From the Pastor

Trustee Jack Emptage tells parishioners of the crisis
Msgr. Hanson's homily
The financial Report
 

Pastor Letter: Another fine mess...
Homily: The Widow's mite
 

Pastor Letter: Getting down to Brass Tacks
 

GOOD EVENING/ MORNING                                                                                                 

MY NAME IS JACK EMPTAGE AND I SERVE AS ONE OF THE TRUSTEES FOR OUR PARISH.  THE FUNCTION OF THE TRUSTEE IS TO ADVISE THE PASTOR ON VARIOUS ISSUES THAT AFFECT THE PARISH BUT WITH A PARTICULAR EMPHASIS ON FINANCIAL MATTERS. IN THAT REGARD, TODAY I BRING YOU BOTH GOOD AND BAD NEWS.

FIRST THE GOOD NEWS, I PROMISE TO BE BRIEF AND SINCE I AM SPEAKING, FATHER’S HOMILY WILL ALSO BE SOMEWHAT CURTAILED, ALTHOUGH NOT BRIEF, SO MUCH FOR THE GOOD NEWS.

NOW FOR THE BAD NEWS. WHAT I WISH TO ACCOMPLISH IN THE NEXT FEW MINUTES IS TO ACQUAINT EACH OF YOU WITH THE MAGNITUDE OF THE FINANCIAL DISASTER THAT HAS JUST OCCURRED AT MHT AND WHAT WE MUST DO GOING FORWARD.

AS BACKGROUND, I BELIEVE THAT MOST OF US HAVE BECOME VERY COMPLACENT OVER THE YEARS AS TO THE FINANCIAL WELL BEING OF OUR PARISH. AS WE LOOK AROUND AT OUR BEAUTIFUL CHURCH, PARISH HALL AND ATTRACTIVE GROUNDS, WE SEE A WELL MAINTAINED PHYSICAL PLANT AND MODERN UPDATES LIKE THE WINDOWS IN THE CHURCH.

EVERYTHING IS IN GREAT SHAPE AND NO ONE IS PLEADING FOR MONEY. OH YES, FATHER DID SAY SOMETHING ABOUT USING ENVELOPES AND INCREASING OUR WEEKLY CONTRIBUTIONS TO MAKE  UP FOR THE DECREASE IN THE SECOND COLLECTIONS. BUT NO ONE HAS REALLY BEEN TWISTING OUR ARMS. BE READY, I AM ABOUT TO TWIST AND PLEAD.

FIRST, LET ME GIVE YOU A SHARP DOSE OF REALITY. AS OF AUGUST 31, 2009, THE END OF OUR FISCAL YEAR, WE HAD A FINANCIAL DISASTER. ON AN OPERATING BASIS WE LOST OVER HALF A MILLION DOLLARS, $512,719 TO BE EXACT. THE TOTAL DEFICIT FOR THE YEAR WAS $823,771. YES, WELL OVER EIGHT HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS.

LET ME CONTINUE TO SHOCK YOU FOR A MOMENT. OUR REGULAR COLLECTIONS CONSISTING OF SUNDAYS, HOLY DAYS, CHRISTMAS AND EASTER DO NOT EVEN COVER THE SALARIES AND BENEFITS OF OUR STAFF. AND IT’S NOT THAT WE ARE OVER STAFFED. FATHER HAS TAKEN STEPS TO INSURE THAT WE ARE LEAN AND FIT. SINCE WE CAN’T COVER SALARIES AND BENEFITS, THERE IS NOTHING LEFT FOR THE NORMAL UPKEEP OF OUR PHYSICAL PLANT, OFFICE EXPENSES OR THE REQUIRED DISTRIBUTIONS TO THE DIOCESE OR STELLA MARIS. THE ONLY WAY WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SURVIVE IS

TO SELL INVESTMENTS THAT PARISHIONERS HAVE GIVEN TO US OVER THE YEARS AND SELLING THEM AT THE WORST POSSIBLE TIME, WHEN THE MARKET WAS DOWN SIGNIFICANTLY. BEQUESTS SHOULD BE HELD AND THEN USED FOR MAJOR RENOVATIONS OR TO LAUNCH A NEW PROGRAM. THEY SHOULD NOT BE USED TO FUND OPERATING DEFICITS.

