Episode 1: Stewardship Is A Way Of Life

03/29/21 • 12 min

Is stewardship just about money? Father Andrew Kemberling, an expert on the practice of stewardship in one's faith life, explains how stewardship is actually a spirituality that is anchored in thanksgiving for God's many blessings. Father Kemberling points out that fund raising in faith organizations is usually focused on simply meeting needs. Fully-formed stewardship, on the other hand, is based on the spirituality of recognizing that God has given us many blessings, and in acknowledging that, we should want to respond with gratitude and thanksgiving by giving back. And that giving can take many forms.
Father Andrew Kemberling is a parochial vicar of Immaculate Heart of Mary in Northglenn, Colorado. For 14 years he was pastor at St. Thomas More Parish in Centennial, CO. With Mila Glodava, Director of Communications and Stewardship, he wrote the book "Making Stewardship a Way of Life: A Complete Guide for Catholic Parishes" (published by Our Sunday Visitor, 2009). The parish received many awards for its pioneering embrace of stewardship as a touchstone of parish life. Fr. Andrew was born in Tucson, Arizona and joined the Benedictine order in 1985. He was ordained a priest in 1988.

Next Episode

Episode 2: The Core Values of Stewardship: Identity, Trust, Gratitude, Love

In this episode, Father Andrew Kemberling reminds us that "stewardship" is a spirituality, not just a theology. The spirituality is based on four core values: identity, trust, gratitude, and love. Identity is anchored in the fact that we were created by God to love Him and serve Him. We belong to Him. Trust is believing that God will provide for our needs, not just our wants. Gratitude tells us to focus on everything we've been blessed with as gifts, and especially the spiritual gifts. When we recognize the gifts and blessings we have received, we should want to give back to God in thanksgiving. Love is at the core of stewardship's spirituality. It is the basic requirement of someone leading a Christian life. If we have a need to love, we will have a need to give.
Father Andrew Kemberling is a parochial vicar of Immaculate Heart of Mary in Northglenn, Colorado. For 14 years he was pastor at St. Thomas More Parish in Centennial, CO. With Mila Glodava, Director of Communications and Stewardship, he wrote the book "Making Stewardship a Way of Life: A Complete Guide for Catholic Parishes" (published by Our Sunday Visitor, 2009). The parish received many awards for its pioneering embrace of stewardship as a touchstone of parish life. Fr. Andrew was born in Tucson, Arizona and joined the Benedictine order in 1985. He war ordained a priest in 1988.