Home / News & Publications / Michigan Catholic News / 2009 / Stewardship awareness strengthens commitment
Stewardship awareness strengthens commitment
by Robert Delaney of The Michigan Catholic
Published May 1, 2009
DETROIT - Fr. Nicholas Zukowski says he wants to see St. Mary Queen of Creation Parish in New Baltimore become a "stewardship parish" by the time his current assignment as pastor is up two years from now.
Not that he is planning to leave or anything - he says he likes the people he serves and may stay longer - but he hopes to reach the point where more than half of his parishioners have made a stewardship commitment.
That's a commitment to pray, a commitment to work toward stronger relationships in their lives, a commitment to give of their time and talents, and a commitment to give some percentage of their income to the Church.
Fr. Zukowski is building toward that goal through use of the archdiocesan stewardship awareness program, Called by Christ, Gifted by the Spirit, among the resources made available to parishes through funding from the annual Catholic Services Appeal.
 The CSA, which funds most of the ministries of the Archdiocese of Detroit, gets under way this weekend.
The 11-week stewardship program provides sample talks and key points to be made in presentations by clergy and lay witnesses, as well as bulletin articles to promote the talks, Fr. Zukowski says.
"An aspect we really appreciated was that it wasn't just about dollars and cents," he says.
Especially helpful, he continues, were the scriptural references to stewardship, and "the idea of stewardship being a way of life that expresses our gratitude to God," Fr. Zukowski continues.
The program was run beginning in late August and continuing into the fall, culminating in a Stewardship Commitment Sunday. "Of our 3,700 registered households, we had a response of about 10 percent that submitted a commitment form. And of that 10 percent, 10 percent were brand new stewards," Fr. Zukowski says.
While what he means is there was an increase in people committing to get involved in parish ministries, he explains that he prefers to call them stewards rather than volunteers, "because 'volunteer' implies I'm doing something out of the goodness of my heart, instead of being called by Christ to be a steward."
And there were the other commitments: "We got commitments for 5,300 minutes of prayer each day, for 2,200 hours each week spent in nurturing relationships, and for (financial support) averaging 5.5 percent of their income," Fr. Zukowski says.
Those indicating a willingness to give of their time and talent have been contacted with information outlining the various parish ministries in which they might serve.
He says the parish will present a five-week version of the program this year, concluding the last weekend of September.
So, has the parish's stewardship efforts resulting in a burgeoning Sunday collection? Well, not so far - not with so many parishioners being affected by the current crisis roiling the auto industry and other aspects of the local economy.
But if promoting stewardship under current circumstances results in deeper prayer lives, stronger relationships and a sense of real commitment to Christ among his parishioners, that is fine by Fr. Zukowski.
"I think the financial support will come down the line," he says.
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