SIMPLY PUT, WE HAVE A HUGE REVENUE PROBLEM. OUR REVENUES HAVE BEEN DECREASING DRAMATICALLY FOR THE PAST THREE YEARS AND WE MUST REVERSE THE TREND.

I COULD GO ON ABOUT THE NUMBERS BUT THE FACT THAT I ASK YOU TO KEEP IN MIND IS THAT, “WHAT GOES INTO THE BASKET DOES NOT COVER THE SALARIES AND BENEFITS OF THE STAFF” AND THEREFORE NOTHING IS AVAILABLE FOR ALL THE OTHER EXPENSES OF UPKEEP AND OF THE OFFICE.

NOW TO THE PLEADING AND I PROMISE NOT TO WHINE. WE HAVE TO INCREASE REVENUE AND WE MUST FOCUS ON THE BASKET, SUNDAYS, HOLY DAYS, CHRISTMAS AND EASTER. OUR RESPONSE CAN NOT BE HALF HEARTED. TO POSITION US WHERE WE NEED TO BE BY AUGUST 31^ST OF NEXT YEAR WE NEED A 50% INCREASE. NO EASY DEAL. THAT MEANS THAT IF YOU ARE PUTTING IN $5.00 WE ARE ASKING YOU TO INCREASE TO $7.50 OR $10.00 INCREASE TO $15.00 AND SO ON.

I FULLY REALIZE THAT THIS IS AN EXTREMELY AGGRESSIVE GOAL AND ONE THAT IS BEING PROPOSED DURING THE MOST DIFFICULT ECONOMIC TIMES THAT WE HAVE EXPERIENCED IN YEARS. HOWEVER, THAT BEING SAID  THE ALTERNATIVE OF DEPLETING OUR ENDOWMENTS, AND THEN NOT MAINTAINING OUR PHYSICAL PLANT AND MOST IMPORTANTLY CUTTING PROGRAMS AND NOT BEING ABLE TO HELP THOSE IN NEED IS NOT FAR OFF. THIS IS CLEARLY NOT AN ACCEPTABLE OPTION.

I AM NOT GOING TO STAND HERE AND PLEAD WITH YOU ANY FURTHER. RATHER I ASK YOU TO CONSIDER THE FINANCIAL REALITIES THAT FACE OUR PARISH AND THE ALTERNATIVES OF INACTION.

I CAN ONLY ASK YOU TO PLEASE HELP MOST HOLY TRINITY.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION. COPIES OF THE FINANCIAL REPORT ARE AVAILABLE AT THE DOORS FOR YOUR REVIEW AFTER MASS.

GOOD EVENING/DAY

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Homily: All Saints Day (Year B) 2009

Revelation 7:2-4, 9-14; 1 John 3:1-3 ; Matthew 5:1-12

The saints will succeed. That is my response to Jack Emptage’s message to you this evening/morning. Yes, we are in a very serious financial crisis, but the saints will succeed. As pastor my role is to lead you, to give you hope, and guide us into the future. Therefore, before we get into the specifics of how we are going to respond to the very great challenge which is before us, let me reflect on the change that has to happen first, the change that will enable us to climb out of the hole.

Here it is: The saints will succeed. Today is All Saints Day. The New Testament calls every Christian a saint. We have been called and chosen by God. We have been given a mission. “Most Holy Trinity is where the joy of the gospel is proclaimed, taught and lived.” That is the mission our parish Pastoral Council set for us last spring. If we can begin thinking of ourselves more explicitly as members of Christ’s body, as his holy people, as charged with the mission of living the joy of the gospel then we can stand up to the challenge before us and overcome it.

We need to mobilize as God’s people in this place. We are God’s saints. He loves us. Most Holy Trinity is not an organization which happens to do good works. You may think that you joined our parish. No, you were called to belong to our parish. God invites you to belong. Most Holy Trinity is a Catholic parish, the home of a portion of God’s family. We are here as leaven to make the dough rise. We share a holy purpose and are committed to a sacred task. That’s the only reason we exist.

