Placed in a garden, commended to one another, and given everything in the world for their enjoyment, Adam and Eve began human history as good stewards. Only one thing was asked of them – to return back to God in thanksgiving what they had been given. This offering to God brought forth even greater joy – human freedom. We know the sad result. Adam and Eve chose to grasp the world for themselves and forgot to offer it back to God.

It is possible to interpret the entire history of the people of Israel as the failure to be good stewards. Only in the Virgin Mary do we see good stewardship return. "Let it be to me according to your word." She offered herself and her life to God in humility and thanksgiving.

In her Son, the Lord Jesus Christ we encounter the Good Steward. In His perfect offering to His Father of all joy, all obedience, all love, all acceptance and all life, the sacrament of stewardship is restored. It is in His good stewardship that we now share: "Thine own of Thine own, we offer onto Thee, on behalf of all and for all." This is the fundamental teaching of the Church on stewardship. Good stewardship therefore is the wise management of the resources given to us by God and the sanctifying offering of these resources to God the Father in His Son Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit.

On a more practical note concerning corporate stewardship management, most Orthodox parishes struggle to fund bare bones operating budgets. Parish budgets rarely include such essential line items as mission, evangelization, charitable giving, humanitarian relief, or theological education. The same parishes have little or no understanding of how to fund the construction of a new church or a major renovation project. Parish endowment efforts are poorly planned and improperly executed. Bingo, raffles, parish "dues" and minimalist stewardship practices plague Orthodox Church life and seriously constrain the growth of Orthodoxy in North America. In some parishes the annual ethnic festival rivals the importance of Holy Week in terms of parish member participation. A hefty percentage of the parish operating fund may be underwritten by this all-consuming event. In other parishes an unending sequence of fundraising projects becomes the raison d’être of parish life. Consequently, non-Orthodox visitors may perceive Orthodox parishes as wholly self-serving – and they may be correct! One is not surprised therefore, to find a Church that is under funded, preoccupied with its own self-sustenance, jealously guarding its own resources and in many places shrinking in membership.