Stewardship Witness: Love wants to be loved

During stewardship every year, we ask members of the community to share a little of their journey and tell us why they choose to be generous.

I came to San Diego 5 years ago, with Martha, who is now my wife. Like many people new to San Diego, I went about trying to find a sense of community. But San Diego can be a hard town to meet new friends!

I tried going to the LGBT Center’s Latina Women’s Group, but it was not for me. They weren’t very friendly and, oddly, I did not feel welcome. I missed my church as well. So I tried going to a church that was recommended to me by a friend. But the music was not for me! It was played by a rock band, and it was much too loud!

Then one day we found St. Paul’s Cathedral when we were walking by and saw the banner that said, “Misa en Español.”

I came in on a Sunday, and the first thing I saw was a woman saying the mass! Now THAT was something interesting! I had never seen that before.

And then I heard the invitation to communion: “This is the table, not of the church, but of Jesus, come you who have tried to follow and you who have failed, come not because the church invites you, it is Jesus and he invites you to meet him here.”

When I heard that invitation, I have no words to describe how powerful it was for me. I knew right then and there I had found a home.

As a lesbian Latina, I have never experienced a church like this, a church where I was welcomed, where I was accepted for who I am. Now every time I take communion my heart jumps for joy. Sometimes it’s so much my happiness that I want to cry.

I love St. Paul’s because there is so much freedom here. You can ask questions! And you can disagree with the answers too! Here I feel like I am building a true relationship with Jesus, and it is a church family that is very friendly and welcoming.

One day recently there was a family who wasn’t sure if they could come to communion. The mother didn’t think she could take communion because her old church told her that she wasn’t good enough. I told her – yes you can! You are welcome, and she went with me.

I give generously to St. Paul’s because I want everyone, like that family, and like me, to feel the love and the welcome of this community. In Spanish we say “cariño quiere cariño.” Translated into English that is “love wants to be loved.”

Saint Paul’s Cathedral, the Latino Service and the whole community sustain my faith in myself, in the world and in God.

Thank you!

Gladis Jiménez González

Thank you to all of our witnesses who so courageously share a part of their lives with us so that we might be opened up just a little more to how God is working in our lives and in the life of St. Paul’s.

Do you have a story to tell about why you are thankful to St. Paul’s? We would love to share your reflections! Send them to stpaulblog@gmail.com.  

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To Tithe ….?

Around this time of year I usually start thinking about my tithe for the next year. When I was ordained in 1997 I ended my internal annual argument about whether I should tithe: in prayer, God made it clear to me that I should always take 10% off the top of my income and pledge it to the church. It was a great relief not to debate the question any more, and I have never regretted the decision or missed the income: that’s the blessing of the tithe.

This year, however, I find myself wrestling again with the question of my pledge. When I arrived in San Diego in February, one of my first decisions was to make a pledge both to the Cathedral and to the Diocese. As the Dean of the Cathedral and therefore part of the diocesan structure, I felt I should offer part of my tithe to the Diocese, so I made a three-year pledge to the Building the Serving Church campaign. As the months went on I became aware, first, of my responsibility as President of St. Paul’s Episcopal Homes Inc., then of our relationship with Dorcas House, then with the ministry of Episcopal Community Services. I also felt called to make a multi-year pledge to a capital campaign for Shrine Mont, the camp and conference center of the Diocese of Virginia, otherwise known as “the happiest place on earth”, where my children and I attended innumerable camps and retreats over the course of seventeen years.

So now, this fall, I’m facing a new dilemma. It’s not, “Can I give 10%?”, but “How can I give ONLY 10%?” I have made commitments to the cathedral, the diocese, and Shrine Mont. None of those commitments are negotiable downwards; of course I want to honor the Cathedral’s call to increase my pledge by at least 10%. But what about SPEH, Dorcas House, and ECS, all of which do extraordinary work, work that is the Gospel in action among those in whom we most clearly see the face of Jesus: the aged, the abandoned children, the homeless and mentally ill? How can I make my 10% stretch in a meaningful way to include these other important ministries that have become so close to my heart? The answer I receive in prayer seems to be, “I can’t; 10% is no longer enough.” And so the question becomes, what will my next giving threshold be?

Somewhere deep within me I know there is answer that will bring me the same measure of peace that I received seventeen years ago. God is calling me to a new challenge, and God will not let me fall short of that challenge. But, for now, I’m still arguing.

The Very Rev. Penny Bridges

Editor’s Note: If you feel moved to share your own discernment process, All Our Voices would love to include your reflections! Send them to stpaulblog@gmail.com.  

Visit the Living Water pledge site for more information