Many members of the church have responded with their expressed perspectives, and these have been depicted to show primary perspective among all respondents, primary perspective among expressed respondents, weighted perspective of expressed respondents.

Anglo-Catholic

Faith is grounded in mystery, the sacraments, the experience of worship and church aesthetics. One comes to know God through these things. There is a primary focus on the ministry area of worship, and individual needs are met through the outward and visible signs of the sacraments. There is a high value on the authority of the church, and often good stewardship has been mandated by the clergy. More emphasis is needed to reclaim the power of the offering. Bringing the offering forward and placing it on the altar ties God's people and their lives to the Eucharist. We offer ourselves to be consecrated, made holy. This is powerful teaching and a place where stewardship education needs to be more articulate. The difficulty for Anglo-Catholics is the inclination to stay in the external, focused on the aesthetics, forgetting the internal movement of transformation. The sacramental aspects of stewardship have been largely untapped, and this may be an area of terrific opportunity to reclaim authentic symbols for our church.

Charismatic

Faith is grounded in the personal experience of the spiritual gifts (often speaking in tongues). There is also a quest for personal identification and affirmation in whom they are in Christ. Focus is on worship and Christian community. They know what they know through the gifts of the Spirit. Generally, charismatics come in two types: overt and covert. Overt charismatics need to be surrounded by other charismatics and tend to join charismatic congregations. Covert charismatics tend to be members of ordinary congregations. They are faithful, generally tithe, and are often leaders. They are usually quiet about their gifts, but there are outward signs. Charismatics take scripture seriously and tend to be good stewards, accepting the tithe as the standard.

Rationalist

Faith is discovered in paradox. The faith journey and scholarship are of primary importance. Focus is on education. Many clergy are rationalists. as are many who have rejected fundamentalist churches. Rationalists will often talk about stewardship in terms of freedom (liberation) when they give up control of money. Reflecting on the paradox of in whose service there is perfect freedom, for example, rationalists enjoy finding meaning in the tension between the extremes.

Traditionalist

Faith is formed in childhood. Often this faith development is precognitive, before the age of five. People who are traditionalist will often say that they have always known God and that they cannot identify a moment when God became real for them. They love the old ways and traditions of the church and are sometimes fearful of change. The 1979 BCP, moving the altar away from the wall, and women's ordination have been difficult for many.

Often this is true because their understanding of "who God is" and "what the church is" is so intertwined. They are oriented toward pastoral care as an important ministry in the church. Stewardship education experiences have often been limited in the past to yearly canvasses or letter campaigns, often very low key and usually tied to the needs of our church and our budget. This practice encourages maintenance thinking. This invites giving on an external need basis, rather than an internal response to God. When beginning stewardship education with traditionalists, it is important to affirm their experience and to acknowledge that the education program may be uncomfortable because we are inviting change.

Social Activists

The quest for justice is primary. Social activists appear to come in two versions: Either they were injured as children and know that offends God, or they read the Bible and believed it. Social activists focus on service. With regard to stewardship, they are often very generous toward causes, willing to sacrifice comfort for justice.

Evangelical

Faith is grounded in the conversion experience. All things are seen through the eyes of conversion. The evangelical can tell you the moment his/her life changed. They take scripture seriously and are obedient to God. Frequently the subject of stewardship is not an issue because, for them, scripture is clear, and they are obedient to the tithe. Evangelism is the primary ministry area to which they are called. They tend to soldier on through life, faithful to the call.