Eucharist Teaches us Charity

Cardinal: Eucharist teaches us charity
By John Gleason
..
The Eucharist both generates and commands charity. So said Cardinal Francis Arinze, prefect of the Congregation of Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments, during a conference on stewardship he keynoted in Arvada last week.
More than 150 faithful, including laity and clergy both, gathered at Spirit of Christ Church Sept. 20 to participate in the 2007 Stewardship Confe-rence, "Eucharist: Nourishment for the Christian Steward." In addition to the Vatican City cardinal's keynote presentation, the conference included a panel discussion for pastors on making stewardship work in a parish, breakout sessions and Mass. Archbishop Charles J. Chaput O.F.M. Cap., delivered the opening remarks."Learning to live as a real Christian is a lifetime work," the archbishop said. "It always involves the choice of sacrificing yourself for the sake of others. One of the ways of doing that is giving of our time generously. I don't think that anybody understands stewardship in a practical way any better than our guest today, Cardinal Arinze."
During his address, Cardinal Arinze spoke on the conference theme.
"The Holy Eucharist is both the sacrifice and sacrament of Christ's love," he said. "The bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ, which we receive to promote our union with Christ and to nourish our souls.
"Christ loves us so much," he emphasized, "that he gives us his body to eat. What more could he have done for us?"
The sacrament of the Eucharist, the cardinal said, is Christ teaching us and sending us to love our neighbor and to share this love with everyone."Jesus teaches us that our neighbor is anyone who needs me," he said, "whether that person is of my culture or religion, whether I like the person or not."Bonita Welsh, a member of St. William Parish in Fort Lupton, said she was struck by the cardinal's message. It gave her a great deal to ponder."That was very much what I needed to hear," she said.
Following the cardinal's address, the group divided up into breakout sessions. Topics included how to make stewardship work in a parish, and marketing and maintaining stewardship.
Luis Soto, director of Hispanic ministry for the Denver Archdio-cese, presented on starting stewardship in a Hispanic parish."The Hispanic population is becoming a strong presence in the Church in the United States and we need to take responsibility to serve our Church in any way we can," Soto said. "It is time for Hispanics give their lives as disciples to the Church. I'm committed to that and will continue to work in that direction."
In the session about making stewardship a way of life, Mila Glodava, director of stewardship and communication at St. Thomas More Parish in Centennial, told her group that stewardship isn't something that can be initiated and then left to run itself. It takes work, but the results exceed that effort many times over.
"There has to be commitment," she said. "You need the support of your pastor and to get parish leaders to 'buy in.' The size of the parish isn't important because stewardship begins with small groups.
"And it isn't about money," she stressed. "It's about people."
Stewardship is about sharing one's time, talent and treasure. Time to help with parish projects and to serve on the parish council or to visit the elderly or deliver meals. A good Catholic parish is a community of sharing Christians, Glodava said, who pool their talents to help each other. Stewardship is about volunteering, what Glodava calls a "win-win" situation.
"Sure people give money," she said, "but it's about being involved in the parish, too."
Bob Zarlengo, president of the League of Stewardship Parishes, told conference attendees that the league's purpose is to continue to educate parishes as to the benefits of stewardship. He had a message for those parishes that have not yet looked into a stewardship program.
"We want to provide a platform for sharing ideas and serve as a resource for stewardship," he said. "If a parish is interested, we'll come talk to them. All they have to do is call."
URL: http://www.archden.org/dcr//news.php?e=438&s=4&a=9191