A Summary of the U.S. Bishops' Pastoral Letter on Stewardship

 "As each one has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of God's varied grace" (1 Pt 4:10).
 

Being a Christian steward means we receive God's gifts gratefully, cultivate them responsibly, share them lovingly in justice with others, and return them with increase to the Lord. As members of the Church, Jesus calls us to be disciples. This has astonishing implications:

• Mature disciples make a conscious decision to follow Jesus, no matter what the cost.

• Christian disciples experience conversion—lifeshaping changes of mind and heart—and commit their very selves to the Lord. 

• Christian stewards respond in a particular way to the call to be a disciple. Stewardship has the power to shape and mold our understanding of our lives and the way in which we live.
  
  Stewards of God's gifts are not passive beneficiaries. We cooperate with God in our own redemption and in the redemption of others. We are also obliged to be stewards of the Church—collaborators and cooperators in continuing the redemptive work of Jesus Christ, which is the Church's essential mission. This mission—proclaiming and teaching, serving and sanctifying—is our task. It is the personal responsibility of each one of us as stewards of the Church. All members of the Church have their own roles to play in carrying out its mission:
   

• Parents, who nurture their children in the light of faith;

• Parishioners, who work in concrete ways to make their parishes true communities of faith and vibrant sources of service to the larger community;

• All Catholics, who give generous support—time, money, prayers, and personal service according to their circumstances—to parish and diocesan programs and to the universal Church.