struggles with Stewardship (Reprint of an article by the Rt. Rev. Furman C. Stough, Retired Bishop of Alabama) Growing up in the Episcopal Church (I got myself born back in 1928) and on into adulthood, I was exposed to a minimum amount of teaching related to the stewardship of money. Recollecting those early years, I recall that towards the end of the year a copy of the projected parish budget was published and, shortly thereafter, there appeared those nice little boxes with 52 envelopes plus extras for special days like Christmas and Easter. "What are they for?" I asked, and was told, "It is for your offering." No one seemed to be too concerned about, "Why?" Out of that kind of experience I developed some basic standards about giving - children put coins in those little envelopes and adults put one dollar bills. I took those standards with me into early manhood and never once questioned them myself nor had them challenged by anyone else. In quick succession three major events occurred in my life: I graduated from college, I went to work for a large corporation, and I got married. It was a time of high motivation and optimism - I wanted to do well, to be included. And, not least among these inclusion needs was the local parish church which we attended. I did not have to wait long for inclusion there. Looking for new recruits, the parish chairman of the Every Member Canvas allowed as to how he needed canvassers and would I be interested. I leaped at the chance, not because I had any convictions about stewardship or really even knew what an Every Member Canvas was all about, but rather I saw it as a way to become more accepted in that community of faith. "Come on by the Parish House about 2:00 Sunday afternoon," he stated, "and you can pick up your cards." Promptly at 2:00 p.m. I presented myself and was given the names of five persons on whom I was to call. The instruction I received was very simple - "Good Luck!" Undeterred and full of enthusiasm, I approached the first home on my list. The man was cutting his grass, so I waited at the edge of the street until he made the swing around my way. I explained to him that I was from the parish, that I was calling in conjunction with the Every Member Canvas and would he please make a pledge, and sign his card. To my dismay, he indicated that he really wasn't interested, and not only did he not turn the engine off the mover, he didn't even put it on idle! In my mind I knew that this was not the way the script was supposed to proceed. I knew that something was basically wrong, and also, that I did not have the heart to proceed to call on the others. My own quest for an understanding of Christian stewardship began at that point. Having grown up with and among Southern Baptists, I had heard of tithing, but knew nothing of what the concept involved or how it had come to be a part of the teaching of the church. All I knew was that they seemed to know something about stewardship. Turning to the Old Testament, I found the first mention of the subject in Genesis, with fuller statements in Leviticus and Deuteronomy. Very simply it states that annually the first tenth of the yield of your lands and your herds shall be given to the Lord. And, perhaps more importantly, it is seen as a Law. The contrast with the New Testament teaching soon became apparent. At no point in the New Testament does Jesus impose the tithe as a law, but rather he asks for a total giving of our lives. He appeals not to the law but to our hearts, to give and to share out of love. The keynote seems to be an understanding of giving, not because we have to or are under compulsion, but because we love God and we want to. The contrast with the Old Testament understanding is delineated further by Paul who makes it clear that we are no longer living under the law but under grace. This simply bolsters Jesus' teaching and further relieves us from the temptation of believing that we can save ourselves by works effected under the precepts of a law. The issue of the stewardship of money was becoming clearer to me. The Old Testament presented the tithe as a law, but the New Testament and Jesus are clear that I no longer live under the law. But Jesus makes it very clear that I am to walk in his way, I am called upon to give and share of myself and of what I have in my possession. I am to do this from my heart and because I love God and not because of any law. Further, he asks me to acknowledge the fact that all I have comes from him and thereby belongs to him and that my role is that of a steward - one who cares for all those things to whom God has entrusted them. As this understanding of stewardship became clearer, it led me to that inevitable point where one has to ask simply, "How much am I willing to give?" God says that all that I have comes from him and belongs to him. Then am I to give him 100 percent of my money? If I do that, then I cannot buy food or provide housing or pay my bills, and then someone else would have to support me and my family. I think it is reasonable to assume that for most of us God is not asking that. Then, how much is he asking? In attempting to answer that critical question, it is clear in both the Old Testament and New Testaments that basically we are to share a portion of what God has given us with others. At least a part of what I have is to be given to God for his work in the world. This still did not answer the question but it was helpful. But the good apostle Paul came to my rescue! As Paul indicated, because of the imperfection of our human nature, we need some kind of norm or standard, not a law but a guide. What better norm or standard could there be than the tithe! To see the tithe as a norm as opposed to a law is a vastly different thing. In this way the tither's standard is something which I freely accept for myself and not as something that God has imposed upon me. I do this gladly, and understand that should I reach the point where a tenth of what I have is given away, I would seek to continue beyond that point. Further, I know and understand that my salvation does not hinge on my tithing or exceeding the tithe, or even giving less than a tithe! This is to see the tithe as a norm, a gracious norm, and not a law. How then does one begin? What I discovered was that you begin where you are and that meant simply to look at the portion that you were giving and to determine what percentage that represented of your income. In my case, it represented less than a tithe and I devised a plan of percentage increase over a number of years that would at least bring me to the standard of the tithe. Since then, over the years, my family and I have gone beyond that particular point. This is what is called "proportionate giving," using the tithe as a norm or guide. It is certainly compatible with the teaching of scripture and with the history and experience of the Christian Church. It is attested to by an ever-increasing number of proportionate givers in our own time. Over the years, following proportionate giving with the tithe as the norm, I have discovered many positive things. I have found a real sense of freedom and less guilt about money; that material things are less important than I thought; that there truly is a blessedness in giving out of love; and above all, that my commitment decision about proportionate giving has everything to do with my commitment to Jesus as Lord of my life and Savior of the world. "Each must do as he has made up his mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver." II Corinthians 9:7
Copyright © 2003 St. Augustine by-the-Sea
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