Every year, the Diocese holds Parish Council Conferences, offered to educate and inspire lay leaders and other interested members of our parishes on important topics in ministry and church growth – and then take those messages back home to inspire their own churches. This year, the Parish Council Conferences are on the topic of “Stewardship: Money and Salvation”. The Conference speaker is Janet Van Duyn, who is the Treasurer of the Diocese and also Parish Treasurer of St. John the Baptist Church in Rochester.

The 2023 Parish Council Conferences will take place in the New York City Deanery on Saturday, June 3 at St. John the Theologian Church in Shirley, NY, and Saturday, June 10, at Holy Virgin Protection Cathedral in New York City. In the New York State Deanery, the Conferences will be on Saturday, June 17, at Saints Peter and Paul Church in Endicott, NY, and Saturday, June 24, at Christ the Savior Church in Ballston Lake, NY. Conferences for the New Jersey Deanery were held May 6 at Christ the Saviour Church in Paramus, NJ, and May 13 at Holy Trinity Church in Randolph, NJ.

As the clergy have been sharing in their parishes, His Eminence Archbishop Michael is directing that every Diocesan parish be represented at one of the Conferences. He emphasizes that it is primarily the laity who will most effectively energize their parishes with the message of Stewardship, as both a personal spiritual discipline and a source of financial stability to the church. Vladyka reminds us of the powerful words of Saint John Chrysostom: : “A rich person is not one who has much … but one who gives much … for whatever he gives away remains his forever.”

For the New York City Deanery Conference flyer, click here.
For the New York State Deanery Conference flyer, click here.