McKenna Tithing Newsletter

We’re assuming that you’ll forgive a slight (!?!) self congratulatory note in this issue of our newsletter. But it’s warming, humbling, and somewhat overwhelming to realize that, from some rather tentative beginnings 25 years ago, people in nearly 1000 parishes in 20 States have been introduced to the idea of tithing the McKenna Ministry way: no commitment card. ...no calls... just a private arrangement between you and God! And only He knows how many lives have been changed!

We never even dreamed such lofty dreams back then. It all started with trying to help one parish. Paul Forbes felt that if our fellow parishioners in our new parish, Most Blessed Sacrament in Franklin Lakes, NJ, could know what happened in our former parish, Immaculate Heart of Mary, Wayne, NJ, they would be moved to try the same method. And so did Gerry McKenna, Gerry Porter, Art Wojtowicz and Jim Holland. They were dear friends from our Wayne parish who had also come to learn of and love the idea of tithing introduced to his people by then-Pastor, the late Rev. Msgr. Edward J. Scully.

Gerry McKenna died in 1983 after handling the growing requests for speakers for five years; Art Wojtowicz is retired and lives in Tucson, Arizona; Jim Holland, also retired, lives in Smith Mountain, VA.

Dauntless Gerry Porter is still active in the ministry and today he is joined in speaking by his wife, Doris. In the early days of the program only men were witnesses; to-day have an almost equal mix including several husband and wife teams

At first, the requests for speakers came slowly and were handled by Wojtowicz, Porter, Paul Forbes, and Jim Holland’s successor, Perry Eustick. When the calls increased, more witnesses were recruited; Sam Callello, John Hannigan, Dick Joyce and John Meneghello were among the earliest and John Hannigan still travels from his home in Maryland to parishes up and down the Atlantic coast to tell parishioners in other parishes how his life has been affected by tithing.

Today we have 60 men and women active in the program representing eight dioceses in five States and Washington, DC.

In addition to those hard-working people, we have a list of 70 retired witnesses! One of these former witnesses, Pat Murphy, said many years ago, “I have still never met a former tither.”

It’s been a lovely, rewarding twenty-five years. We all agree that we’ve met some extraordinary people in the course of visiting other churches. And the bond that has developed among the speakers defies description. This is evident when we meet once each year for our Day of Recollection. We’ve been blessed in this, too, in that we’ve had seven good Bishops who have graced the day and celebrated Mass for the group, most of them joining us for dinner after .

We’ve also been thanked for our part in this ministry in some special ways. On one memorable occasion, Arch-bishop Peter Gerety, then Ordinary of the Archdiocese of Newark, hosted a lively dinner at the Cathedral Rectory for the speakers and their spouses. Thanks to the wit of Gerry Porter and the ebullience of the Archbishop, we managed to “make a joyful noise” indeed.

A very appreciative Rev. Msgr. Vincent Coburn , then pastor of St. Thomas the Apostle, entertained us at a sumptuous dinner at the rectory.

The late John Cardinal O’Connor graciously wrote a glowing foreword for the booklet which tells the story of the McKenna Tithing Ministry

An article for Catholic News Service about the program and its dedicated volunteers was printed widely and made the front page of the HAWAII CATHOLIC HERALD and the BROOKLYN TABLET among other diocesan papers.

A beautiful quarter of a century. . . An unlooked-for, wholly unexpected route down a side road that seems to have been chosen for all of us involved. And we are changed by it . . .and profoundly grateful.

AND SO IT GROWS. . .

The McKenna Tithing Ministry has been introduced into 934 parishes in 20 States and 44 dioceses with 469 Updates & 19 Time & Talent Presentations

THE CHEERFUL GIVERS

“We are so thankful to the Shrine of the Sacred Heart. This parish received us just as we were at home, when we first got here from El Salvador. We feel that there is no other institution better to contribute to than to the parish. You try and God will bless you!”

“It’s easier to act as though God hasn’t given me anything so that it doesn’t disturb me when I give so little. Once I acknowledge God’s generosity, everything seems too little to give.”

“John and I both think tithing is a great way of giving back to God everything He has given us. Especially enjoyed the four speakers that came to our parish.”

“The Church is in crisis today because of a few bad apples. The tragedy is many people are blaming God and holding back on their tithes. My question is: how can you blame God for rotten apples? I don’t because I know free will, not God, is the reason.”

“I believe in tithing and I thought that the concept of tithing was presented to the parish very realistically and spiritually. Thank you.”

“When I was driving down the highway the other day I noticed a lot of people getting off at the McDonald’s exit. We know enough to feed ourselves when we are hungry, but we are so afraid to give God some of that money to feed people who are REALLY hungry and who don’t even know what a McDonald’s Big Mac looks like. That’s what tithing is all about.”

“I have to admit, Father, that the first thing I read in the newspaper are the obituaries; the first thing I read in our parish bulletin is this little box. I love the parishioner comments (and yours, of course!). Last week’s parishioner was right on! Easter is another time to celebrate giving. Jesus gave His life for me. And I love the life of this parish. I will show my love for both with an increased Easter gift!”

“Thank you, Father Carbine, I am so happy to see my name on the Tree of Life in our chapel and also my parents’ names. They loved St. Charles where I have been all of my life.

