The Bread of Life
2027 Annual Campaign
Dear Friends,
Among the surprising delights of Grace Church are the architectural details tucked away in unvisited corners of the building. In the Honor Room, for example, where the choir gathers before the 11 am Sunday service, nine exquisite stained glass windows depict the parables of Jesus. They are the work of the twin sisters, Genevieve and Maude Cowles, who designed them in 1901. All of the windows are worthy of a prolonged look, even though they remain largely hidden from our eyes.
One of the windows illustrates the Parable of the Yeast, or Leaven, recorded at Matthew 13:33 and Luke 13:20. In vivid detail, we see a woman kneading a lump of flour so that the yeast spreads through the whole thing and eventually transforms it into bread. The inscription running along the bottom of the window reads: The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven.
The window beautifully portrays the work of the church. Throughout the Bible we read how bread is God’s gift of life. God rained down manna from heaven upon the starving Israelites in the desert. Jesus declared himself to be the bread of life, and on the night before he died, he broke the bread and said, “This is my body.” Our mission now is like that of the woman in the parable: to work the leaven into the lump, to participate in God’s transformation of all creation.
This brochure tells the story of how we receive God’s gift of life, and share it with a world that is hungry for God’s presence. Please read on, and then give prayerful thought to a generous financial gift to support the ministries of Grace Church in the year 2027.
The Rev. J. Donald Waring
Rector
Your 2027 Pledge
God not only gives us the bread of life, but asks us also to share it with the world. Grace Church is here to help leaven the lump of society, and transform the community around us into the kingdom of God. It is the best part of our calling.
Annual giving empowers us to share the bread of life with those who come in contact with Grace Church – from the stranger who wanders in off Broadway to rest and pray, to the lifelong member who serves on a host of committees. It is an expensive undertaking to open these doors to the community. Indeed, it costs more than $6.00 every minute of every day, 365 days per year to keep Grace Church going. Every fall, we ask all of our members and friends to answer the call, and join financially in the work of administering the bread of life.
Make Your 2027 Pledge
Fulfill Your 2027 Pledge
Receive
We receive the bread of life through worship and the sacraments.
On the night before he died, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to his disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” (Matthew 26:26)
- Worship services large and small throughout the week invite hundreds into the presence of God.
- A variety of Choirs involving many parishioners sing the praises of God with devotion and skill.
- The unparalleled art and architecture of stained-glass, stone, and wood inspire our souls.
- The Bicentennial Organ thrills listeners on Sundays and throughout the week.
- Sermons and Children’s Chapels open the Scriptures to us.
- Flowers and greens help us to rejoice in the beauty of God’s creation.
Partake
We partake of the bread of life though Christian community and the Scriptures.
Jesus said, “I am the bread of life; those who come to me shall not hunger.” (John 6:35)
- Clergy counsel and pastoral visits are available for those who seek comfort or guidance.
- Monthly healing prayers and anointing at the Wednesday 6 pm Eucharist are meeting a pastoral need.
- Grace Cares is a ministry of lay leaders who call on the sick and housebound.
- Bible studies and book discussions engage us with the thinking of classic and contemporary Christian authors.
- The Sunday Forum helps us explore the areas where Christianity overlaps with culture, politics, and art.
- The GCW (Grace Church Women) and the Young Adult Fellowship are two groups that create community and opportunities for service.
- Canterbury Downtown for college students offers weekly worship, food, and fellowship.
- Coffee Hour offers a time for parishioners to connect after worship.
Share
We share the bread of life when we reach out to our neighbors.
Jesus said, “For the kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened.” (Matthew 13:33)
- Our magnificent building, open to the public seven days a week, is significant outreach, in and of itself. Hundreds of people enter, rest, and pray during open door hours.
- We support the Diocese of New York so that struggling churches in under-resourced communities can stay open and vital.
- We help to fund the GO Project, our historic outreach partnership with Grace Church School that tutors at-risk public school students.
- Teams of volunteers work at The Red Door Place to prepare meals for the hungry.
- Every month we collect hundreds of canned goods and non-perishable items to stock local food pantries and soup kitchens.
- The livestream broadcast of the 11 am Sunday service reaches dozens of homes every week.
- Newcomer classes and events offer a point of connection for seekers and explorers.
- The Weekly Epistle reaches out to hundreds of households.
- Our social media presence is active and engaged with a wide range of people.
- Our website is up-to-date every day, and guides people to deeper participation in the Christian life.
Enjoy
We enjoy the bread of life when we give of ourselves.
So they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments from the five barley loaves, left by those who had eaten. (John 6:13)
When Jesus multiplied the loaves and fish, he taught us of God’s abundance. Grace Church relies on God’s abundance in order to knead the leaven of life into the world. We have three major sources of revenue:
Annual giving from parishioners
Rental income from real estate holdings
A responsible draw on our invested funds
Also, we conduct occasional capital campaigns to fund extraordinary repairs to the building. The congregation has responded heroically to the appeals, and the restoration work we have seen in 2026 is the result.
As we look ahead to 2027, we realize that this year, as every year, Annual giving is vitally important. We simply could not do what we do, and offer the Bread of Life to the world, without the generous giving of all our households.
How to Give
Count Your Blessings
Pledging is a way to say “thank you” to God for all the blessings of this life: friends, family, forgiveness, employment, a lesson learned, the beauty of creation, and the awareness of God’s presence through troubled times. Part of the enclosed pledge envelope asks you to list a few of the blessings you have known in 2026. Thus, your 2027 pledge is a tangible expression of gratitude. It is the blessings we name on our pledge cards that we hear in the Prayers of the People each Sunday.
Be Prayerful and Generous
The Bible commends the tithe (10% of one’s income) as a standard of giving. If the tithe seems too high a mark to reach this year, choose a percentage that feels faithful, grateful, and generous. If you gave 2% last year, strive to give 3% or 4% in 2027. Multiply the percentage you choose by your annual income, and make the resulting number your pledge. Strive to do your best for God, who is the giver of all good gifts. Make a pledge that stretches you spiritually and financially – one that you cannot fulfill by writing one check today.
Fulfill Your Pledge
Once you have completed both portions of the pledge card, either mail it to the parish office, or place it in the offering plate the next Sunday you are in church. You can begin to make pledge payments in 2027, and take the entire year to fulfill your pledge. Parishioners can choose offering envelopes to make weekly payments, or set up automatic payments by giving online at: gracechurchnyc.org
Tax-Deductible Giving
Gifts to Grace Church (EIN: 13-5562327) are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law.
Questions?
Please contact Travis Brock Kennedy.
Budget Digest
