Stewardship

From the St. Paul's By-Laws, dated February 22, 1998

The Commission on Stewardship shall study and promote the expression of Christian faith in daily living and in the corporate life of the congregation. It shall teach the Christian use of money, leading members to higher levels of proportionate giving, and shall appoint a Recorder, approved by the Chruch Council, to provide quarterly and annual reports of contributions for all members of the congregation. It shall plan and enlist participation in every-member Christian stewardship confrontations. The Commission shall integrate new members into the life of the congregation and shall enlist the talents of members in the various aspects of the church's ministry. The Commission shall also receive all requests for mission support on behalf of the congregation, evaluate them and make recommendations to the Church Council.

The Commission has been in existence at St. Paul's since the constitution was revised on February 1987. However, since the founding of St. Paul's in 1923, there have always been both formal and informal groups of people working on stewardship.

The commission strives to emphasize how our God given faith enables us to have a relationship with God in which we share in the life and activities of His kingdom as followers of Jesus Christ. Because God has given us many gifts, we are called on to use these gifts of our time, our talent, and our treasures to build up His kingdom.

Church members are encouraged to practice joyous, worshipful, liberal, proportionate first-fruits giving (with strong consideration given to tithing) in response to received blessings and recognized needs. At the present time, one of our "recognized needs" is providing the necessary funding to meet the monthly payments for our sanctuary which we not only agreed to build after the fire of 2002 but also agreed to enlarge to better serve our congregation as it grows in the future.

Within the Commission, also, in a Sunshine Committee which serves the senior citizens of our church by sending out greeting cards for both joyous and sad occasions and is also available to help any seniors who are in need of any assistance with their daily living. If a senior needs transportation to a doctor's office, this Committee stands ready to provide it. Also, an anonymous member of our congregations has arranged free taxi rides for St. Paul's seniors through All Seasons Taxi to take seniors to church and to shopping within Bethpage. This service is also administered by the Sunshine Committee.