We have been measuring the level of engagement of our parishioners and it has been growing. That puts us in a very good position to respond to this crisis. Our engagement scores have grown in the last two years. Here is a chance to send them through the roof by inviting everyone to step up and take ownership of the parish. It’s time for every parishioner to say, “Most Holy Trinity is my parish and I’m not going to let it die. I’m not going to let it down.”

Another new way of thinking which we must embrace is that of sacrificial giving. What is the difference between the traditional idea of giving and sacrificial giving? I can put it very simply.

Traditional giving is “giving to need.”
Sacrificial giving is “needing to give.”

Those are two very different things. There is nothing wrong with the traditional idea. But we need to move toward sacrificial giving if we are going to resolve our crisis. With sacrificial giving my motivation goes deeper and is more comprehensive. If I practice sacrificial giving—and personally I myself do—that means that I am so convinced of God’s love in me that I have to give back. I need to express my thanks by returning some of what God has given me. Sacrificial giving is not a fund raising technique. It is a way of life. I will be talking more about it in the coming weeks. And I will write in next week’s pastor letter to explain more of the context of the crisis; how it got that way; and how we can get out of it.

I just want to say that I have confidence that we can grow stronger spiritually, financially, and morally because I know you love our parish. I believe the saints will succeed.

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Sunday 8 November 2009

Letter from the Pastor

Another Fine Mess: What kind of money trouble are we in and how we got there

Last week parish trustee Jack Emptage and I alerted you to the financial crisis in which our parish finds itself. Most Holy Trinity finished $823,771 in the red for the fiscal year ending 8/31/09. In the operating side of the budget alone—normal expenses which reoccur—we were $512,719—half a million—short. The good news is MHT is not in debt; the money to close the gap came out of savings. The bad news is we cannot allow that situation to happen again. If you go to the well for normal expenses, pretty soon the well will be dry. Ordinary operating costs (salaries and benefits, light and heat, grounds and building maintenance) need to be met by current income.

There are only two ways to balance a budget: 1. cut costs; 2. raise income. Are our costs too high? If you study the handout from last Sunday (extras are available or you can find it on our website) we have done a pretty good job of holding or even cutting costs. The payroll is tighter than it was. We have some part-time employees where previously we had full time. A diocesan wide pay freeze is in effect. I cook my own meals and didn’t get a priest to help for the whole summer. We’ve changed vendors in some cases. We’re being very careful. What we can’t control is the ever rising cost of health insurance premiums. As you know those costs continue to go up—12% this year alone. To cut back on staff and programs would be hard. I would be reluctant to cut back on services, especially for the elderly or poor whom we proudly serve. And remember, a lot of what we do is powered by volunteers. Most Holy Trinity makes its dollars go very far.

The revenue side of the budget is where we have to change and grow. Truthfully, Most Holy Trinity has been depending on bequests and donations for many years. These are starting to fall off. That is why we are feeling such a sharp pinch. Thanks to the generosity of those who came before us we have savings we can draw on to get us over the hurdle of the recession. These funds are substantial: the cemetery fund is restricted to the perpetual care of the cemetery; the Stella Maris fund is earmarked for the regional school; and then there is a fund of savings which belongs to the church. As Jack mentioned last week, this money should be used for major renovations or capital construction, for a rainy day and not for current expenses. That is what we have to change. And we can only change it through an increase in our collections which currently do not live up to their potential considering the size and demographics of our parish.

Let me explain some other reasons why the bottom line was so bad. A significant portion of the funds mentioned in the foregoing paragraph are invested in stocks and bonds. Parish funds are invested with the diocese in a kind of mutual fund that all the parishes with savings participate in. The Stella Maris money is managed by Merrill Lynch. Everyone knows that the markets sustained big losses over last winter. The managers of our funds tried to minimize our losses by selling and buying stocks and bonds and balancing our portfolios.  For fiscal 2009, the net loss on our portfolios was $290,408 (consisting of realized losses, fees, interest and dividend income, and gains in market value as of year-end).

