C21 Resources Spring/Summer 2020, Catholic Parishes: Grace at Work

THE CH U R CH IN THE 21S T CE NT U RY CE NTE R

S PR ING/S UMME R 2020

CATHOLIC PARISHES GRACE AT WORK

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The Church in the 21st Century Center is a catalyst and a resource for the renewal of the Catholic Church.

C21 Resources, a compilation of the best analyses and essays on key challenges facing the Church today, is published by the Church in the 21st Century Center at Boston College. editorial board

Patricia Delaney Patrick Goncalves Peter Martin Jacqueline Regan O. Ernesto Valiente

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CATHOLIC PARISHES: GRACE AT WORK

to publish the 32nd issue of C21 Resources magazine, our focus was on the national Catholic parish landscape and sharing ideas that were shaping parishes for the better. We are grateful for the contributions of our guest editors, Fr. Michael Simone, S.J., and Fr. Joseph Weiss, S.J., both faculty members at the School of Theology and Ministry and serving as parish priests. Their insights, coupled with their vocational perspective, harvested a strong collection of varied articles that reinforce the parish as a profound place of encounter. when we set out

While we were laying out the magazine, the Coronavirus gripped our world and quickly shifted parish life online. To adapt to this new way of ministering, we created a supplement to this magazine entitled,”Parishes in a Time of Pandemic,” which you can find at bc.edu/c21parishes.

May this magazine serve as a catalyst for creative ministry and help to enrich your faith and to grow our Church.

c 21 center director

Karen K. Kiefer

managing editor

Elise Italiano Ureneck creative director

Angelo Jesus Canta research assistant

Dominika Sieruta the church in

21 st century center Boston College 110 College Road, Heffernan House Chestnut Hill, MA, 02467 bc.edu/c21 • 617-552-6845 the

©2020 Trustees of Boston College on the cover :

Top Row (L-R): Young Adult Mass at St. Dominic Church in Springfield, Kentucky. (CNS photo/Ruby Thomas, The Record); Priestly Ordination, Photo courtesy of Daughters of Mary of Nazareth, Archdiocese of Boston.

Center Row (L-R): Palm Sunday 2019, Cathedral of the Holy Cross, Photo courtesy of the Archdiocese of Boston; A baby is seen during her baptism (CNS photo/Gregory A. Shemitz); Wedding of Peter and Kelly Trainor (BC ‘15), St. Ignatius Church, Chestnut Hill, MA Bottom Row: Cardinal Sean O’Malley greets Awsung family at the end of his Mass at Good Samartian Medical Center in 2018 (Dave DeMelia/The Enterprise).

Karen K. Kiefer Director, Church in the 21st Century Center karen.kiefer@bc.edu

GUEST EDITORS Michael R. Simone, S.J., is a Jesuit of the USA Midwest Province and Assistant Professor of the Practice of Scripture and Interpretation at Boston College’s School of Theology and Ministry. He attended the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Md., where his doctoral studies focused on Northwest Semitics and Assyriology.

Among his many assignments as a Jesuit, he has served as a priest at the parishes of Saint Leonard and Saint Cecilia in Boston, and he currently volunteers as a chaplain at MCI Cedar Junction state prison.

Joseph E. Weiss, S.J., is a Professor of the Practice of Liturgy at Boston College’s School of Theology and Ministry. He holds an M.Div. from Weston School of Theology, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Liturgical Studies from the University of Notre Dame. He has written on pastoral issues in the areas of liturgy, spirituality, and sacramental theology. For more than 25 years, Weiss has served as associate pastor in parishes throughout the Midwest and has ministered as spiritual director and retreat master for clergy, religious, and laity.

CATALYZE

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God at Work Among Us

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Michael R. Simone, S.J, and Joseph E. Weiss, S.J.

PEOPLE & PLACES

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The Evolution of the Catholic Parish

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The Social Mission of the Parish

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Today’s Parish Life: Current Trends and Future Effects

Tricia C. Bruce

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

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Charles E. Zech, Mary L. Gautier, Mark M. Gray, Jonathan L. Wiggins, and Thomas P. Gaunt, S.J.

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A Parish for the Future

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God’s Bench

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Balancing Act: Collaborative Parish Ministry

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The Joy of Having Loud and Messy Kids at Mass

Fr. John Bauer

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Michael R. Simone, S.J.

