Stewardship Education
About the Stewardship Program
Stewardship challenges us to live counter-culturally, anchored in the Gospel message and wholly cognizant that only in living as our model steward, Jesus, we will find hope, freedom and lasting joy and peace.
Stewardship…
- Asks that we help each other recognize both the gifts and talents with which God has blessed us, and the ways in which we have been blessed through the gifts and talents of others.
- Invites us to help discern, call forth and continually encourage one another to use the gifts and talents with which God has blessed us according to God’s will.
- Challenges us to share our time, talent and treasure beyond what we believe we can do or give so we can grow, individually and collectively, as God desires.
Throughout this page are a variety of ways to learn more about stewardship through the Archdiocese of Chicago.
Please contact the Office of Stewardship and Development at 312.534.8500 with any questions.
In 1992, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) published Stewardship: A Disciple’s Response. That document is now 25-years old, which is why the Office of Stewardship and Development is taking a closer look at how to apply the document’s lessons to parish stewardship efforts today.
This series of articles looks at the summary previously provided (PDF), with a fresh look and new applications toward parish stewardship.
- Summary on The Theology of Stewardship. (PDF)
- “Part I: Disciples as Stewards.” (PDF)
- “Part II: Stewards of Creation.” (PDF)
- “Part III: Stewards of Vocation.” (PDF)
- “Part IV: Stewardship of the Church.” (PDF)
Click here for the USCCB’s overview.
The Spirit of Stewardship Newsletter Archive
November 2017 Newsletter
- Giving Tuesday graphic Example (Link)
- Scripture on Stewardship graphic example (Link)
- Thoughts on Stewardship (Link)
- Advent graphic Week #1 (Link)
- Advent graphic Week #2 (Link)
- Advent graphic Week #3 (Link)
- Advent graphic Week #4 (Link)
- Stewardship Saint for November (Link)
- How Donors Respond to Your Emails (Link)
- Religious Giving Holds Steady (Link)
- Strong Link Found Between Worship Attendance and Religious Giving (Link)
May 2017 Newsletter
- Christian Stewards: People of the Resurrection (Link)
- Giving is an Act of Faith: What Every Donor to Religious Charities Should Know (Link)
- Parish Level Evangelization, by Dr. Brian Starks (Link)
- Faith Based Fundraisers: Can Fundraising be a Calling? (Link)
April 2017 Newsletter
- ICSC May Stewardship Newsletter—Great resources and articles! (Link)
- 10 Ways to Appeal Fundraising to Today’s Baby Boomers (Link)
- How Catholics can invest in their faith—and make money (Link)
- The Pope gave a TED talk and it is a big deal (maybe just to me). Here it is
- The Problem of the Second Collection (Link)
March 2017 Newsletter
- Why Baby Boomers Are Upending The Fundraising Landscape (Link)
- Americans Express Increasingly Warm Feelings Toward Religious Groups (Link)
- Why Give? Faith traditions inspire different donor motivations as the past still inspires the present (Link)
- ICSC March Newsletter, Stewardship Saint, and Stewardship Prayer for March available (Link)
February 2017 Newsletter
- 25th Anniversary this year for the Pastoral Letter on Stewardship called, “Stewardship: A Disciple’s Response”. Click here for summary
- ICSC February Stewardship e-bulletin, lots of interesting reads throughout. Click here to read more.
- Good Stewards Live the Beatitudes (Link)
December 2016 Newsletter
- Preparation and Disruption: An Advent Reflection (Link)
- Looking Back at 2016, the Year of Surprises: Pope Francis (Link)
- A New Year, New Beginnings for the Christian Steward (Link)
- Stewardship Prayer for January (Link)
Click here to subscribe to the Spirit of Stewardship newsletter, and see the newsletter archive below.
