The U. S. Bishops designated Stewards of God's Gifts as the 2004-2005 catechetical theme. The word steward is rooted in sty and weard. The sty is a pen where animals such as pigs and sheep are kept, and the weard is the warden or keeper of the pen. Humble work!

As stewards of God's gifts, we are challenged to reach out continually to others in our community and beyond, so they may benefit from the sharing of our gifts. We are called to make a difference in the lives of our community and one another.

One way to connect the theory of multiple intelligences, whole community catechesis, and being stewards of God's gifts is to do so on a monthly basis.
The format is to:

• offer a goal,
• cite an appropriate scripture passage,
• suggest some special events - ideas for community gatherings,
• offer a prayer suggestion,
• share ideas for small steps of stewardship for individuals and families,
• list some activities appropriate for whole community catechesis, and
• suggest web sites helpful for the month's focus.

Possible Monthly Themes

Month	Theme	Scripture	Focus
September	Stewards of God's Gifts	Luke 16:1-13	Parable of the Sower
October	Stewards of Respect 1	Peter 4:9-10	Hospitality
November	Steward's of Family Life	Mark 10:13-14	Jesus with Children
December	Stewards of Hope	Luke 2:7	Birth of Jesus
January	Stewards of Diversity	Nehemiah 2:18	Building for Community
February	Stewards of Love	John 13:34-35	Command to Love
March	Stewards of Forgiveness	1 Corinthians 1:10	Unity
April	Stewards of the Earth	Psalm 136	Creation
May	Stewards of Celebration	Romans 12:12-21	Hope

Sample Monthly Activities - October: Stewardship of Respect
Open any activity with prayer.

Goal
Respect involves hospitality and sharing. We are hospitable because we recognize that we do not own what we have, but do care for, as stewards, for one another and our resources. Hospitality is to be joyful and an honor to share. Mother Teresa once said, "Do small things with great love."

Scripture
1 Peter 4:9-10: "Be hospitable to one another without complaining. Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received."
Create an outline of the human body. Invite children or youth to write within the design, each of their gifts or talents. Sign names on the back. Invite the group to guess who is described on each poster. As an identity is discovered, write that name on the front. Post all the designs.

Special Month Events: October
3  Respect Life Sunday
4   St. Francis Feast Day. Celebrate the life of St. Francis by blessing animals, harvesting or planting a communal parish garden with produce for the needy, or launch a pre-Thanksgiving gift drive that includes donations of items that can be distributed through local housing groups or charitable organizations.
23    Celebrate the 14th Annual "Make a Difference Day"
24    Mission Sunday and World Youth Day, USA

Stewardship Focus for Children and Youth

• Select a prayer (e.g., Stewardship Prayer) as wallpaper for your computer screen. Invite family members to pray it each time they begin computer work or play.
• Create a refrigerator magnet/sign: What can I do to help people who don't have a well-stocked refrigerator? As a family, choose an action that responds to that question for your family to do.
• Put a crucifix (and/or other Christian images) in your home - where they are visible to guests.
• Read the corporal works of mercy, Matthew 25:31-41; then select one activity each week for your family or group to do.
• Create buttons saying, "I'm a Steward of Christ." Wear them during parish meetings.
• Encourage teens to be responsible for publishing weekly Scripture references in your parish bulletin.

Whole Community Catechesis: Stewardship

• Take your watch off when entering church for Mass. See this as God's time; the Mass is a doorway to holiness and goodness.
• Make real-life connections to Sunday liturgy readings. Discuss these connections.
• Help appropriate-aged children be active liturgically as servers, in a choir for children and youth, or as Mass greeters with their families. Help plan and host family or children's liturgies.
• Involve the parish community in creating scriptural messages for greeting, get well, and sympathy cards. Submit them for the parish bulletin or newsletter, or display them on bulletin or announcement boards.
• Put the Stewardship Prayer in the front of parish hymnals/missalettes or other worship resources. Pray it as a parish community at least one Sunday a month.
• Organize arrangements with parish members to pick up homebound persons for Mass each week.

Related Websites

U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops www.nccbuscc.org
U.S. Catholic www.uscatholic.org/index.htm
Archdiocese of St. Paul/Minneapolis Office for Social Justice http://www.osjspm.org
Catholic Respect for Life Organization www.catholicrespectlife.org