The Christian is grateful for God’s love and mercy. As members of the church we find ourselves faced by the needs represented by the mission of the church. It is this call to involvement that leads us to make responsible decisions regarding financial response commensurate with the need. When we as individual Christians give to the church, our giving testifies to the task and mission of the church and is integral with it.
By “commercialism” in the church we mean the ownership and management of income-producing properties and businesses and the selling of goods or services in the name of the church, with the purpose of securing funds to finance the programs and operations of the church, its congregations, auxiliaries and institutions. Such commercialism obscures the clear relationship between the giving of the Christian and the mission of the church: it fails to bear witness to this mission and creates a false image of the church.
Commercialism further weakens and impoverishes the spiritual life of the church and distorts the true sense of stewardship for the following reasons:
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