Some of the losses come from distribution of the funds. For the last two years and in the current one Most Holy Trinity has paid more than the interest income of the Stella Maris fund to our regional school in order to safeguard its continued existence during a transition period. The good news is the school’s enrollment is up and retention of pupils is also high. As the executive pastor of Stella Maris I have brought on a new accountant for the school who is making its financial operations more efficient and more transparent. Our parish representative to the board, Sue Emptage, has been very helpful in collecting delinquent tuition. A stronger management policy will help Stella Maris do more with its money. Normally we would not invade the principle of this special school fund. But because MHT alone of the five contributing parishes has extra funds specifically earmarked for the school, the finance committee agreed with me that we should embrace this extraordinary practice temporarily lest we cut off our noses to spite our faces. What good would be done if the school had closed while there was cash available to help it? In a similar way, we learned that there was a much smaller fund which Msgr. Desmond had begun for McGann-Mercy Catholic High School. We gave this money to the high school to manage. That also diminished our holdings.

There are other payouts which you should be aware of. Every parish pays 8% of its Sunday and holy day collections to support diocesan ministries and 15% of collections to support the Catholic schools.  (This is apart from our special Stella Maris fund.) You can think of these as taxes just like a business or those you personally have to pay. On the other side we purchase our insurances and other items from the diocese and take advantage of economies of scale because of its buying power. We also receive money back from the diocese when we succeed in the Catholic Ministries Appeal, something which we have not yet done this year.

I should also mention that some of the capital improvements which we undertook were funded from money raised outside the budget. The cost of the window restoration in church has been largely funded by special gifts from our parishioners. This is a perfect example of “giving to need” which I talked about in my homily last Sunday. Those folks who sponsored a window have made a real gift to the parish through this extraordinary and substantial donation. Nor was it merely a cosmetic addition to the church, something desirable but unnecessary. Because the new frames are triple glazed and thermally insulated, the restored church windows will enable us to save on heating and cooling costs in the future.

I hope that gives you some sense of the nature of our emergency. More of our revenue needs to come out of the collection basket instead of from bequests. That requires everyone to pitch in and I will write more about that next week. In other words, Next Week: How we will get out of this mess.

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Homily: Thirty-second Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year B) 2009

1 Kings 17:10-16; Hebrews 9:24-28 ; Mark 12:38-44

Last Monday, after having delivered the dramatic news about our parish’s financial crisis, I sat down to read this Sunday’s gospel in preparation for this homily. I nearly fell off the chair when I saw it was the story of the widow’s mite. Indeed, when I related this to someone they thought I had timed and planned the announcement to take advantage of this gospel story about sacrificial giving. I only wish I was that organized.

First let me thank you for your immediate response. Last week’s collection was up $3000 over the same Sunday last year. That demonstrates that you are as concerned as I am about our financial future. And you are ready to sacrifice for it. As promised last week, I will continue to preach on this problem for several Sundays because I really believe that the most important change we must make is not the amount we each place in the basket but how we think about our giving, what it means to us.

With that in mind let me first dispose of a myth. Many Catholics are of two minds about money. Like anybody they see its value and with great common sense they understand that it is better to have some money rather than be poor. Being poor is not good, and a big part of what we do at Most Holy Trinity is to assist those who are poor by helping them get food for themselves and their children, by paying their electric and fuel bills, by connecting them with Catholic Charities. Nonetheless, many Catholics are terribly uncomfortable about hearing their priest talk about money in church. Whenever they hear that they do a flip-flop and shrink back in disgust because they also think money is dirty and unspiritual. “My pastor is not a spiritual man because he talks about money.” I know people who think that way. Maybe some of you are among them.

Would it surprise you to learn that one half of all the parables which Jesus taught are about money and possessions. One half! So today’s reading about the widow who gave a small amount but at the same time all she had is not unusual. Jesus talks that way a lot. But that is not the only thing. If you count up all the times love and loving are mentioned in the Bible in both Old and New Testaments it comes to about 900 times. If you count up all the mentions of faith and believing it comes to about 800 times. If you count up all the references to money and possessions what do you think? I’ll tell you: 2,000 times. That’s right 2,000 times.

Now let’s turn to the widow. What does it mean to be a widow in first century Palestine? It meant to be poor and powerless. It meant to be vulnerable and at risk. There was no social security. There were no pensions. If you did not have family to look after you, you were pretty much reduced to begging.

