Giving & Payments

On this webpage we wanted to provide those who browse this website with information about how to make payments to one or more of the churches in our benefice, and also to say something about giving to the church. Payments may be related to giving or they may simply be for fees that have been charged, e.g. for a wedding. If you wish to make a payment then please go to our Payments section further down the webpage.

For Christians the idea of giving is central is to the Christian way of life, as expressed in the life of Jesus. In fact, Jesus said,

John 3.16

Therefore, as God the Father gave his only Son for us, and Jesus gave his life on the Cross for us, so we should find giving a natural and normal way to live. These acts of giving are best expressed as stewardship, that is to say the wise usage of resources that have been entrusted to us.

When Adam and Eve were given charge of Creation, they were told to steward the world, that is to care and nurture the world, to take sustenance from the world but not in the form of exploitation but wise management. When Cain killed Abel it was because he was jealous that God had accepted Abel's offering but not his. However, God did not reject Cain's offering because it was inferior to Abel's but because it was an afterthought. Abel gave the first fruit, the first new lamb of his flock; Cain gave his grain offering once the harvest was complete. So, Christian giving in the form of stewardship should be wise management of our resources, including money, and giving as a first thought, not an afterthought.

Christian giving in the form of stewardship — as oppose to donations or fundraising — should be regular and pre-planned. There are many ways to give in this way, for instance, all of our churches have an envelope scheme where a pack of 52 envelopes (one for each week of the year) act as a reminder to give regularly each week. However, by far the easiest method to give regularly and in a pre-planned way is to use a direct debit. To setup either of these ways of regular giving please do speak to one of the treasurers, or the vicar.

Finally, when giving in a regular and pre-planned way, do so because you want to, not because you feel you ought to. We would rather you never gave than that you gave with a heavy heart, in fact, the Bible says the same thing.

2 Corinthians 9.6-7

The Diocese of Carlisle has plenty of information and advice on stewardship and giving, and they have appointed a Stewardship Enabler, Sophie Hodge, who can offer plenty of encouragement and advice on stewardship. It may be that you are considering regular giving for the first time or that you are reviewing the regular giving that you already have in place. One useful resource on reviewing your giving is available online, please do download and consider prayerfully. 

For more information about stewardship and giving to the Church, please do go to the Carlisle Diocesan website's webpages on Stewardship which have many ideas and resources.

Giving

Giving is a very important part of the life of the Church family, it enables the work carried out by that Church family to continue, to develop and to thrive. Without the regular giving through Stewardship and irregular or occasional giving, then church families and churches would quickly come to an abrupt end.

The most important forms of occasional giving are donations and fundraising. The former, donations, are quite simply generosity in support of the Church and its work, and hopefully an appreciation of the Church's work. The latter, fundraising, is where people give of their time, talents and energy to run events and activities that generate funds for the Church — both forms of occasional giving, donations and fundraising, are vital and worthy means of supporting the Church and its work.

If you are thinking about giving, whether that be as a regular arrangement or a one-off donation, then please do also consider Gift Aid. If you are a taxpayer then you are eligible to Gift Aid your donations and that allows us to claim an extra 25% to your donation at no additional cost to yourself.   If you wish to Gift Aid your donations then please do download and complete one of the Gift Aid Declarations below and send to the vicar or Contact Us.

St. Andrew's, Coniston	St. Luke's, Torver	St. Luke's, Lowick with Blawith	Holy Trinity, Colton	St. Mary the Virgin, Egton cum Newland

Another way of giving that is less often thought of, but nonetheless very important and helpful, is to leave a legacy towards one or more of the churches in the benefice. A small (or larger) legacy of a few thousand pounds can make an enormous difference to the viability and vitality of rural churches like ours in Coniston and the Crake Valley.

Our diocesan bishop, Bishop James Newcome, chairs the Church of England National Stewardship Committee and has spoken on many of these issues. Click on the video below to listen to Bishop James speak about legacy giving and the lasting difference it can make to the local church.

For more information about how to arrange a legacy in your will please do go to the Church of England's website for advice on legacies or visit the Church Legacy website.

In the near future we hope to setup online transactions for those wishing to give a donation and contribute to the work of the Church in Coniston and the Crake Valley. At the moment all giving and payments will need to be made by cash, by cheque or using BACS for bank transfers. Please see the Payments section below.

Payments

At the moment all giving and payments will need to be made by cash, by cheque or using BACS for bank transfers. Cheques can be sent to the vicar at The Vicarage, Penny Bridge, Ulverston, Cumbria, LA12 7RQ.