Parish Life
Gospel values and mission should inform everything a parish chooses to do. Just like individual Christians, parishes need to continually discern how God is calling them to use their gifts and change the world. While parishes have an incredible latent power to better the world, it can be hard to realize.
Here are some general guidelines for orienting parish life for mission.
Mission Focus
It is harder than it sounds to truly shift the focus of a parish from a maintenance mindset to one centered on mission. But it is essential that the parish as a whole understands this distinction, and be continually reminded of it. This is a fundamental, categorical shift. The Gospel is an entire way of life.
Preaching and teaching more about Christian witness and sharing is good, but it is not the same as becoming an evangelizing community. Everyone must understand that evangelization is not another thing we do, but the reason we are here. Consider how you can build reminders into everything the parish does, from liturgy to weekly bulletins and from ministry meetings to the parish website.
Formation
The work of the Gospel living parish -- supporting the laity in their mission -- is mostly about formation. Inviting members to experience and be converted by Jesus, and to more fully understand what he taught us. If we do not know Jesus and begin to understand the Kingdom of God, there is nothing for us to share.
Speak to the Crowds
Parish staff and volunteers often expend extensive energy putting together classes, retreats, or workshops that only a small fraction of the parish attends. Why not fully utilize the opportunities in your parish when the people are already gathered en masse, especially Sunday liturgy? If parents are already coming to the parish to drop off their kids for religious education, offer classes or small groups for them at the same time.
Depth Over Breadth
When becoming a Gospel Living parish, there may be a temptation to "name drop" mentions of Gospel values or daily life connections, but shallow references can become frustrating quickly. Yes, the first step is for disciples to understand the "why": that they are called to live out their faith in these different ways. But this insight is closely followed by the "how" question, and that's where we need to offer the most support.
Don't Be Judgmental
As Catholics we have inherited a reputation for being all about guilt (much of it misplaced). In reaction, we may have become too reluctant to even try to talk about any daily life specifics: staying with abstracts is much safer.
Our mission requires us to make daily life connections, but that does not mean we should be judgmental. We need to preach the good news, including the challenging parts. We can explain how we understand our Scripture. We can speak from our own experience in putting it into practice, and when we have succeeded or failed. We can find ways for parishioners to share what living the Gospel has meant for them.
Competence
The mandate to connect our Scripture and Tradition with daily life experience puts the parish in a difficult position. On the one hand, we have ecclesial ministers whose competence is primarily in ecclesial (Church) knowledge and skills.
We can't expect a priest or pastoral associate to all of a sudden be an expert on the corporate workplace or on the intricacies of toddler playdates. On the other hand, the vast majority of the laity are experts in their own daily life world, but may not have particular competence on the ecclesial side.
Together, we have the competence we need but we need to take steps to share it with each other. There are a variety of ways we can help our ecclesial ministers understand what the laity needs and what their daily lives are like, from homily preparation teams to workplace visits. Likewise, we can help some of the laity who are called to minister within the parish develop their skills and knowledge.
Avoid Assumptions
Our parishes are not homogenous communities so we need to remember and acknowledge those who fall into minority categories, especially when talking more about daily life. Not all parishioners have traditional jobs: some are unemployed or retired or students. Not all parishioners are middle class: some are poor and some may be very rich. Parishioners bring with them different backgrounds, family situations, educations, sexual orientations, and political persuasions. Some of your parishioners use birth control, have had an abortion, or are divorced.
This diversity does not mean that we should not talk about specifics, but we may need to at least acknowledge those who fall outside our generalities. For example, if focusing on the spirituality of work we need to at least mention the unemployed within our midst. We generally need to consider how individuals from different perspectives will hear our message, and make sure it's what we want to communicate to them.
Feedback
The parish's success is in how well we support the laity in their mission. The only way we can gauge that success is by getting feedback from our parishioners. But we also have to ask the right questions. We're not as concerned about if we are entertaining, making people good about themselves, attracting donations, or forming community as we are about our external mission. And realize that many parishioners have notoriously low standards and are reluctant to hurt feelings by giving negative feedback.
So whether gathering feedback on preaching, liturgy, or faith formation, be sure ask specific questions connected to your goals. How much did we concretely help you live your life as a Christian in the world? How could we do that better?
Build a feedback loop into your normal parish routine. It is easier than ever to do using email and online surveys.
Think Like a Startup
Christianity was the most successful startup in history, but we have lost much of our entrepreneurial and evangelical spirit. We need to think creatively, act with agility, and promote ourselves aggressively. In a startup, everyone has an important role and must be focused on the mission. There isn't time or money to focus on anything else.
Consider ways to keep the mission in the forefront of parishioners' minds. One parish created refrigerator magnets with a picture of hands, the quote "Christ has no hands now on earth but yours," and the name of the parish. Write press releases about major events or initiatives and submit them to the diocesan or community newspaper. Encourage everyone to spread the word through social media. Table at street fairs. Ask your parishioners for their creative ideas for how to support mission.
