How to Donate

How Much Should I Be Giving?

Tithing can be a sensitive issue. Tithing means giving ten percent of your income to Christ’s church and His poor. God gave Moses the commandment to tithe for the purpose of supporting the church and those in need (Leviticus 27: 30-&-34). Jesus talks about tithing in Luke 11: 42, Luke 18: 12, and Matthew 23:23. Abram tithed as a symbol that he depended totally on God. Moses said tithing was Holy and an act of worship. David informed us that God owns everything when he wrote, “The earth and everything in it belongs to Him.” The practice of tithing has a strong precedence in the Bible and church history and is still relevant today for those who can give at this level.

Every family must prayerfully discern their level of giving. There are legitimate exceptions to tithing such as families struggling to take care of their basic needs. Every family should try to give something and then build on that. Include the whole family in contributing to your weekly giving goal, pray together for guidance, and Our Loving God will get you there.

One Hour a Week

Here at St Joseph Parish, we ask everyone to give at least one hour (one 40^th) of their weekly income.

Online Giving

Please click ONLINE GIVING to donate to second and special collections and schedule your regular weekly or monthly contribution to the parish. All major credit cards as well as electronic transfers from bank accounts are accepted. Online giving is easy to do and ensures the parish receives a consistent flow of income.

Whether you chose to give online or with the weekly and second collection envelopes mailed monthly to registered parishioners, the Parish Office will send you an acknowledgement letter for each gift of $250 or more and an itemized annual giving statement after the end of each year.

We appreciate your generosity. Your donations provide essential funding for parish operations and maintenance, clergy, staff, and ministries.

St. Vincent de Paul collection

Thanks to your generosity, St. Vincent de Paul continues to provide critical support to individuals and families in need.

Our next collection is on January 25 and 26. Donations can be made in the following ways at any time, not just on collection days:

Write a check to St. Vincent de Paul and put in collection basket or mail to church
Write a check to the church with "SVDP" in the memo line
Donate online through the church’s OSV page by clicking here
On collection days, cash is also OK in the second collection basket or envelope

Every dollar you give goes directly into our programs, with overhead costs (such as phone, paper, and ink) accounting for less than 1% of total expenses. Your contributions provide healthy food for our neighbors who struggle to feed their families. We are deeply grateful for your continued support, which enables us to make a meaningful difference in the lives of those we serve.

Limited Edition Prints Available

Our Wedding Feast of the Lamb painting is here – Members of the parish staff, pastoral leadership team, our church renovation contractor, and other parishioners donated their Memorial Day holiday to help Father Anthony and artist Michael Corsini (in the blue shirt) install the completed painting on the back wall of the church. Michael returned on June 8 and 9, 2024 for our celebration of the 227th anniversary of the Mission’s founding and spoke after all weekend masses about the painting. For more information about the saints in the painting, the blessing and Michael's talk click here.

We are offering 12” X 49” limited edition signed prints for purchase. Call the parish office at 510-656-2364 for details.

You can learn more about the creation of the painting in this interview of Father Anthony and artist Michael Corsini, and also see the installation:

https://youtu.be/YoSgY7csqrQ

Engraved Brick Sponsorships

Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.

I wonder if cousin John was thinking of the paths by our outdoor Stations of the Cross? Probably not, but we still want to invite you to be part of this area of our living faith here in our beautiful St. Joseph parish grounds.

Brick paths and embellishments will be installed around the Stations of the Cross path and at each station. You can sponsor an engraved brick for $250. Each red brick is approximately 9” wide by 4.5” high by 3” deep. Engraving can include up to two lines with 15 spaces per line.

If you're interested, please sponsor a brick here. You may also send cash or checks to the parish office along with your name, contact information and the text you want engraved on your brick.

Engraved bricks by a station of the cross — Engraved bricks by the stations of the cross

Support the parish by donating Stock, Mutual funds, or IRA required distributions

By donating publicly traded appreciated stocks or shares of mutual funds to St. Joseph Parish you can avoid paying capital gains taxes and receive a tax deduction if you itemize deductions on your tax return.