November 2016 Newsletter
- A Stewardship Prayer for December (Link)
- Pope elevates Cupich to College of Cardinals (Link)
- USCCB Advent Resources (Link)
- Archdiocese of Chicago Advent Resources (Link)
- 5 Ideas for Advent Stewardship Webinar Recording (Link)
- Suggested Advent Graphics and Bulletin Pieces
Advent Graphic 1 (PDF)
Advent Graphic 2 (PDF)
Advent Graphic 3 (PDF)
Advent Graphic 4 (PDF)
Bulletin Piece 1 (PDF)
Bulletin Piece 2 (PDF)
Bulletin Piece 3 (PDF)
October 2016 News
- A Stewardship Prayer for October (Link)
- Stewardship Prayer for November (Link)
- Why are Catholics mean on Facebook? (Link)
- International Catholic Stewardship Conference Newsletter – October 2016 (Link)
- Be a good steward of your faith this Autumn (Link)
September 2016 News
- A Stewardship Prayer for October (Link)
- Stewardship of God’s Word: Reading the Bible Reflectively (Link)
- Steward — What’s in a word? (PDF)
- Social Media and Donor Stewardship (Link)
July 2016 News
- A Week’s Reflection on Stewardship (PDF)
- Developing Stewardship Leadership at Your Parish (PDF)
- Download the Newsletter’s Stewardship Image
- A Stewardship Prayer for August (Link)
- “The Expert’s Guide to an Armchair Pilgrimage” (Link)
- Video: “It’s the Weekend, Stupid” (Link)
June 2016 News
- Stewardship Prayer for June (Link)
- Stewardship Prayer for travelers (PDF)
- St. Christopher the Patron Saint for Travelers (Link)
- Top 8 Stewardship Tips for Summer (PDF)
- Stewardship Prayer Graphic for Bulletin use (PDF)
- From Daniel Conway’s Good Steward Blog: “Mercy Reveals to Us Who God Is” (Link)
- “4 Ways to Stay Spiritual this Summer” (Link)
- “How Catholics Can Invest in Their Faith—and Make Money” (Link)
- “Do Christians Practice Too Much ‘Toxic Charity’?” (Link)
May 2016 News
- A Stewardship Prayer for May (Link)
- Care for God’s Creation featuring Fr. James Martin, SJ (Video)
- Top Ten Takeaways from ‘Laudato Si’’ (Link)
- Book review: Forming Intentional Disciples by Sherry Weddell (summary by Julie Bostick, Executive Director, Office of Laity and Family Life Archdiocese of St. Louis) (PDF)
- Creating a Stewardship Committee (PDF)
April 2016 News
- A Stewardship Prayer for April (Link)
- God excludes no one from his love; offers mercy, not hate, Pope says (Link)
- Let’s Start a Trend by Sr. Georgette Lehmuth (Link)
- Stewardship Saint for April, Saint Peter Chanel (Link)
- The Spirituality of Stewardship: A Holy Exchange of Gifts (Video)
- Becoming Stewards of the Easter Season (Link)
- Bulletins & Intentions (Link)
Here are links to the previous webinars. Fill out the registration form, then you will be provided the recording.
- Stewardship Marketing 101: 3 Tools to Get the Job Done (Link)
- 5 Ideas for Advent Stewardship (Link)
Handouts and Power point: - Creating a Parish of Welcome: Inviting, Receiving, and Retaining (Link)
- Creating an Acknowledgement Strategy that Sticks (Link)
- Connecting Online Givers to the Sunday Offertory (Link)
- Tips for Lenten Stewardship (Link)
- Power point (PDF)
- Updates and Impact of TTWCI (Link)
- Power point (PDF)
- Steps to Creating or Maintaining a Stewardship Committee (Link)
- 10 Summer Stewardship Ideas (Link)
-
Content Calendar Suggestions for Stewardship (PDF)
-
Developing a Stewardship Committee- From the Diocese of Cleveland
-
Stewardship Committee Job Descriptions (PDF)
-
Stewardship Quotes and Thoughts – From the Archdiocese of Santa Fe (PDF)
-
Welcome (Link)
-
Biblical Stewardship Deuteronomy (Link)
-
Leviticus Bible Thought (Link)
-
Thoughts on Stewardship (Link)
-
Prayer for Travelers (Link)