Hospitality and Community
It is essential for a parish to be welcoming to its members and especially seekers if we are an evangelizing community. For example, I have experienced parishes that are cold, if not outright hostile, to parents with young (well-behaved) children. That explained pretty quickly why there were few other young families in the congregation.
Hospitality can be a challenge in Catholic parishes, which are on the whole much larger than Protestant churches. One guideline says that a pastor can only have meaningful relationships with 100-150 parishioners. We need to be cautious that an emphasis on hospitality and community does not result in a clique. A parish may particularly emphasize those who are called to internal parish ministries to the detriment of those who are less connected and/or primarily called to minister in the world (most of the laity!). A parish choir may sing "Happy Birthday" to a volunteer minister, but how would that make another parishioner feel whose birthday is on the same day? How can we form parish community that truly embraces all?
Here are some general guidelines for orienting parish life for mission.
Mission Focus
It is harder than it sounds to truly shift the focus of a parish from a maintenance mindset to one centered on mission. But it is essential that the parish as a whole understands this distinction, and be continually reminded of it. This is a fundamental, categorical shift. The Gospel is an entire way of life.
Preaching and teaching more about Christian witness and sharing is good, but it is not the same as becoming an evangelizing community. Everyone must understand that evangelization is not another thing we do, but the reason we are here. Consider how you can build reminders into everything the parish does, from liturgy to weekly bulletins and from ministry meetings to the parish website.
Formation
The work of the Gospel living parish -- supporting the laity in their mission -- is mostly about formation. Inviting members to experience and be converted by Jesus, and to more fully understand what he taught us. If we do not know Jesus and begin to understand the Kingdom of God, there is nothing for us to share.
Speak to the Crowds
Parish staff and volunteers often expend extensive energy putting together classes, retreats, or workshops that only a small fraction of the parish attends. Why not fully utilize the opportunities in your parish when the people are already gathered en masse, especially Sunday liturgy? If parents are already coming to the parish to drop off their kids for religious education, offer classes or small groups for them at the same time.
Depth Over Breadth
When becoming a Gospel Living parish, there may be a temptation to "name drop" mentions of Gospel values or daily life connections, but shallow references can become frustrating quickly. Yes, the first step is for disciples to understand the "why": that they are called to live out their faith in these different ways. But this insight is closely followed by the "how" question, and that's where we need to offer the most support.
Don't Be Judgmental
As Catholics we have inherited a reputation for being all about guilt (much of it misplaced). In reaction, we may have become too reluctant to even try to talk about any daily life specifics: staying with abstracts is much safer.
Our mission requires us to make daily life connections, but that does not mean we should be judgmental. We need to preach the good news, including the challenging parts. We can explain how we understand our Scripture. We can speak from our own experience in putting it into practice, and when we have succeeded or failed. We can find ways for parishioners to share what living the Gospel has meant for them.
Competence
The mandate to connect our Scripture and Tradition with daily life experience puts the parish in a difficult position. On the one hand, we have ecclesial ministers whose competence is primarily in ecclesial (Church) knowledge and skills.
We can't expect a priest or pastoral associate to all of a sudden be an expert on the corporate workplace or on the intricacies of toddler playdates. On the other hand, the vast majority of the laity are experts in their own daily life world, but may not have particular competence on the ecclesial side.
Together, we have the competence we need but we need to take steps to share it with each other. There are a variety of ways we can help our ecclesial ministers understand what the laity needs and what their daily lives are like, from homily preparation teams to workplace visits. Likewise, we can help some of the laity who are called to minister within the parish develop their skills and knowledge.
Avoid Assumptions
Our parishes are not homogenous communities so we need to remember and acknowledge those who fall into minority categories, especially when talking more about daily life. Not all parishioners have traditional jobs: some are unemployed or retired or students. Not all parishioners are middle class: some are poor and some may be very rich. Parishioners bring with them different backgrounds, family situations, educations, sexual orientations, and political persuasions. Some of your parishioners use birth control, have had an abortion, or are divorced.
This diversity does not mean that we should not talk about specifics, but we may need to at least acknowledge those who fall outside our generalities. For example, if focusing on the spirituality of work we need to at least mention the unemployed within our midst. We generally need to consider how individuals from different perspectives will hear our message, and make sure it's what we want to communicate to them.
Feedback
The parish's success is in how well we support the laity in their mission. The only way we can gauge that success is by getting feedback from our parishioners. But we also have to ask the right questions. We're not as concerned about if we are entertaining, making people good about themselves, attracting donations, or forming community as we are about our external mission. And realize that many parishioners have notoriously low standards and are reluctant to hurt feelings by giving negative feedback.
So whether gathering feedback on preaching, liturgy, or faith formation, be sure ask specific questions connected to your goals. How much did we concretely help you live your life as a Christian in the world? How could we do that better?
Build a feedback loop into your normal parish routine. It is easier than ever to do using email and online surveys.
