Everence F.C.U. - a new kind of Banking.

My mortgage, checking/current account, and  visa credit card are each held by one of the behemoths of American finance -  the Bank of America.  The local B of A staff are great and they give fine service, but I am not too comfortable with having all my eggs in this one conglomerate basket.

With this in  mind I decided to open a savings account at one or other of the local Federal Credit Unions.  Having checked credentials on line, I decided that my new account should be at the Everence F.C.U. (Federal Credit Union).

“Everence” used to be called “Mennonite Financial Services”.  The new name is meant to evoke both permanency (Ever), and piety ( Reverence).

One of the blessings of having a substantial Mennonite and Amish Community  in Sarasota is that Everence F.C.U.  has a branch here. 

I have a decent respect for Mennonites  - named after Menno Simons  -  (see  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Menno_Simons) - even though their emphasis on peace and justice has not yet extended to include lesbian and gay Christians).

So dollars in hand I took myself to the one and only local Everence branch.  I discovered that their norm for membership is membership in an Amish or Mennonite congregation. 

But non- Mennonites such as I may join if we are happy and able to subscribe to the following:

“I share a commitment with the historical faith and biblical stewardship  principles of Mennonite/Anabaptist  Christians acknowledging that all aspects of life belong to God (Psalm 24) and:

Practice the stewardship of God’s love toward others, e.g.,

Following the example of Jesus Christ.
Sharing divine mercy.
Promoting reconciliation efforts.

Practicing the stewardship of God’s gifts, e.g.,

Stewardship of money and possessions.
Stewardship of the environment.
Stewardship of health.
Stewardship of time.
Stewardship of talents.

Practicing the stewardship of God’s generosity by sharing, e.g.,

Christian mutual aid.
Spiritual gifts for ministry and missions.

All of the above in blue is from the Everence F.C.U. document which I was asked to sign prior to opening a Savings account. 

I did so very gladly.  I admire and respect the Everence way of doing business!

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