Serving Money, Serving God: Aligning Radical Justice, Christian Practice, and Church Life

by Sheryl Johnson

Justice commitments can and must be integrated into all of a church's financial practices, including fundraising, budgeting, managing property and personnel, investing, and participating in community partnerships. So argues Sheryl Johnson in Serving Money, Serving Aligning Radical Justice, Christian Practice, and Church Life.



This is the first Christian stewardship and finance book written from an explicitly anti-racist, decolonial, feminist, ecological, and class-critical standpoint. Many churches espouse these commitments--as individual members, as congregations, and through their denominations--but pursue them as discrete initiatives, such as themes for study and worship, rather than as core organizing principles for congregational life.



Alignment between Christian beliefs and commitments and church practice is both ethically and practically necessary, however. A 2009 Pew Research Center study that found that about half of those who had become unaffiliated from religion had done so because they found religious people "hypocritical, judgmental, or insincere." Alignment between beliefs and church practice therefore matters deeply both for those who are active in churches and for those who are not--but who might be if faith and action are consistent.



This book offers a positive and constructive approach to the topic and is filled with inspiring examples for churches of all sizes. Case studies provide practical guidance and make the analysis concrete, relatable, and accessible. The book highlights the importance of creativity, imagination, and a sense of hope-filled adventure in engaging this work.

169 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 14, 2023

Reviews

[Marcie Gibson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Serving Money Serving God: Aligning Radical Justice, Christian Practice, and Church Life, by Sheryl Johnson, is THE book that progressive faith organizations need to read this year.

This easy-read, accessible paperback, breaks down the barriers between personal, political, prophetic, and practical. It begins with outlining sources of moral and ethical deliberation, walks us through the twelve idols of Christian stewardship and their connections with neoliberalism, and examines complicated relationships with denominations, government, our buildings, and colonial and racial history. With some adaptations, much of Johnson’s writing is also applicable to other religious organizations – synagogues, mosques, meeting houses, schools, and faith-funded community organizations. Whether you are newly elected to a board, wondering how to run an ethical stewardship campaign, or feeling that pinch of disconnection and false separation between your church’s operational decisions and justice commitments, this is full of timely considerations and conversation starters.

Serving Money Serving God does not provide a one-size-fits-all solution. Its conversational style speaks directly to the reader: naming our anxieties, assumptions, questions, and the things we have overlooked (or chosen not to acknowledge, when talking about money and privilege seems too awkward). It offers a process for reflection and an opportunity to make ethical commitments and practical choices, within today’s reality. The final chapter offers inspiring examples of congregations, denominations, and organizations that are addressing financial justice in innovative ways.

At an accessible cost, this is for those who want to align operational and faith practices, whether feeling the anxiety of a small, shoe-string organization or overwhelmed with a large, endowed, historic congregation. Sheryl Johnson has written a book that truly speaks to progressive faith communities wanting to live out their values with integrity.

[Sherry Parker-Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read a lot of books on church finances/stewardship. It's part of my job. I am so pleased to add Sheryl Johnson's book to my "highly recommend" list. I'm not implying that this book will be of value in every church context (although it should be!), but it will be of great value to congregations who are striving to live out God's call for social justice in this world. While Johnson does not offer specifically proscribed church financial practices, she graciously puts tough questions before congregational leaders. She encourages church leaders to examine the way they gather, care for and deploy resources. Her writing will raise sensitivity to the position of power that many churches have held through the decades and will help congregations to unpack assumptions and practices that are harmful to God's people and God's world.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did not expect the first book that I would voraciously read in one afternoon since Twilight to be one about church finances, but that was only one of many surprises in Sheryl Johnson's book. This book is a must for progressive churches who are trying to figure out how their budget aligns with their mission. (which, like, isn't that something we should all be doing all the time?) Refreshing, easy to read, and filled with challenging concepts, Serving Money, Serving God is going to be a book that I will be thinking about for a while and recommending to everyone in church leadership that I know!

[Kevin Powell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent study on money and the church. I appreciated Sheryl's discussion on money within the church's justice tradition. She is not naive to how money serves the church through capitalism which causes missional tension. She provides a challenge for church's and faith communities to use their money toward justice efforts, but also noting that church's can find other avenues of revenue generation outside of market initiatives.

I recommended this book to my denomination's finance committee (which I am a member) as a starting point for reimagining church finances.

[E. · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting and provocative read. Lots of ideas to ponder and figure out how to incorporate.

[Lydia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book covers it all - scarcity, colonialism, capitalism, reparations, climate justice, intersectionality... but doesn't come across as "shaming." It's also hopeful!