Think Like a Startup
Christianity was the most successful startup in history, but we have lost much of our entrepreneurial and evangelical spirit. We need to think creatively, act with agility, and promote ourselves aggressively. In a startup, everyone has an important role and must be focused on the mission. There isn't time or money to focus on anything else.
Consider ways to keep the mission in the forefront of parishioners' minds. One parish created refrigerator magnets with a picture of hands, the quote "Christ has no hands now on earth but yours," and the name of the parish. Write press releases about major events or initiatives and submit them to the diocesan or community newspaper. Encourage everyone to spread the word through social media. Table at street fairs. Ask your parishioners for their creative ideas for how to support mission.
Hospitality and Community
It is essential for a parish to be welcoming to its members and especially seekers if we are an evangelizing community. For example, I have experienced parishes that are cold, if not outright hostile, to parents with young (well-behaved) children. That explained pretty quickly why there were few other young families in the congregation.
Hospitality can be a challenge in Catholic parishes, which are on the whole much larger than Protestant churches. One guideline says that a pastor can only have meaningful relationships with 100-150 parishioners. We need to be cautious that an emphasis on hospitality and community does not result in a clique. A parish may particularly emphasize those who are called to internal parish ministries to the detriment of those who are less connected and/or primarily called to minister in the world (most of the laity!). A parish choir may sing "Happy Birthday" to a volunteer minister, but how would that make another parishioner feel whose birthday is on the same day? How can we form parish community that truly embraces all?
Direct WitnessIn addition to aligning all of its ministry work with its mission, the parish as an institution should witness -- walk the walk -- in the way it administers itself, practices stewardship, treats its neighbors, and more. The manner in which parishes are administered is one area where one can see potential for this. Too many parishes pay their employees below reasonable rates and/or avoid paying benefits by limiting hours worked.
Parishes can have embarrassingly negative environmental impacts, including low recycling rates, heavy use of disposable food service items, old energy-intensive appliances, use of non-recycled paper, and low initiative in improving energy efficiency (such as purchasing compact fluorescent light bulbs). If parish leaders expect members of the parish to apply gospel values in their lives, they should ensure that these same values are being put into practice on the parish plant. In addition to being the morally correct thing to do, modeling gospel values is an effective way to form and encourage parishioners. |
As mentioned elsewhere, numerous programs exist to help parishes to become “green,” including the Environmental Protection Agency’s “Energy Star Congregation” program. |
Engaging Parishioners in Decisions
In a sense, everything that happens in a parish is corporate action: parishioners’ contributions pay for use of the buildings, staff salaries, and supplies. Unfortunately, there is often a disconnect between parishioners and the parish’s actions. Parishes do a poor job of clearly communicating their purpose and getting buy-in from their members. Instead of being a true, collective purpose held by all members, it may instead be only the purpose held by the pastor, staff, or key leaders.
Once a purpose is clear, members need to understand how individual decisions by the parish fit into this purpose. Parishioners need to understand that evangelization is the purpose of the parish, so that they can participate in a corporate discernment process. The parish leadership should also share high-level budgets with the parish on a regular basis.
Once a purpose is clear, members need to understand how individual decisions by the parish fit into this purpose. Parishioners need to understand that evangelization is the purpose of the parish, so that they can participate in a corporate discernment process. The parish leadership should also share high-level budgets with the parish on a regular basis.
An Example Parish
St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Wichita, Kansas is an example of what a Catholic parish can do when it acts corporately. When it committed to become a “stewardship parish” in 1994, its membership was largely blue-collar with an average annual income of $40,000. The parish philosophy is that regular collections are pooled for all the work of the parish, limiting the only special collections to Christmas and Easter. The parish gives 10 percent of all income to causes outside the parish. The parish funds an elementary school that members can attend for free—paying teachers approximately 90 percent of public school salaries—and pays tuitions for its teenagers to attend diocesan high schools. The parish started and maintains both a health clinic for the surrounding community and a retreat house for priests. The parish is able to accomplish all of this with strong support of time, talent, and treasure from its members, including collections of $85,000 each Sunday (an average of $31 per family).
While the specific examples of this parish are impressive, what is more important is to appreciate the scale of what parishioners can accomplish when working together. Parishes are bound more often by their imaginations than by their ability to affect change.
While the specific examples of this parish are impressive, what is more important is to appreciate the scale of what parishioners can accomplish when working together. Parishes are bound more often by their imaginations than by their ability to affect change.
Quotations
Today Christian Churches must communicate the importance of the laity's witness and service within the family and within the professional, social, political, and cultural life of society. An effective parish or congregation will help its members make the connections between worship and work, between liturgy and life in the family, community, and workplace. For this reason, church ministers—especially clergy—are called to strengthen and equip lay people to be witnesses to Christ, acting in the power of him who is the Good Shepherd and humble servant of all. Called and Gifted for the Third Millennium
National Conference of Catholic Bishops |
We’re inviting Catholics to come home, but what are they coming home to…if its more of boring and bad and irrelevant, we could be doing more harm than good. |
