From the Heart of the Shepherd

From the bulletin for The Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time (2025 October 19)

Oct 19: 29th Sunday

Next Sunday we arrive at the fourth and final action item of our annual stewardship exercises. After recommitting to prayer, to small groups, and to ministry involvement, we turn to consider our financial giving to the parish. 

Money is certainly not the most important ingredient in our parish mission, but it is a necessary one. Take away the money and we soon lose our worship and meeting spaces, as well as our tremendous staff who get paid much less than they deserve. 

As you will see in the accompanying Annual Parish Report, St. Mark’s is not a “fundraising parish”. Less than 15% of our projected annual revenue comes from our rental income. The Preschool should be back in the black this year thanks to its leadership’s tremendous work, but its net will remain modest as we try to keep that service affordable for families. And even with another record-breaking Rummage Sale, our revenue from programs and fundraisers will hardly top $100K. 

No, St. Mark’s is a stewardship parish. Last fiscal year nearly 70% of all expenses were covered by donations. This year, we are banking on 90% of our building and personnel expenses to be covered by Sunday Plate and other anticipated donations alone. 

And consider this: projecting as we have a persistent annual deficit to the tune of ~$150K, if we have somehow avoided realizing that kind of loss by so many years’ end, it has invariably (COVID-cash excepted) been due to the unexpected generosity of parishioners and friends of the parish. 

No, this parish does not sustain itself with the help of a huge annual festival or property rentals. St. Mark’s is sustained by the generosity of its people, agents of Divine Providence that you all are. Which points to the importance of the annual financial pledge. 

The point of the pledge is to make a discerned commitment to sustaining our parish’s work to worship God and share the good news with all who need it. It’s an exercise in intentionality, so that God and His Church are not left with our leftovers but given the first fruits from the harvest of our labors. As steward of our parish’s temporal resources, it’s my duty to ensure that the parish is transparent about its needs, lest somehow we give off the vague impression that “somehow it all works out” and we can get by without the generous involvement of all who are able. Hence the enclosed report.

But as pastor of your souls, I realize it’s even more important that I stress all that this is about more than paying the bills. Much more. Through the magic of money, tithing sublimates the impact of your wealth and work. Beyond its direct fruit (the people you care for, the students you teach, the products you generate, the paper you push, the meetings you endure, etc.), giving a portion of your earnings to the parish means that your work is helping to adore the Lord, proclaim the Gospel, and care for those in need. And from a spiritual standpoint, a generous tithe exercises one’s trust in God, gratitude for His gifts, detachment from earthly riches, a preference for heavenly ones, a good example for one’s children, and (potentially) spiritual poverty and outward simplicity. Now tell me: what alternative use could offer so much profit for your souls? 😀

This year, you can make your commitment directly by setting or updating your weekly e-contribution amount into ParishSoft, submitting a paper pledge form (for those who prefer to make a tangible gift each week), or contacting our parish office for help making arrangements for your tithing this coming year. But however you prefer to make the pledge, I ask each household to take time this week to prayerfully discern what you are able to give, and what the Holy Spirit may be asking you to give, in the year to come. The enclosed worksheet may assist the discernment. Thank you for that, and for everything!

From the Heart of the Shepherd: The Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time