Jesus speaks about the widow in comparison to the rich who were contributing to the Temple treasury. They placed more money in the slot than she but it was spare change to them. It was money they would never miss. The widow put in a tiny amount—two copper coins worth about a penny as the gospel says—but it was her whole livelihood, all she had to live on. Do you not see that this is a story about the kingdom of God, like the stories of the last weeks on marriage, power, and renunciation. This story is not about money. It is about trusting in God. It is about placing your life in God’s hands.

This is the essential point about the gospels. They are about receiving our lives and our salvation from God as a gift. Giving back is a way of thanking. Giving back is a way of worshiping. Giving back is a way of returning the sovereignty of our lives to God. Giving is a way of proclaiming that everything I have comes from God. So far from being unspiritual, money is the means by which I sacrifice my heart to God.

Next week I will preach on time, talent, and treasure—different ways by which we give back. I will also talk about how to decide how much to give during a recession when times are bad. I will tell you something about what parishioners give to Most Holy Trinity. And I will ask you in the following week to sit down and think about your giving, bring it to God in prayer, and make a commitment to a plan, to make a small step in trust of God.

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Getting down to brass tacks: How we will get out of this mess

In the last two weeks you have heard a lot from me and trustee Jack Emptage about our present financial crisis. I have also preached on sacrificial or gift based giving. Today I will be asking you to take home a commitment sheet, consider your abilities and make a commitment to Most Holy Trinity. First some things you should know:

·   Out of a total of 1700 families/households only about 250 use the collection envelopes. That is a very low number. If we could raise the number of envelope user, that alone would go a long way to solving our financial crisis. Envelope use promotes giving. It keeps us honest.

·   About 75% of the registered members of Most Holy Trinity are recorded as having given nothing to the parish. That’s $0.00, zip, nada. This is why we need everyone to re-register. I reckon some of these folks are dead. Some have moved away. Some go to another church or don’t practice their faith. But some of them also come to church every week. Perhaps they throw a buck in the collection. What can you buy for a buck? Nothing. I can’t get a small coffee in Bucket’s Deli on Newtown Lane, let alone a coffee drink at Starbucks for a buck. Some of us need to re-calculate what we give to God.

·   We will be soon start with Faith Direct, a company endorsed by the diocese which will enable you to make your weekly offering automatically by direct debit from your checking account or credit card. Many today find this more convenient than writing individual checks. It is optional. Your call. If that makes life easier for you we want to do it.

·   The commitment folder in the pew will be explained at Mass this weekend. I am asking you to take a step in faith and trust. 1. Recognize what your income is; 2. Recognize what your weekly offering has been; Find on the attached chart what percentage of your income this is; Take a step and try to increase your offering by at least a ½ percent or a full percent if possible.

·   Some people don’t like making a commitment. They feel only God needs to know what they give. Actually as your pastor I need to know what kind of income we can expect in order to make a budget. Your offering is held in confidence but I need you to make a commitment. Do you perhaps want to keep it secret because you are ashamed of it? I ask you to take a step. I ask you to partner with us and become co-responsible for the life of our parish. Remember the Widow’s mite. It is not the amount but the motivation that counts. We return to God a portion of what he has given us.

·   We full time, year round residents of the parish need to step up. We cannot afford to leave the heavy lifting to the summer people. We can no longer afford to trust in bequests and donations. We must pay as we go.

·   Time, talent, and treasure. Perhaps you cannot afford to give very much—you are out of work, living on a fixed income, have medical bills. You could give back by offering your valuable time as a volunteer. Perhaps you have a skill set that could help someone in need. You might choose to place that at the disposal of the community. Contact Parish Outreach if you can help.

·   I will write quarterly to all who make a commitment, encouraging you to persevere in your commitment. Experience has proved that this is a powerful motivator by keeping our need and our sacrifice in mind.

Thank you for prayerfully considering your offering to God through your parish. Please take some time this week and consider what the Lord is asking of you. Don’t bite off more than you can chew. But don’t be stingy either. May God guide your decision. Next Sunday place your commitment along with your offering in the basket.

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