If you don’t give it away, you can’t keep it. But if you give it away, it will increase. How’s that for a riddle? The best answer, if you haven’t already guessed it, is love. But the beauty of this paradox is that there can be a number of different answers. Another one might be […]
Deacon Don McArdle: Grateful and Giving
Much of our current day understanding and practice of living a “stewardship way of life” was developed by renowned stewardship pioneer Msgr. Thomas McGread. In light of that, I decided to write a book that we have recently published. The title is Grateful and Giving: How Msgr. Thomas McGread’s Stewardship Message Has Impacted Catholic Parishes […]
Deacon Don McArdle: Important Elements in a Successful Stewardship Renewal
How do you make your Stewardship Renewal as successful as possible? Does success hinge on beautiful displays at your Ministry Fair, or perfect color photos in your brochures? While these are important details, the most important elements during your Renewal are prayer and people. As with many endeavors, prayer is essential to your Stewardship Renewal. […]
Deacon Don McArdle: Surveying Our Parish
As the leaders of a stewardship parish, we are charged to foster a community of disciples. It is not as though as the leaders we must simply direct our fellow parishioners as to what they ought to do. Rather, we are called to serve them, to help them grow in faith, and to help them […]
Deacon Don McArdle: We Are All Fishers of Men
Imagine for just a moment that you are one of the first disciples. This is not an easy task. After all, we cannot truly fathom what it was like to live in Galilee 2,000 years ago as Jesus walked the earth. But let’s take a moment and put ourselves in the place of Simon, Andrew, […]
Deacon Don McArdle: Financial Transparency – One Hallmark of a Stewardship Parish
One of the hallmarks of a Stewardship Parish is having the parishioners take ownership of the parish and feel a sense of responsibility for all its activities, including its finances. In this regard it is important to promote openness in all financial dealings so that parishioners have a real sense of what is going on […]
Deacon Don McArdle: Good communication is at the heart of a healthy Catholic parish
According to one wise man, “You can’t love what you don’t know,” and that holds true even in parish life. Communicating what’s going on in the parish keeps the people informed, and knowing the parish helps people to love it. Parishes with good communications find that parishioners tend to be eager to participate and glad […]
