"Why Are We Here, Anyways?" Our PWC Purpose, & the New Welcome Packets!

"Why Are We Here, Anyways?"

More specifically, “Why are we here in church?” Please take a moment to consider this question: What is the purpose of a Catholic parish? (Pause…) Many people’s first answer might be: to offer Masses – proclaiming God’s Word and celebrating the Sacraments are central functions of a Catholic parish – but to what end, what purpose? To glorify God, others might say, or to find spiritual support, or to get to heaven… I think there is no perfect answer, but the point here is to get us thinking beyond a merely functional, consumeristic level (i.e., I’m here to do or get something) and see parish life in a deeper, transformative way. 

 

For us to fulfill our God-given purpose in the PWC parishes of St. Martha and St. Mary, this exercise of putting into words a shared purpose and vision has been helpful. Born of our pastoral planning experience as we were becoming a “collaborative of parishes” nine years ago, the St. Martha - St. Mary collaborative vision statement written by a team of parishioners is for me very inspiring:

Picture this... Our parishes are filled with Catholics engaged in their faith through a welcoming atmosphere, inspiring music, meaningful homilies, and sacramental celebrations. A growing number of parishioners are becoming intentional disciples of Jesus Christ, realizing that growing in a relationship with Him is a lifelong process. As disciples, we continually reach out to others, inviting them to partake in both spiritual and outreach activities.

We can rejoice in experiencing parts of this vision already, yet it also motivates us to push on toward its fulfillment. This is why we need to articulate our purpose in a way that we can clearly understand, recall, and live in an ongoing way.

 

Our Sunday Experience Team (or SET, another outcome of that planning process) helps us to continually re-evaluate and strengthen the quality and effectiveness of the experience people have in our parishes on the Lord’s Day, as it relates to this vision for our parishes. One special project the SET just completed is the first version of our new “Welcome Packets”. These are intended for: (a) active Catholics who are new to our parishes, (b) people from our area who are intrigued when they visit us for a special occasion, and (c) what some call “seekers” – people who are looking for spiritual support or meaning and just stop by (even when the church is empty) as part of their search for a spiritual home. To keep it brief and attractive, we split the original project into two parts: the Welcome Packet (an overview folder for newcomers only), and a forthcoming Ministry Directory (for all of us) which will provide details about all that we have to offer and ways to get involved.

 

The welcome packet contains a bookmark with upcoming events (extra bookmarks available for all) and couple of other keepsakes, along with two response cards: one to simply provide contact information and request more information, and the other for those who are ready to get involved in the faith community in some way. The heart of the packet, however, is a set of cards presenting the four key fruits of our parishes’ purpose statement: (1) Transformed by Our Relationship with God; (2) Growing in Faith, (3) Living as the Body of Christ; and (4) Changing the World.

 

Over the remaining three columns in this series, we will share more about these four aspects of the purpose we have articulated for our parishes. If you have been here a while and involved in the life of St. Martha and St. Mary parishes, these will hopefully feel familiar to you. If not, they will be a good way for us to grow more closely united in the purpose and life in our parishes!