All Saints Church 

2027 Pledge Campaign

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Dear Ones of All Saints,

This year All Saints began something new. Our congregation has entered a season of replanting, and Rev. Jennie, Rev. Megan, and I have been blessed to walk alongside you as we discern what God is growing in this place. Much of this first season is about listening: to one another, to our neighbors, and to the Spirit. It is about honoring the faithful people who kept the doors open and the prayers going through hard years. And it is about our financial life: what do we need to survive into the future while we thrive in ministry right now?

This year we cut our budget and staffing and started the work of finding reliable new income by renting out the Rectory and storefront. Next year will be about securing long-term priestly leadership and a stable staffing structure that lives within our means. The new life blooming here will grow from roots you have tended, and through all of it we want to offer ourselves, this building, and these grounds to love our neighbors and our world.

Here's the thing about blessing: I think it's more circular than linear. God blesses us and we are blessed. We bless our community, neighbors, friends, and strangers, and in doing so we are blessed again. A replant invites us into that circle with fresh eyes, trusting that what we plant in faith, God will grow.

I am new to All Saints but not new to this practice. For my husband Andrew and me, regular giving has never just blessed a church budget; it has blessed us, too. At times we have aimed to give as close to ten percent of our income as we could, a traditional “tithe."

But percentage isn't our only measure. We also see our pledge as a statement of what matters to us. We make sure we give more back to God than we spend on entertainment, vacations, and eating out, while keeping our pledge realistic enough that we can meet our obligations. We want it to be generous enough to embody our gratitude, and sensible within our family's financial life.

As Canon to the Ordinary, I don't  pledge to a single congregation, instead I give to different parts of the Diocese of New York throughout the year. I am excited to direct part of my pledge to All Saints in the coming year, as a concrete sign of my investment in the work of God in this place.

You may decide differently whether and how much to give. I invite you to prayerfully consider a pledge as your offering toward the new life God is bringing about here. If you have given faithfully for years, thank you; please consider whether you might raise your pledge as an act of hope. If you have never pledged before, this is a wonderful moment to begin. In a season like this, every pledge, of any size, is a vote of confidence in All Saints' future. All Saints cannot be sustained as a working community without the pledges of those who belong.

In the coming weeks you'll hear from others about why they give, and more about our budget and needs. On Sunday, November 1, our patronal feast of All Saints, we will gather in our pledges and bless them during worship.

This church, and you, are already such a blessing to me. Thank you for following the Way of Love in this place.
 

With care and gratitude,
The Rev. Canon Alissa Newton
Advisory Board Chair, All Saints Episcopal Church