Faith: Following God through Stewardship

May 2021

Here at St. Paul’s we have come together over the past year to form committees that are following our shared mission to love and care for all of God’s people.

Some examples include, the Regathering Committee, the Anti-Racism Steering Committee, Sacred Ground groups, the Visioning Committee and the Music Ministry Committee. These groups are opportunities for parishioners to share their experience and passion in support of St. Paul’s mission: welcome in love, worship in joy, grow in faith, work for justice, and seek and serve Christ in all persons.

The Regathering Committee has worked tirelessly to ensure our safety throughout this pandemic. This group takes care of our church and others by making sure we are following all CDC, state, local and diocesan guidelines while offering in-person opportunities to be together that are safe, meaningful, and tailored to our own space and community.

The Anti-Racism Steering Committee has hosted monthly discussions around a book or movie focused on issues of race within our community. In October, this committee launched the Sacred Ground program at St. Paul’s which is a dialogue series on race and faith created by the Episcopal Church. Sacred Ground Circles are open to all, but once formed they become closed groups of trust, confidentiality, and deep work lasting 5-10 months. Two groups were formed last fall, and participants have indicated this program was life-changing! We hope to begin new Sacred Ground groups in the coming months.

The Visioning Committee was formed to thoughtfully plan the future of St. Paul’s. They are working alongside the vestry to look at financial resources, facilities and our physical plant, as well as the various practices and ministries we offer. This committee will be engaged in prayer, listening, and discernment in the upcoming months with a holistic approach to how we “do church.”

The Music Ministry Committee has provided the St. Paul’s community with great continuity of worship music over the past four months. They have curated wonderful hymns, songs, preludes and postludes from a variety of sources inside and beyond our own church, forging relationships and connections along the way.

These groups not only provide the opportunity to explore one’s faith with others at St. Paul’s, but also provide a model for how to care for our community in Natick and beyond. This work is a great example of stewardship: using our time, talent and passion to spread the light of God in the world!

Recently the Stewardship Committee sent out a survey asking the St. Paul’s community, “what does stewardship mean to you at St. Paul’s?” We appreciate your responses and thought we would share some common themes that illustrate the various ways we are supporting our community as a living profession of our faith in God.

Here are a few examples:

“We are a family, a household; the church is our home and our vessel for ministry. We each give according to our means so that the load is light for all, and the light shines far and wide.”

“Ultimately, Stewardship is our way to say thank you to God for our faith, and to show gratitude to St. Paul's for making sure that we have a community to share our faith with. Stewardship becomes the fuel that helps keep the St. Paul's fire burning bright.”

“Stewardship is an outward sign of our faith and gratitude for the gifts we receive from God, our community and our Parish.”

Even during these strange and challenging times, God is alive at St. Paul’s as we come together to follow our faith and send God’s light out into the world. How are you called to join the journey? To get involved, check out the weekly E-pistle or contact a member of the Stewardship Committee. We’d love to hear from you!

Andy Keith, Anne Young, Mike Skatrud, Brian Denning

click here for the printable PDF version of this Stewardship Update

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