CSA 2020

2020 CATHOLIC SERVICES APPEAL                                        St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Roman Catholic Church

Dear Brothers and Sisters, 

We are engaged in a struggle. I am sure it has touched you or a member of your family in a direct way. The struggle is for the heart and soul of people, often members of our families and close friends. The forces arrayed against us are agnosticism, atheism, religious indifference, anti-Catholic/anti-Christian movements, plus our ancient enemy - sin. These forces are influencing the lives of loved ones and depriving them of the full blessings of God. What can we do? The answer is a great deal. Over 60% of our faithful at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton (SEAS) are involved in spreading the Gospel through ministry, but we can always make a greater impact for the sake of the Salvation of our brothers and sisters.
 
There is strength in numbers; Jesus assures us, “For where there are two or three who come together in my name, I am there with them.” (Mt. 18:20) In our gatherings for worship and prayer, Christ is powerfully present. In our 52 ministries at SEAS, the living Christ is present in a powerful way. How are we to touch the great number of persons who are not part of our faith community; how do we evangelize the thousands who do not always worship God? We do this by our commitment to good stewardship; we will reach out to others through the many Catholic Churches of our Archdiocese and through the Catholic Services Appeal.

Through the CSA our faith touches thousands of people who we could not possibly serve personally. Our sharing assists those who experience the indifference of the world; they will know there are people who care and who involve themselves with works of mercy. The CSA is not just programs, it is people reaching out to people; the Gospel comes alive for and changes lives by means of our support of the CSA.
 
Brothers and Sisters, in the past we have made a positive impact on people we will never meet; but they will meet us and encounter our faith in the Gospels through our CSA donations. In the past several years we have surpassed our target and received 100% of our overage back to use for special projects. This money has returned to us tax free. These funds are set aside to meet future needs like repairs to the heating and cooling system, or other major repairs.
 
Why are we starting CSA in Lent? We start now because the spiritual heart of Lent is ‘prayer, fasting, and almsgiving’. Let’s make our monetary contributions a spiritual gift, true almsgiving, a gift dedicated to the Love and Mercy of God. What better way to share our abundance than to support the growth of faith in our Roman Catholic Church through our giving of alms for the benefit of the faithful of our Archdiocese and our outreach to those who are un-churched or whose faith lies dormant. Let’s show our love of God, by showing our love of neighbor in Southeast Michigan.
 
Father Norm

It has been said that feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it. How close are we to Christ, and the gratitude we express for all his blessings is measured by our giving.

Giving comes from understanding who God is, who we are, and what Jesus Christ is all about, and from a clearer, deeper commitment to live for Him and take part in His mission on earth. 

CSA is an opportunity for us to participate in the ministry of the work of the Archdiocese of Detroit. If we fulfill our goal, any amounts collected in excess of our goal come back to the parish 100%.  Any amounts we fail to collect through this campaign must be paid out of our normal  income collected through the offertory.  We, as a parish must do our fair share of the work in the diocese.  The 2020 Goal listed above is the same goal as we were asked to achieve in 2019.

Please consider making a sacrificial pledge so that we can make our goal this year through your pledges.

Consider the price of a bottle of water, a cup of coffee, a candy bar or the price of one spin at the Casino. How often do we spend a dollar here or there for insignificant items? Yet many of us do not, but could set aside a dollar a day for CSA and help provide for needed ministries.
Could you give $1 a day for…..
 

• A seminarian’s education?
• The pastoral care of priests?
• To advocate for the protection of life?
• To provide televised Mass for shut-ins?
• To promote vocations?
• To fund discernment weekends for priest candidates?
• Programs to train our Catechists?
• To support Catholic Charities?
• To support the Parish Nurse program?
• To support Youth and Young Adult Ministries?
• To provide safe environments for our children?
• To provide formation for our liturgical ministers?
• To assist and provide direction for Catholic Schools?

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Out of the $15 million CSA received, our CSA contributions last year from St. Elizabeth Ann Seton assisted the common good through:
 

• $20,100 in Mission Grants.
• $14,750 for Sacred Heart Major Seminary. Lay Ministry Programs.
• $15,700 of programming for Vocations, Clergy and Seminarians. $12,850  to Youth and Minority ministries and Evangelization efforts. 
• $12,900 for Parish Life and Christian Service programs.
• $5,500 for Christian Stewardship and Development programs.
• $6,500 to Communications efforts in the Archdiocese, including CTND network, DetroitCatholic.com news site, and Evangelization programs.
• $3,450 to the Tribunal to provide free annulment services to those seeking to marry within the Catholic church.

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