House of Charity prepares for 2015 campaign

To prepare for this year’s House of Charity campaign, the Camden Diocese got some practical advice from a former university president and inspiration from one of the church’s most popular spiritual writers.

Bishop Dennis Sullivan helped the campaign get underway at a kick-off meeting for parish volunteers, held Jan. 13 at St. Isidore Church, Vineland.

Funds raised through the annual House of Charity are used for the diocese’s pastoral, social and community services; the work of vocations and care of priests, needy parishes and schools, Lifelong Faith Formation efforts, young adult and campus ministries, and other ministries.

The in-pew weekend — the general appeal to all Catholics of the diocese — will be Feb. 14-15. This year’s video explaining the campaign and what the House of Charity accomplishes, can be viewed on the Camden Diocesan website, http://www.camdendiocese.org. (Viewers get to see a few seconds of Bishop Sullivan shooting baskets with the children of Matt and Kelley, a couple who at one time benefited from the House of Charity and are now regular donors.)

The theme of the 2015 campaign is “We Are Called,” and workers have been invoking a quote from Henri Nouwen, a Dutch-born priest who taught at Notre Dame, Harvard and Yale, and then went on to work with mentally and physically handicapped people at the L’Arche Daybreak community in Ontario.

“Fundraising is proclaiming what we believe in such a way that we offer other people an opportunity to participate with us in our vision and mission,” said Nouwen, the author of more than 40 books on spirituality.

Putting that “spirituality of giving” into practical terms, Jesuit Father William J. Byron, the day’s keynote speaker, emphasized the importance of making personal contact with potential donors.

“It is the heart that gives; the fingers just let go,” said Father Byron, former president of St. Joseph University, Philadelphia. (See below)

Each parish of the diocese sent a four-member House of Charity Ministry team, who were given a presentation on best practices for fundraising.

Key words throughout the day were “teamwork,” “stewardship” and “opportunity,” all emphasizing that fundraising for the House of Charity is more than collecting and distributing money — it’s sharing a vision of the church’s mission.