ST. PAUL S CATHOLIC CHURCH P.O. BOX HIGHWAY 72 WEST ATHENS, ALABAMA

Transcription

1 ST. PAUL S CATHOLIC CHURCH P.O. BOX HIGHWAY 72 WEST ATHENS, ALABAMA January, 2017 Dear Parishioner: Most of you are familiar with our plan called Tithing Redefined. If you are not familiar with it, please see page 2 of this document for an explanation. These Nine questions and answers will enable you to see that Tithing Redefined is fair and elicits the support of everyone. The following information is also available within this document. See below: Reflections on parish contributions during 2014 (Page 4) A chart which shows each parishioner s total contributions to the parish and to Special collections including the Burse Club contributions (Page 5) A graph that shows our parish growth over the past 15 years. (Page 6) Your contributions to Catholic Charities will be sent to you by the Catholic Charities office and is not included in the Special collection. If your contributions are given without identification, that is, in loose cash, we appreciate your generosity and would ask you to become identified for the sake of our record keeping and your need for such a record pertaining to your taxes. Please find your contributions total on the enclosed chart and ask yourself if that amount represents a fair and sacrificial support of your church. Thank you for all that you do here at St. Paul s parish and may God bless you. Sincerely, Fr. Charley

2 TITHING REDEFINED 1) Let's face it... Catholics have a problem understanding what they should contribute to their parish. Why is this? Because we (priests) have not done a good job of teaching them. We have resorted to bingo, raffles, festivals and other means of raising money. People don't know what is coming next so they must be careful not to give too much in the envelope. 2) What should we do? We must understand that the obligation to support our parish is not a matter of charity but of justice. It is a debt we owe; a bill we must pay. 3) But how much do I owe? This is where tithing comes in; and to be more exact, tithing redefined. Tithing means to give 10% of your income to the Church. At least, that is what it meant in the Old Testament. What does it mean in the New Testament? It means that our debt to our parish should be determined according to our income, according to our means. 4) What right do we have to redefine tithing? It must be understood that tithing was a law of the Old Testament which was not carried over into the New Testament. However, there is a kernel of truth in this Old Testament law which is applicable to us in the New Testament. It is that our support for the Church ought to be relative to our income in terms of the percentage of our income which is fair and yet sacrificial. 5) Spell that out, please. Here is a table which is fair, reasonable and yet sacrificial. This is an effort to give every parishioner a goal to meet which is possible. If you ask people whose income is $20,000 a year to give 10% of their income each year, they may find it impossible. Ten percent of $20,000 is $2,000. That would be a weekly contribution of about $ Very few people could or would do this. So, Tithing Redefined takes the Old Testament tithe and translates it into something that is possible to do in today's world. Look at this table and see if you agree: LEVEL INCOME TITHE REDEFINED 1 $20,000 or less 1% to 2% 2 $20,000 to $30,000 2% to 3% 3 $30,000 to $40,000 3% to 4% 4 $40,000 to $50,000 4% to 5% 5 $50,000 to $60,000 5% to 6% 6 $60,000 to $70,000 6% to 7% 7 $70,000 to $80,000 7% to 8% 8 $80,000 to $90,000 8% to 9% 9 $90,000 to $100,000 9% to 10% 10 $100,000 or above 1 10%

3 6) Why do you suggest two different percentages for each category except the last? This is to allow for the various circumstances in a family: for example, the size of a family and for dependents who are not children. Some may be more encumbered than others and less able to give the higher percentage. There is a choice. 7) Does my tithe cover both the regular collection and the building fund? Yes. You may divide your contribution between these two collections as you see fit. Their sum should equal your tithe. 8) What about Catholic Charities and special collections? As we have indicated, tithing is a debt we owe to our parish. It is not so much a charitable contribution as it is a just debt. What you give to the special collections and to Catholic Charities is a charitable contribution. 9) What if my circumstances include expenses that are extremely high and out of the ordinary? You may wish to discuss this with your pastor. Whatever you do, as always, let your conscience guide you. HOW TO CALCULATE YOUR TITHE REDEFINED 1) What is your annual "take home" wage or income? 2) At what level of income does this place you? LEVEL 3) What percentage is your tithe redefined? 4) Multiply your income by the tithe percentage. What does that give you? 5) That amount is your annual tithe. 6) Divide that amount by 50. That is your weekly contribution. NOTE: We use 50 weeks in a year instead of 52 to allow for a couple of weeks you might not be attending Mass at St. Paul s Church. 2

4 Tithing Redefined Some Reflections on Our parish list shows 585 families families have made identifiable contributions during These contributions range from $4 for the year to $ for the year per family families show no identifiable contribution families have given $548,920. This includes: Burse Club: Special Collections: Total: $12,200 $33,163 $45, $548,920 - $45,363 $503,557 This amount was given to the regular, Holy Day, and Building fund collections. 7. Dividing $503,557 by 303 gives us the average identifiable contribution which is $1, Other contributions include $33,021 unidentified and $21,734 visitors contributions in the collection. 9. $503,557 + $54,756 $558,312 (unidentified + visitors) Total Parish Income for The total parish income for 2015 was $614, The amount of decrease is -$55, The percent of decrease when 2015 is compared to 2016 is -10.0% 13. Please look at the amount you have given and ask yourself if you are supporting your parish fairly and according to your means.

5 Total 2016 Parishioners Identifiable Contributions in Dollars to St. Paul Catholic Church Over $5000 $ $ $1700 $ $1100 $ $600 $599 - $300 $299 - $100 $99 - $1 1 $22, $4, $2, $1, $1, $ $ $ $15, $4, $2, $1, $1, $ $ $ $15, $4, $2, $1, $1, $ $ $ $12, $4, $2, $1, $1, $ $ $ $9, $3, $2, $1, $1, $ $ $ $8, $3, $2, $1, $1, $ $ $ $8, $3, $2, $1, $1, $ $ $ $7, $3, $2, $1, $1, $ $ $ $7, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $7, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $7, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $7, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $7, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $6, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $6, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $6, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $6, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $6, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $6, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $6, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $6, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $6, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $5, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $5, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $5, $3, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $5, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $5, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $5, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $5, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $5, $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $2, $1, $ $ $ $ $1, $1, $ $ $ $1, $1, $ $ $ $1, $1, $ $ $ $1, $1, $ $ $ $1, $1, $ $ $ $1, $1, $ $ $1, $1, $ $ $1, $1, $ $ $1, $1, $ $ $1, $ $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $ $1, $1, $235, $89, $108, $51, $35, $15, $9, $1, Total: $547,686 Monday, January 30, 2017

6 $700,000 $600,000 Fr. Charley announces to parish plans for new Religious Edcuation Building St. Paul Contribution History Debt for Religious Edcuation Building Paid in Full $500, $400,000 $300, Number of Families Families with No Identifiable Contribution Families with Identifiable Contributions Parish Income $200, $100, $0 0