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Parish of the Holy
Family
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| 226, Trelawney Avenue,
Langley, Slough, Berkshire. SL3
7UD
Telephone: 01753 543770 |
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My dear people,
It is not easy for a parish to
address the matter of finances.
For some reason we Catholics often feel embarrassed and
defensive. And we have a history of
"personalising" the matter: "he
(i.e. the parish priest) is talking
about money again!"
In 2006 I think we should try to move away from all this
and look at our parish situation professionally and with
cool heads. |
Things here at
Holy Family have got better over the last few years, but
because we were not paying our way for a long time
(sometimes to the extent of £20,000 per year) we have
accumulated a debt in the region of £200,000 that we
must do something about it.
But as Corporal Jones said "Don't panic!!" Over
800 of us attend Mass in the parish each weekend and if
we can just bring our regular income up to a more
realistic level then things will begin to sort themselves
out. |
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DON'T PANIC,
HOLY FAMILY |
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I
recently invited Mr. Brin Dunsire, the Diocesan
Planned Giving Officer and Funding Adviser to the parish
to speak to us. He encouraged us to take a cool look at
our situation and asked us to reflect on what we should
be reasonably giving to the parish week by week.
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We have much to be
thankful for. For ourselves and for the next
generation we want
the parish to flourish and be secure.
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In the
context of responsible giving, Brin talked about using
collection envelopes, Standing Orders, and Gift Aid, all
ways to help us move things on without too much pain.
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Finally, despite our
debt and the need to do something about it. we
still have the opportunity to re-order and
re-decorate our church during 2006.
This is so because we can make use of funds that
are only available for such work. As I have
mentioned at Mass, it is like having W. H. Smith
vouchers that can only be used in certain ways. |
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future plans
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I
will be able to explain more about this
at a later date, but in the meantime we
will concentrate on our regular weekend
– by – weekend income...................Fr. Kevin. |
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Brin Dunsire has a
twofold role in the Diocese of
Northampton. Firstly, he acts as
a Planned Giving and Funding
consultant for parishes, groups
and schools, advising on how to
increase their income.
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| Secondly, he works
directly for Northampton Youth Ministry
Office in supplementing their financial
resources by applying for grants and
awards from external bodies such as
Trusts, foundations, companies and local
authorities. |
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WHY SHOULD
WE GIVE ?
Everything we
have, everything we are,
comes from God.
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| Money,
houses, possessions, family & friends, such
health as we have, our very life & existence
itself - It all comes from God. |
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| The Mass
is the most important occasion of our Thanksgiving. |
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At
the Offertory we give money in the Collection as
a token of our thanks to God, and of our yielding
of our whole lives to His will and His service.
While the Church exists in the world, to serve
and bless the world, it needs financial support
from all of us.
In our parish of Holy Family, there
is need for an increase in the collection income
so that the parish can both cover its running
costs and produce an annual surplus towards debt
repayment. |
We
need to ask ourselves -
Do I treat this lightly ?
Do I just give Christ's Church my
loose change
- what is left over ? |
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We
need to look at our offering in comparison with
the other things we use
our (God-given) money for.
What
kind of priority is the Church getting from us ?
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Should
we not PLAN our giving - make a commitment to whatever
regular sum we can afford ?
And make the small extra effort to give in the most
effective way - one of the following three?
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OFFERTORY ENVELOPES
keep our giving confidential; they
help us to remember to make our donation when we have
cash to hand, rather than on the off-chance at Mass - and
also, being dated, they remind us when we have missed a
week through absence! AND they enable Gift Aid tax to be
reclaimed. |
A STANDING
ORDER
saves us having to remember to take First
Collection money to Mass. And if we're
uncomfortable about letting the basket go by, or
if we want to give the children some coins to put
in - the parish will always give a set of
Envelopes, even if they go in empty. Standing
Orders also cut down the amount of cash that has
to be counted, and lessen the security
risk. And they work for Gift Aid ! |
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CHEQUES
are also good for security,
book-keeping and Gift Aid. If it suits you to write a
cheque for the parish every so often rather than giving
every week, thaf s fine! |
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NO
TARGETS!
We're not setting any
targets or asking for any specific increases.
All we are asking you to do is THINK seriously about
whether
what you give is a worthy and appropriate offering, in
thanksgiving to God, towards
the work of this parish of Holy Family.
If you have thought about this, in the light of all your
circumstances,
and have made your decision - then Thank You, and God
bless you !
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Just to
clear up one point on which there is sometimes confusion
- the Parish and the Diocese only operate Standing
Orders, where the amount of money transferred is what you
have authorised - not Direct Debits, where someone else
decides how much to take from your account!
Also, please remember that Planned
Giving, whether
by Standing Order or Envelope, is completely CONFIDENTIAL
and whatever you decide to do will be
treated with respect and in the strictest confidence.
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| GIFT AID |
A way to
help the parish
at no extra cost to you.
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All
UK taxpayers can help our parish increase
the value of what they give, by 28%, at
no expense to themselves, by making a
quick and easy Gift Aid declaration.
Contact Fr. Kevin or Kieran McKeown, or
ring the Planned Giving Officer, Brin
Dunsire, on 01844-273337
or e-mail on brin@nrcdfinance.com
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During the
next few days, please consider what you have
read.
Then decide on what YOU feel is the right amount
for you to contribute each week to God's work in
this Parish. What the Parish needs,
for expenses, debt reduction etc. is only one
factor that will go into your decision.
The
important thing is - what is the right amount for
you ?
Each person must take into
consideration their own individual circumstances
when deciding how much to give. What proportion
of your weekly pay or income should you give ?
It's up to you to decide.
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During
the 4/5th.February our parishioners were invited
to write down their decision on an anonymous
Promise Card to be handed in with the Offertory
Collection - an offering of their decision to the
Lord.
They were also asked to consider the
best method of giving - as mentioned above.
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There is still
time for you to make an offering. Please
contact Kieran, Fr. Kevin or Brin Dunsire
by e-mail or by phone and they’ll
sort out the details for you.
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Finally, please remember the
Parish in your Will. Ask your lawyer
to include this phrase:-
"I give to the Northampton Roman
Catholic Diocese Trustee, whose
registered office is at Bishop's House,
Marriott Street, Northampton NN2 6AW the
sum of £ .... for the benefit of the
parish of Holy Family, Langley,
Slough" |
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For information, help or advice
please contact one of the following
Planned Giving Officer, Brin Dunsire. Telephone: 01844-273337.....e.mail brin@nrcdfinance.com
Fr. Kevin.
Telephone 01753 543770 e-mail holyfamily@freeviewuk.com
Kieran McKeown. Telephone 01753 595611
e-mail kieranmckeown@fsmail.net
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