December 6, 2011

Ouch. And thank you.

The dreaded letter finally arrived last Wednesday. It was a letter from my parish politely noting that my partner and I had only paid half of our 2011 pledge. After reading it, I handed the letter to my better half, winced at the thought of the amount we owed, and went in search of the checkbook.

For the record, December is a pretty rotten time of year to receive this news. In fact, when we made our pledge a year ago, we promised ourselves that we’d make regular payments so as to avoid this exact moment. With plane tickets and Christmas gifts to buy, we knew that we couldn’t put off making quarterly contributions on what was, at least for us, a sacrificial gift. Yet that’s exactly what we did.
 
I reflected on this turn of events while on my walk to church this past Sunday. With the folded check in my pocket, I realized that this annual pledge had become a transformative moment for us. On the one hand, I felt joy that after seven years of worshipping in separate churches, my partner and I have finally found a spiritual home that we are jointly contributing to. On the other hand, I felt sadness about those gifts that I won’t be able to purchase because of this final payment. And finally, I felt immense gratitude.

Like many, I’m horrified by the rampant materialism of what Christmas has become in this country. In prior years, I’ve sought to address this by making contributions in addition to the regular gift buying that I normally take part in. This is the first year, however, that I’ll be buying far less so as to be able to contribute more to the spiritual home where I’m encountering a deeper Christ-mas.

December is a rough time to receive this kind of letter - but then, perhaps it’s the best time of all. It has led me to reflect on where my heart truly is this season, and to align my treasure accordingly.