Query for Eleventh Month

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11. Stewardship of Resources

  • Does our Meeting serve social and economic justice in its uses of property and money?

  • How does our Meeting engage its members in the support of the Meeting’s work, its ministry, and the upkeep of its property?

  • How does our Meeting engage its members in the support of the quarterly and yearly meetings and other Quaker organizations?

  • To what extent does our Meeting rely on current members for financial support, and what role does endowment income serve? Does the Meeting consider carefully the appropriate role of invested funds?

  • Am I clear that I am the steward, not the owner, of property in my care?

  • Do I simplify my needs, making choices that balance self-sufficiency (to avoid unnecessary dependence on others) and fair sharing of resources? Do I make choices as a consumer that support the equitable distribution of income?

  • Do my employment and other activities allow for use of time and energy in spiritual growth and in service to the Religious Society of Friends?

  • Do I contribute generously within my means to the funding of the work of Friends in my Meeting, in the yearly meeting, and in the wider world of Friends?

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Ellen Deacon - ellen.deacon's picture
Submitted by Ellen Deacon - ... on

I am so grateful our queries include so many aspects of daily life.  Since being a Friend is a way of life, not just a "religion," it is helpful and important that we are called to think and seek the Light's guidance about things like our material resources and possessions, our income, our sharing of our resources, and more.  In a world where so much greed shapes the financial practices and institutions, it is vitally important to find support to live a life in keeping with our testimonies, especially integrity, peace and community and, of course stewardship.  In reality, I feel that the focus on integrity covers all the rest of it if one is honest and persistent and open to its challenges, because it subsumes all the others.

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