When Jesus was asked by the Pharisees which commandment in the Jewish Law was the greatest, he responded,
"
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
"
In other words, when asked to boil a life of faith down to one thing Jesus was clear: it's all about love - love of God, love of neighbor, love of self.
The ways in which we live out Jesus' call to love God and others are many and varied. One of those ways is through Christian stewardship. Using a portion of our resources (time, talent, treasure) to support the life and ministry of our faith community is an important expression of our love for God and others.
When we contribute to Saint Matthew's, financially and otherwise, we are doing much more than just helping maintain a building and a budget.
We are actually enabling Saint Matthew's to extend its reach into the world, loving our neighbors as ourselves.
As part of this year's Pledge Campaign, we will be highlighting some of the many ways that Saint Matthew's answers Jesus' call to love our neighbors as ourselves. Over the next couple of weeks, you will be hearing about and from some of the many individuals, groups, and organizations that we support in some incredibly life-giving ways.
Whether you are a regular, active participant in the life and ministry of Saint Matthew's or you are more loosely connected, we invite you to consider making a pledge of financial support to Saint Matthew's for 2018. As you do so, keep in mind the many, many lives that Saint Matthew's touches in positive ways, beyond our active membership!
In the subsequent Pledge Campaign emails, you will receive a link for our 2018 On-line Pledge Form, as well as a link to our secure On-line Giving page, where you can set up a recurring automated pledge payment. There will also be paper pledge forms available for those who would prefer to use that
method.
We kindly ask that you make your pledge by November 20th, if at all possible.
Thank you!
