Interviewed but not used

I mentioned that last week I was interviewed, by Steven Vegh of the Virginian Pilot, about stewardship. The article was published yesterday, and nothing from my interview was used at all! Perhaps I was just speaking "on background"?

Anyway, there was an interesting nugget in the story:

Sylvia Ronsvalle , a researcher at empty tomb , said church leaders are going up against a powerful trend: American consumerism.

“People are buying more things, carrying more debt,” she said. “People are finding money for things and cutting back in other areas, and the church may be one.”

Some boil down the explanation even further: that as Americans have generally become more prosperous in recent decades, they’ve become stingier at the offering plate.

Citing his experiences in ministry, Short said that affluent people often attribute their bounty to their own hard work, while poorer people credit providence and give more openhandedly.

“Affluence is a detriment to stewardship,” Short said.

Think about that: the affluent give a smaller percentage than people who are less affluent.

I really like the quote, "affluent people often attribute their bounty to their own hard work, while poorer people credit providence and give more openhandedly." So, affluent don't consider what they have as "God-given" perhaps?

Musing here: Does that mean that all the talk about stewardship falls on deaf ears in a place like Trinity, a place where -- admittedly -- we have a number of affluent parishoners?