Renew My Church begins in July

“The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained’.” John 20:20-23

Today, as we celebrate Pentecost, we hear from the Gospel of St. John the passage that tells us about the Great Commission. Jesus sends His disciples, filled with the Holy Spirit, out into the world to build His Church. And He gives us this same mission today as something to accomplish together. An important element to achieving our mission is understanding what we are facing today. When we look at the signs of the time, what do we see? A culture more ambivalent toward religion; declining faith participation of younger generations; Mass attendance in our archdiocese that has decreased by 27% over the past 20 years, and this is likely to increase at an even greater rate because of the pandemic. Across the U.S., 2 in 5 children baptized are not confirmed, again, a number that is likely to rise; and, 85% of children that are confirmed stop practicing their faith by age 21. In many quarters of our society, Christian morality, once the norm, is pushed aside. The consequences are all around us: breakdown of families, disregard for innocent life and human dignity, violence in our communities, addictions, depression, loneliness and despair. How can we, as God’s sons and daughters, reach out in new ways to invite our brothers and sisters to a welcoming and loving faith-filled home? How do we make it a priority to bring them to Jesus? These are a few of the fundamental questions that will guide everything we do as part of Renew My Church.

This July, our parish, along with Most Holy Redeemer and Queen of Martyrs, will begin this process of renewal by gathering together for meetings to begin the process of figuring out the best path forward to a sustainable, vibrant and vital Catholic presence for our shared community. Attending those meetings will be, from each parish, the pastor, and five parishioners. Collectively, the pastors and parishioners selected will form what’s called a Grouping Feedback and Discernment Team (GFDT). Our GFDT includes John Woolley, Char Bermele, Michelle Kadich, Kevin Kirkland, and Eileen McNichols. I will keep the parish informed of our progress. Further discussions will take place at the parish council and finance council meetings. Our communication regarding our progress will be on-going with the entire parish community via the bulletin and website. In addition, the GFDT members and I will be available to answer any questions.

I’d like us all, as a parish, to begin considering the actual words “Renew My Church.” Who speaks these words to us? Jesus does, and these are the same words He has spoken to saints before us. Whose Church are we told to renew? His Church. What a wonderful gift to be invited to renew Christ’s Church. The Church is all of us baptized who are called to continually renew and deepen our personal relationship with Jesus and invite others to experience that same peace, love, and joy that Jesus offers. I invite you to join me in prayer for the Renew My Church process to be fruitful and spiritually enriching to our whole community: