Faith and Generosity

Faith and Generosity

It is undeniable that in recent years, both locally and nationally, we have been talking increasingly about money.

At the same time we recognise that over many centuries, Christians have responded to the call of faith by living generously – firm in the knowledge that giving, whether it be ministering to the poor, supporting the ministry of the Church, or giving to charitable causes – is the inescapable response to a trusting faith in our generous God. 

One response to the need to talk about generosity has been to view this through the lens of stewardship – the responsible management of God’s gifts to us.  This is a worthwhile approach and yet there is an alternative which may be more fruitful; this is to learn to live generously, to live ‘in tune’ with God, as Christ did.  

God has given us a choice – we can choose to be self-reliant, self-sufficient – a choice which distances us from God – or we can choose to be God-reliant, choose to trust God and grow closer to Him. 

There are practical steps we can take to live faithfully and generously as ‘people of God’ (1 Peter 2:10). We hope you will find here resources that will help your parishes/churches to encourage faithful generosity – a generosity towards God and neighbour that help us to grow in the knowledge of God, grow in the understanding that generosity is fundamental to our faith and trust in Him whose immeasurable love for us is our Salvation.

Resources for faithful generosity

Serving

A response form for use when asking members a congregation to volunteer their time and talents.

Giving to God time and talents response formDownload

‘Home grown’ video reflections will be available shortly. Meanwhile, the ‘Living Generously’ video reflections below from the national Church provide a rich resource for use in varied worship and study settings.

In this eight session course, Director of Giving, Jonathan de Bernhardt Wood, explores the simple, powerful moment in which Mary, a friend and follower of Jesus, displays the kind of astonishing generosity God Himself pours out on us. The wonder of the gospel is that this can be our story too as we discover the freedom of living generously.

Mary’s first generosity is with her time. There were other things she could’ve been doing. There are even things that could have been seen as more virtuous, as Martha, her sister points out.
Downloadable study guides
Mary’s second generosity – that of her attention – is one for this day and age where we are constantly distracted by news, opinions, information and gossip.
Mary had just seen her brother raised from the dead, so when she was generous with her wealth, she knew that her ‘sacrifice’ was utterly insignificant by comparison.

Like us all, Mary had God-given gifts and talents. This film explores her generosity with ‘whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable’.
The cost of the neared Mary used is one thing, but it was also a treasured possession – what can we be generous with that’s not necessarily expensive, but precious to us?
Could we be more like Mary – willing to be misunderstood, unfairly criticised or wrongly perceived? Mary’s generosity with perceptions of herself are a reflection point for us all.
When Mary anoints Jesus’ feet and wipes them with her hair, she would have been crouched in the dust and the dirt, in a position normally occupied by a servant. It can’t have been pleasant but she was generous with her personal comfort.
To live a generous life is to be liberated from thinking everything is ours or under our control. This film helps us understand our response to the seven generosities through the generosity web.