Principles of Catholic Stewardship
of Time, Talents and Treasure
"As each one has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of God's varied grace." (1 Peter 4:10)
The word "stewardship" refers to the Catholic approach to the gifts that God has bestowed upon us. Stewardship is living out a commitment to be Christ-centered rather than self-centered. Profound gratitude, justice and love become the fundamental motives for giving back to God. Everything that God has given to us is intended to serve the divine plan. Therefore, our life is to be lived in gratitude toward God. In a variety of ways, we as disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, share our time, talent and treasure to build up the Church and make our world a better place.
Everything that we are and everything that we have is a gift from God. Through Christian stewardship we strive for ways to use those gifts to do God’s work here on Earth and return those gifts with increase to the Lord.
- St. Clement Stewards take care of the world around us, including embracing the social teaching of the Church.
- We respect human life and dignity.
- We protect the natural environment.
- We share our gifts (time, talents, and treasures) with others.
- We communicate our enthusiasm.
For your own development as a Catholic steward, it helps to spend time in prayer and reflection to recognize your gifts from God. Then discover how best to use those gifts for the benefit of others—and of course, invite others to discern and share their gifts, too. Prayerfully, consider the gifts you can give freely from you heart in the following areas:
§ Prayer - Plan to pray regularly for God’s work.
§ Presence - Plan to attend Mass consistently.
§ Gifts of Time and Talent - Please don’t be shy about getting involved in parish life. Putting stewardship into action changes our relationship with each other and the world. Please refer to the current parish directory or within our website for the people to contact in the areas in which you would like to serve.
A Stewardship Prayer
Generous God
I give thanks to you for the gifts you have given me -my life, my family, my friends - time, talents, and material possessions. All that I have comes from you. Help me to remember this and rejoice in your goodness.
Walk with me, my God. Help me on my spiritual journey, so that I may constantly renew my relationship with you and all the good people in our parish and throughout St. Bernard and the Cincinnati area.
Renew in me your Spirit. Give me the strength and courage to become a better follower of Jesus, to be a disciple. Help me hear the call to "Come, Follow Me."
I give glory to you, my God, as I make stewardship a way of life.
Amen.