Since the concept of stewardship became well known with the U.S. bishops’ pastoral letter in 1992, there have been great increases in the ministry in parishes and dioceses throughout the country, according to Father Daniel J. Mahan, executive director of the Marian College Center for Catholic Stewardship in Indianapolis.
“Stewardship was pioneered at St. Francis of Assisi in Wichita, Kan.,” he said. “Stewardship sees a renewal of the individual as a Catholic who has the privilege of sharing these gifts with others.”
Father Mahan, ordained a priest in 1988, was pastor of St. Louis Church in Batesville, Ind. in the Archdiocese of Indianapolis. He now serves full-time in the stewardship ministry and makes presentations in dioceses and parishes in the U.S. and Canada. Just recently he was in Australia and the Philippines.
“In fact this year alone I’ve traveled over 140,000 miles for the stewardship ministry,” he noted.
Father Mahan will make presentations in the Camden Diocese from
1-4 p.m., Oct. 29, at St. Charles Borromeo Parish, Washington Township. and from 9 a.m.-noon, Oct. 30, at St. Paul’s Parish, Stone Harbor.
Theologically, stewardship refers to the understanding that all creation belongs to God and people are its stewards, not its owners, and so are accountable for the use they make of his gifts. It is often invoked as a framework for offering one’s time, talents and money to God through church support and action for others.
In commenting on Father Mahan’s diocesan presentations, Russell Davis of the Office of Stewardship, noted, “This is an important time for us because of changes occurring in the diocese. We must focus on the role of the laity and the stewardship of the laity in building the future church.”
“Father Mahan more deeply understands the responsibility that each of us has in sharing the gifts and talents that God has given us. Stewardship is about building a vibrant church through an engaged laity,” Davis added.
Additionally Father Mahan is a member of the faculty and the director of Formation for the Institutes and Conferences of the International Catholic Stewardship Council.
“Stewardship is gaining strength worldwide,” he pointed out. “There are many benefits to promoting the ministry. My first parish was only 500 families and had seen better days. It was falling down. Its finances were bad. Only a handful of parishioners were actually working for the parish.”
By promoting stewardship, Father Mahan said, people started to get active again in the affairs of the parish, there were activities, and groups formed again.
“Financially the people were able to do things beyond their wildest dreams,” he said.
In his second parish, which was larger, “stewardship meant fund-raising. But I was able to introduce it as a way of life, not just as a fund-raiser. As a result, they surpassed their financial goals. We were able to established perpetual adoration, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”
In his last parish, with a total of 1,500 families, Father Mahan expanded “the understanding of stewardship to show that it was a privilege, not just a duty. The practice of stewardship helps a parish by drawing people into the life of the community.”
He said that those who get actively involved with stewardship have a feeling of well-being.
“They seem to love doing it,” he noted. “The ministry is the primary place where lay Catholics are called to serve. And the primary place is out in the world, at work, in schools, the market place, in politics…wherever it is to bring Jesus. A parish that promotes stewardship can’t help but to become a more evangelical parish.”
Father Mahan recently published a book, More Than Silver or Gold: Homilies of a Stewardship Priest.
“The title comes from Scripture, Peter and John,” he explained. Neighbors have neither silver nor gold but the Lord Himself is more precious.
“Knowing the Lord is more valuable than silver or gold and stewardship is more valuable than silver or gold,” said Father Mahan.
For more information on stewardship and Father Mahan’s visit to the Camden Diocese, contact Russell Davis at 856-583-6102.