Florida Catholic | Archbishop Favalora's Column

Be as generous as God

Published: 02.01.08

My dear friends,

A jubilee year, in the Jewish tradition, meant that farmers did not plant any crops. The practice was meant to remind God’s people — every seven years, and every seven-times-seven years (49th to 50th) — that their lives depended on the providence of God.

Our industrialized, commercialized society certainly needs to hear that message. The problem is that most of us are not farmers. We do not need to plant crops in order to eat.

So it is hard for us to see the connection between all that we have and how much God has given us. We only appreciate God’s divine providence when we are delivered from an illness or when our prayers are answered.

We attribute our material success to our own doing — our willingness to work hard, our talent in a certain field, our ability to save and invest wisely. We never stop to reflect that all those talents and abilities are God-given.

Such is the importance of a jubilee year. That is why I have called all of us to celebrate this 50th jubilee of our archdiocese by looking back at our history and realizing how God’s divine providence has sustained the church in south Florida.

Miami started, almost literally, with nothing. Its first bishop, Archbishop Coleman F. Carroll, had to borrow money from donors in Pittsburgh because no banks would extend credit to the new diocese. In the midst of those trying financial times, the exodus from communist Cuba began.

Trusting fully in divine providence, Archbishop Carroll took in 14,000 unaccompanied minors and opened centers that provided food, clothing and other types of immediate assistance to the mostly penniless refugees. In many places, parishioners provided the labor and materials to build parish halls so their communities would have a place to celebrate Mass.

Ten years later, all that effort and faith were recognized, as Miami became an archdiocese, the metropolitan see of the newly created Province of Florida.

Even as our geographical territory has dwindled, the number of Catholics has increased, along with the number of parishes, schools, ministries and agencies created to meet their spiritual and material needs.

Thank God, these are signs of a vibrant, growing church. But as our country teeters on the brink of recession, the challenges facing the church in south Florida also have increased.

More parishes and schools rely on financial assistance from the archdiocese. More people are coming to us for help with utilities payments or rent money.

How to give to ABCD

• Fill out a pledge envelope and turn it in to your parish. Most parishes held the appeal at all the Masses the weekend of Jan. 26-27, but some have not. There is still time to give.

• Go to a new Web site, www.isupportabcd.org,
and make your pledge. You can set up a payment schedule or bill it to your credit card. Your donation will be credited to your parish.

• For more information, call the archdiocesan Development Corporation at 305-762-1016.

That is why I am asking all of south Florida’s Catholics to be especially generous to the ArchBishop’s Charities and Development appeal this year. I am asking you to make a sacrifice that calls you to depend more on divine providence. If you have given in past years, try to give more this year. If you have not given in past years, give something, even if it is just the price of a dinner in a fancy restaurant. Every dollar helps someone in need. Every donation makes a difference.

Take the opportunity offered by this jubilee year to look back on all that God has done for the church in this corner of his kingdom, and take it as an opportunity to reflect on what God has done for you and your families as well.

As God is generous with his gifts, we must be generous with ours. All that we are and all that we have are dependent on the providence of God. But the Lord has promised to those who are generous a hundredfold return on that investment. And God’s guarantees are much safer than the stock market.

Be as generous as God

How to give to ABCD

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