FROM THE PASTOR’S DESK
FOLLOW-UP TO OUR PARISH MISSION
A question came up after the Parish Mission with Deacon Ralph: Now that we have had this mission, what do we do now? How do we take what he gave us and keep it going? That is really at the heart of a parish mission. Various mission directors I have worked with all had basically the same approach. ‘We get to come in and stir the pot, then we leave and the parish takes what we gave and puts it into practice’. So how do we do this?
- We begin by acknowledging that we received a lot of material in a very short time. Hopefully the flames of faith in our hearts have been enkindled and are burning brighter within. We recorded all the talks of the mission, and they are available on our website under ‘Parish Mission 2020’. It is not possible to keep track of all the material, even if we took great notes. IN fact, taking notes in these events is a good thing, but they can become a distraction as well. We can become so focused on the notes we miss the moment (Happens to all of us). Go back to the talks themselves, and relive the encounter. Perhaps this could be a part of your small-group activities.
- Join or form a small group. If you feel a desire in your heart to do this, and just don’t know how to go about it, contact David Alcott, our parish Evangelization minister. David can help you with materials and suggestions. There are some groups that already meet, and perhaps you could join one of them. That Man is You is one such group, or you could start a sub-group within a group. For example, a group of PCCW ladies might want to get together or a few Knights of Columbus members might want to start meeting. As Deacon said, the important thing is to start. Give it a fair time, he suggested 6 weeks. These groups don’t have to be a certain number of people,(I would think at least 3) and you do not want too large a group (If a group gets to 10, start thinking of splitting into 2 groups)
- Find other ways to become involved: We constantly need ministry team members in our parish. Volunteer to serve as a lector, an usher, a sacristan for a Mass or in other capacities. Our decorating team can always use an extra set of hands, especially during busy seasons. A special note to the various leaders of these ministries; welcome new members into your team. As an example, with a parish this size, we should have enough volunteers to usher that no one should have to serve in this capacity more than once or at the most twice a month. But we need to be more welcoming to new team members. Perhaps God has put it into your heart to be a part of the team going to the hospital or one of the nursing homes. Contact the parish office and see how to become involved.
- For current leaders of small groups or other ministries, who is your replacement? Have you thought about this? Building active involvement is important, but we need to build in a healthy manner. If you are a leader in one of these, consider who in your group might be either a replacement or ready to lead another team. None of us likes to think about the time we are not able to lead, but in reality we must prepare. If a particular group is totally reliant upon one individual, the group or ministry falls away when that one person is no longer available. This can happen due to so many factors outside our control, it is only prudent to prepare for any contingency.
- These are some ways we can take the gift of our recent mission and implement changes into our individual lives, and through them we begin to change the life of our parish. And remember to pray, as prayer must be the foundation of all we do.
God Bless,
Fr. Jim
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