Creating Congregational Cultures of Generosity

The seminar is scheduled to begin at noon with lunch on the first day and end after lunch on the last day.

Most of the contemporary resources that deal with congregational finances focus on fundraising techniques. But the mechanisms, like capital campaigns, are like icing on a cake and do not offer a long-term plan for sustainability. This seminar demonstrates how to “bake the cake” of congregational generosity by exploring the significant and necessary steps to creating lasting cultural change within a congregation and synthesizing research from the Center on Philanthropy and the practical experience of working with religious organizations from the Lake Institute. Through presentation, small group and individual exercises, and a high degree of interaction, participants imagine and design their own plan for creating cultures of generosity in their congregations.

People who take this seminar will:

• understand the landscape of religious giving based on the latest research;
• appreciate the theological significance of generosity;
• identify their own theological/religious tradition of generosity;
• understand the relationship between organizational accountability and generosity;
• understand and process the idea that congregational finances are an arena for pastoral care;
• analyze their current congregational culture;
• design a working plan to implement cultural change to move towards greater generosity;
• interact with fellow participants in a dynamic process of shared inquiry.
  
  

This program is ideal for: leadership of religious congregations and organizations—clergy, lay people, administrators, stewardship committees, and fundraisers who are directly involved in congregational-wide decisions.