Owners of traditional IRAs who are 70 ½ and older can donate all or some of their annual IRA Required Minimum Distribution to St Joseph Parish and avoid paying income tax on the donated amount. The donation must be made directly from your IRA to the parish to avoid having it count as taxable income. Consult your tax advisor and IRS Publication 526, Charitable Contributions, for more information.

Donating to St. Joseph Parish is easy! Gina Mehta, St Joseph Parish Business Manager, can guide you through the process and answer questions. Gina can be reached at 510-656-2364, extension 100, and at gmehta@saintjosephmsj.org.

Step 1 – Go to: https://www.oakdiocese.org/how-to-give. Print and complete the Diocese’s online Security Donation Form requesting your broker transfer a certain number of shares of a company or a mutual fund from your investment account or IRA to the Schwab brokerage account of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Oakland. Be sure to indicate your gift is for St. Joseph Parish – Fremont.

Step 2 – Submit the original of the completed Security Donation Form to your broker and email a copy of the completed form to Janet Ang in the Diocesan Finance Department at jang@oakdiocese.org and to Gina Mehta at gmehta@saintjosephmsj.org.

Step 3 – St. Joseph Parish will send you a letter acknowledging your donation. You should also keep a copy of the letter and your broker’s record of the value of the securities at the time of transfer which typically is the amount you can claim as a tax deduction.

Text-to-Give

As disciples of Jesus, it’s a blessing to respond to God’s generosity with the same selfless giving as our Lord. The parish staff is always trying to find ways to offer convenient avenues for our big-hearted parishioners to give. One of those ways to manage your church giving is with our new Text-to-Give function that is fully integrated with our secure Online Giving. You can text an amount to 510-647-6027, and your transaction will be processed through the Online Giving account associated with your phone number. If your phone number is not recognized, login to Online Giving and associate your number with your existing account, or create an account. You only have to create an account with your mobile number once. After that, anytime you want to text-to-give you simply send the amount to 510-647-6027 or you may even want to set-up a contact with that number (like St. Joseph Giving).

For specific funds, text GIVE and the FUND NAME to 510-647-6027. Scroll down to see the list of Fund Names at the end of this article.

Match Your Donations

Many employers have matching gift programs. This is a great opportunity to increase your financial support to our parish by leveraging your donation with matching corporate funds. Although many corporations will not match contributions to religious organizations such as the parish, some do.

Most companies will match donations to schools and to a non-sectarian, non-profit corporations such as the Committee for the Restoration of the Mission San Jose (CRMSJ). Contributions to St Joseph School and CRMSJ help to fund needed improvements and operating expenses at the school, Mission church and museum.

If your employer has a matching gifts program, please consider supporting St. Joseph parish with a gift to one of the following:

St Joseph’s Church, Tax ID number 94-1358335
St Joseph School, Tax ID number 94-1535363 (This is the Diocesan Schools Department’s TAX ID, so be sure to indicate your gift is for St Joseph School, Fremont)
Committee for the Restoration of the Mission San Jose, Tax ID number 94-2341096

If you have any questions, contact Gina Mehta at gmehta@saintjosephmsj.org or call her at (510) 656-2364

Support THE PARISH BY DONATING STOCK, MUTUAL FUNDS, or IRA required distributions

TEXT-TO-GIVE CODES – (510) 647-6027 (See information above regarding how to use the Text Code)
FUND NAME	TEXT CODE
Sunday Collection	Sunday
Christmas Collection	Christmas
Catholic Communications	Comm
Catholic Charities	Charities
Holy Father	Father
Priest Retirement	Priest
Catholic Voice	Voice
World Mission	World
Campaign for Human Dev’t	Human
Religious Retirement	Religious
Seminary	Seminary
Rice Bowl	Rice
Catholic Relief Services	CRS
Holy Land	Friday
Easter	Easter
St Vincent de Paul	Vincent
Ash Wednesday	Ash
All Saints	Saints
Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary	Blessed
Mary Mother of God	Mary
Mission Founder’s Day	Mission
Current Maintenance	Maint
Beautification Project	Beauty
Mission Cooperative Plan	Coop
Sr. John Marie’s Pantry	Pantry
Immaculate Conception	Conception
Parishwide Scholarship Fund	Scholarship
Church Renovation	Renov
Bishop’s Appeal	Bishop

Stewardship