As we prepare to begin another liturgical year – Advent begins in two weeks – I want to introduce you to our new Parish Pastoral Plan.  It may be hard to believe that it’s already five years since our last Pastoral Plan was initiated!  But, after working closely with our Parish Pastoral Council over the past year, I am now happy to present to you our new Parish Pastoral Plan.  After a careful review of our parish and its various purposes, organizations and initiatives, as well as an evaluation of our accomplishments and ongoing challenges over these past five years, we have, once again, developed a Parish Pastoral Plan, along with an Action Plan; these will be made public in two weeks, as we begin the new liturgical year with the First Sunday of Advent.

In developing this new Parish Pastoral Plan, we used the same five areas – distinct but clearly interrelated – that we used in developing the Parish Pastoral Plan five years ago because we believe that they are good markers for the life of every healthy parish: worship, evangelization, catechesis, community-building and service.  And, realizing that we could not address all of the various issues within these categories at the same time, we identified some issues that we believe need attention first; you will find them listed in the Action Plan when it is published along with the Parish Pastoral Plan.

But first, I would like to recall for you the five pressing issues we identified as we introduced our last Pastoral plan in May of 2013:

  • to call active parish organizations to ensure that all six groups of parishioners (former Catholics, inactive Catholics, CEOs [Christmas and Easter only], Sunday Catholics, disciples and evangelizers) are engaged and challenged;
  • to re-establish a Hospitality Committee to welcome newcomers;
  • to re-establish a Stewardship Committee;
  • to re-initiate a ministry for youth and young adults; and
  • to establish a committee to explore how the parish can best catechize those age groups beyond the elementary school years.

After the Pastoral Plan was introduced in 2013, all parish organizations were called to examine their activities to discover how they could best engage and challenge the six groups of parishioners listed above.  Over the course of two years, the Parish Council met with the leaders of all of the parish organizations to review their findings.  Meanwhile, over the summer of 2013, I re-established a Stewardship Committee and in the summer of 2014, Stephanie Twohig was hired as our new youth minister.  We continue to look for a parishioner to coordinate the re-invigoration of our Hospitality Committee.  And, the Pastoral Council and I continue to discuss the last area: catechesis of those age groups beyond the elementary school years.  Bible Study/Faith Sharing, Walking with Purpose, and Knights of Columbus all provide catechesis to those who participate in these parish activities but we recognize that there are others, especially our young adults, who would benefit from ongoing catechesis.

So, you can see that we have made some progress in the five issues that were identified in our 2013 Parish Pastoral Plan; more work needs to be done.  As we reviewed the five areas (worship, evangelization, catechesis, community-building and service) that measure the life of a healthy parish over this past year, we celebrated our accomplishments and admitted our challenges.  Now, we will begin to focus on the new Action Plan items to continue our growth as a community of faith.

Naturally, all of this is possible only if we have the resources to accomplish it.  You are the greatest resource that the parish has and I thank you for offering your time, talent and treasure to one or more of the various parish organizations, programs and activities over the years contributing to make this a vibrant and healthy parish.  If you have not yet gotten involved or would like to get even more involved, I encourage you to do so!  These continue to be exciting times for our parish; let’s all get involved!

And, like in any home or business, we need to manage our financial resources well.  As these areas are addressed and developed, I will continue to meet with the Parish Finance Council to ensure that we can afford any expenses that would be incurred as we move ahead.

Yes, we are a people of great faith and many talents and, with your help, we will continue to grow as God’s community, gathering to worship God, experiencing his love and care for us, welcoming all others who share our faith, learning about and growing in our faith and reaching out to help those in need.  As we prepare to begin another liturgical year in God’s grace, I hope you will review our new Parish Pastoral Plan and Action Plan and prayerfully discern how you can get even more involved in building up God’s kingdom right here in St. Katharine of Siena parish!