Our friends at Faith+Finance produced a video conversation about preaching on money.
“One of the most important ways that we can start to have a better conversation in our churches about money is for us to preach about it,” said The Rev. Canon Rosa Lee Harden, executive producer of Faith+Finance.
“We want to start modeling that conversation to encourage more preachers to take the plunge into the deep end in these difficult times in our economy.”
The conversation—moderated by The Rev. Buddy Stallings, retired rector of St. Bart’s Episcopal Church in Manhattan—included Rev. Harden, Rev. Amy Butler, Interim Pastor of National City Christian Church in Washington, DC, and former Wall Street Investment Banker and current Senior Pastor of Bethel Church of Morristown, Rev. Sidney Williams.
“What struck me the most in this conversation was how genuinely desirous every person involved in this project was of being able to talk about money in a deeper way,” said Rev. Stallings. “Each of us confessed how hard it is in our own journey to get clear about the enormous cultural agency of money.”
“We have a long way to go in the Church in being able to have this conversation, even between clergy,” said Rev. Harden, “and for us to be able to help the people in our pews, we have to find a way to start. We hope this ‘webinar’ will help us kick off a conversation that can move us toward a deeper understanding.”
Revs. Harden, Butler, and Williams each preached a full-length sermon on money which is also on the Faith+Finance website, plus additional sermons from the Rev. Mark Elsdon, the Rev. Leroy Barber and Lisa Sharon Harper.
Backstory Preaching is happy to be working with Faith+Finance on this project, and will partner with them to offer a course on preaching and money in 2021.
Be on the lookout for a blog post soon with concrete resources and ideas about how you can add to your toolkit and preach more effectively about money.
Over the next few weeks Faith+Finance will be spotlighting sermons about money through social media and by posting full sermons from each of these preachers:
Rev. Dr. Amy Butler,
Interim Senior Minister, National City Christian Church
Rev. Dr. Sidney Williams
Senior Pastor, Bethel Church of Morristown
Rev. Mark Elsdon
Director of Pres House, Co-Founder of RootedGood
The Rev. Canon Rosa Lee Harden
Executive Producer, Faith+Finance
Lisa Sharon Harper
Founder and President, Freedom Road
Rev. Leroy Barber
President and Co-Founder, The Voices Project
To watch those sermons, be part of Faith + Finance’s mission.
Help influence the relationship of people of faith to money and resources by examining:
a theology of economics
how churches can leverage their assets, even as congregations and giving shrink
how to apply “gospel values” to the establishment and growth of sustainable businesses
how to be good economic partners to marginalized neighbors
how to invest in ways that are morally and ethically informed and usher in God’s Kingdom
how to establish new models for funding ministry
We encourage you to sign up for their newsletter to stay in touch with their work. Then head to their blog for insights about stewardship, money, and faith.
Please note: The collaboration between Backstory Preaching’s and Faith+Finance is based on our mission overlap to support preachers. Backstory Preaching is not a financial affiliate of Faith+Finance.