Henri Nouwen (1932-1996) was a Roman Catholic priest who wrote many books an spirituality. (If you haven't read any of them, you're in for a treat. Start with Return of the Prodigal Son -- see at Amazon.)
He also wrote a little book called The Spirituality of Fund-Raising. It's available free from the Henri Nouwen Society, here. (The Society is a nonprofit, so I hope you'll also donate to them.)
To give you an idea of Nouwen's outlook, here are some quotes:
Fundraising is, first and foremost, a form of ministry. It is a way of announcing our vision and inviting other people into our missionAs a form a ministry, fundraising is as spiritual as giving a sermon, entering a time of prayer, visiting the sick, or feeding the hungry.
To raise funds is to offer people the chance to invest what they have in the work of God. Whether they have much or little is not as important as the possibility of making their money available to God. . . . God's Kingdom is a place of abundance where every generous act overflows its original bounds and becomes part of the unbounded grace of God at work in the world.
Whether people respond to our fundraising appeal with a "Yes," a "No," or a "Maybe" is less important than the knowledge that we all are gathered as one on the holy ground of God's generous disposition toward us.
If you're a religious believer and a fundraising professional, get this book. If you're not a believer, get it anyway; it will give you a glimpse at the spiritual significance of fundraising and giving -- a rich world that's going on under your nose, since most of your donors are religious, no matter what your cause.
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