Every week we try to tithe by giving 5% of my salary to the Lord in my Sunday envelope. I also try to help Catholic Charities every May, and food collections when we have them.

I find that our giving to GOD always helps my other money go further. . . . not that I am trying to make a deal with God. But we are grateful because God blesses our family every day. Recently, He blessed us twice in one day and so I tried to be extra generous. Thank you, Lord.”

“I have been a lifelong parishioner of St. Cecilia’s and can never really thank all the Priests and Sisters for the wonderful education I received.”

”We’re thrilled to be counted as part of St. Vincent’s’Tithers’ - how can we ever thank the Lord enough? There are no words that can compare what He has done for us.”

PASTORS’ COMMENTS. . . (from their parish bulletins)

“As we wait for rain to replenish our crops, our water wells, our land, we are reminded what can happen when proper nourishment is absent. We can die as the earth can die. Giving is a part of nourishing our spiritual lives and it is life giving too. Thank you for your example of giving.”

“Throughout our diocese during these few weeks, parishioners of most of our parishes are being asked to make a definite commitment of financial support for their parishes in writing. We, with diocesan approval, have opted not to do this, because when we launched our very success- ful tithing enterprise in 1997, we promised not to ask you to sign pledge cards, but simply to make a commitment to God to give the tithe, to be equally divided between your parish and other worthy causes. I thank once again all of you who have been faithfully tithing for these five years, or who have begun tithing at any point, and encourage everyone else, in conscience and before God, to make a sincere commitment to support your parish in a meaningful way. “

“A mother was preparing the family’s favorite Sunday morning breakfast, pancakes. Ryan, age 6, and Dan, age 4, began to argue over who would get the first pancake. Mom saw this as a ‘teachable’ moment. “You know, boys, if Jesus was here, he would say, ‘Let my brother have the first pancake, I can wait’. Ryan turned to Dan and, with all the authority of an old brother, said, ‘Dan, you be Jesus.’

“The aim of a disciple is to be Jesus. All of us live our spiritual lives in a material world. Why do people share their tithe with the church? We give to help others be Jesus. In seeking to bring the love of God into every life we touch, you be Jesus; in seeking God’s will in all things, you be Jesus; in embracing the Spirit of humility that opens up new possibilities for reconciliation and healing, you be Jesus.”

“On Palm Sunday last year, $8213. was contributed. This year, $10,665 was offered. Thank you to all those who are tithing. . .You are enabling our faith community to be vital. Surely you must know that God and our Lady hold you dearly in their hearts because you sacrifice in their names.”

“The crowd waved palm branches, threw their cloaks at the feet of Jesus and desired to make Him their king. Their generosity did not last long; five days later the crowd shouted ‘crucify Him.’ Tithing is Christ-like. It is giving without ceasing. Thank you for your faithfulness by tithing each week.”

“Money is one of the tools through which Our Lord works. A parish lives by the grace of Jesus; the money it receives from its members contributes toward a significant part of the Lord’s work in this section of His vineyard. The meaning attached to money depends on its use. Seen as a tool of Christ, it has a positive meaning; seen as something that consumes one’s life, it is destructive and negative.”

“It takes many people from many places, working together, to make a pencil. The wood may come from a forest in Washington, the graphite from a mine in South America, and the eraser from a Malaysian rubber plantation. We all depend on one another. Stewardship, sharing, dependence are values built into a believer’s faith. If we grasp this challenge, then we begin to develop a big, broad, universal concern for the poor and “have-nots.” All is God’s gift and must be shared with God’s children. There is no other way for a Christian steward.”

“To be grateful is to recognize the love of God in everything that He has given us.”

“To ask more parishioners to tithe in the New Year is to offer them a spiritual Ministry. Our reason for putting this resolution before you is not so much to increase parish income as to promote a religious practice that benefits families and individuals. For parishioners to put God first when they look at their income for the week, and then to decide that the first 5% will go to the parish and the next 5% to types of charities like tuition and various appeals, is a sound and gentle way of making service and devotion to God a priority. In truth, this writer was prompted to include this item for this year as a result of reading the current issue of AMERICA. In the letters section a retired bishop wrote to remind us priests that we don’t do enough in our announce- ments to promote the special second collections in our parishes.”

“Our parish thanks our loyal parishioners for being who you are supposed to be. Your generous support makes our parish a place where Christ will always be King.”

“With gratitude for all your efforts in supporting the parish and, no doubt, of your many other charities, I remind you that your efforts do not go unnoticed by the Lord and those who benefit from your example of Christian charity. Now that summer is approaching and hopefully some vaca-tion plans, please continue your faithful partici-pation in Mass and the Sacraments.”

“Ever wonder why the IRS calls it Form 1040? For every $50 you earn, you get $10 and they get $40!!!”)

“Last Sunday morning I was in the Frankford-Bucks County Hospital near the Oxford Valley Mall. The receptionist was a volunteer, Mr Shah, who had been educated in Holy Rosary School, Bombay, India. Mr. Shah is not a Catholic. In his professional life, he is an environmental engineer. However, recently he had major surgery from which he recovered. He told me that now he volunteers as a hospital receptionist because - in his words - ‘I want to give back to God to say thank you.’ Our giving to the lord is always our ‘thank you’ in action.”