Katarina Schuth, O.S.F

Brian Doyle

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The Power of a Parish Priest Hector Heredia

PRACTICES AT WORK

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Communities of Practice

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Sacraments for Every Child: How Parishes Can Welcome Children with Disabilities

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Untying Wet Knots: Reflections on Effective Multicultural Ministry

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Jane Regan

Peter J. Smith

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Bill Barman

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What’s Working in Your Parish?

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Best Practices for Worship and Liturgy

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Going to the Digital Margins

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Feedback from the Flock

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Leaving the Church Doors Open

C21 Survey

Karen Baker

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A Q&A with John Grosso Paul Senz

Terence Sweeney

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CATALYZE

God at Work Among Us

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Michael R. Simone, S.J., and Joseph E. Weiss, S.J.

as they prayed,

the place where they were gathered shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness. The community of believers was of one heart and mind, and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they had everything in common. With great power the apostles bore witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great favor was accorded them all� (Acts 4:31-33).

Thus does St. Luke describe the early Church. Disciples gathered in the Spirit to pray, to proclaim the Gospel, to serve each other’s material needs, and to encounter the risen Christ. As the articles in this issue of C21 Resources will show, this work continues in modern Catholic parishes.

Even though most Catholics know they are part of a diocese, connected to other dioceses in a worldwide Church, for most the parish is the Church. Parish life is often the primary point of contact with Catholic teaching and practice. For many, especially the young, the parish is also a place of education and recreational activities, a vital context in which to develop personal and social identity. For Christians in secular societies, parishes remain a place where one can live out faith without need of 2

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explanation or fear of misunderstanding. Retreats, speaker series, bereavement groups, and support for Christian marriages, for young parents, and families in straitened circumstances are just some of the ways parishes provide spiritual fellowship. For many Catholics, the parish can provide a sense of community as strong as that found among friends, family, and colleagues from work.

Several articles in this issue document the significant transitions in parish life over the past several decades in the United States. For example, fewer parishes dot the landscape in the old Catholic heartlands of the Northeast, mid-Atlantic, and Great Lakes states. In these places, parishioners tend to be older people whose adult children have in many cases drifted away from the practice of the faith. Throughout the American South and West, by contrast, the number of Catholics of every age has grown considerably even as bishops have struggled to open and staff new parish communities. In every place, Catholic immigrants from places like Brazil, Mexico, the Philippines, and Vietnam have added new customs and practices to parish life. Because parishes play a vital role in the lives of so many Catholics, these transitions—with all their neg-

© Boston College Office of University Communications, Lee Pellegrini

No matter what changes, every parish can be a place of prayer, of proclamation, of service, and of encounter with the living God still at work among us.

ative and positive aspects—have led many to wonder what the future of parish life might be.

Other articles in this issue document a fundamental tension that many parishes experience between the realities of diversity and unity.

On the one hand, parishes are gathering places for people of different outlooks; communities that welcome individuals of different backgrounds who often also have contrasting dreams for the future. This is especially true when people of different cultural contexts or socioeconomic status share a parish community. Providing for the needs of such an eclectic gathering would tax the resources of any organization, even as the coming together of diverse skills and wisdom enriches it. On the other hand, parishes are also centered on a common mission—the proclamation of the Gospel— and shared practices—the sacraments and the works of mercy. Balancing the diversity and unity inherent in parish life, and learning to appreciate the gifts of each, is an ongoing task that requires considerable commitment.

As many of the articles in the second part of this issue reveal, even when parishes have difficulty striking that balance they can be places of profound encounter. When different communities share a worship space they can catch sight of Christ at work among people very different from themselves. Likewise, the meeting of two strangers in the context of faith can reveal a shared indwelling Spirit, drawing both ever deeper into Christ’s mission. In this, parishes show their continuity with the earliest gatherings of Christians. No matter what changes, every parish can be a place of prayer, of proclamation, of service, and of encounter with the living God still at work among us. ■

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PEOPLE & PLACES

The Evolution of the Catholic Parish Tricia C. Bruce

In her book Parish and Place: Making Room for Diversity in the American Catholic Church, sociologist Tricia Bruce chronicles the changing nature of Catholic parishes in the United States, from communities defined by geography to communities bound by shared preferences, expressions, and practices. Below are selections from the book that look at the history of American Catholic parishes.

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intersection of authority, territory, and community. Authority—namely, a local bishop—prescribes when and for whom parishes are created and when or why they merge or close. Territory—or the boundaries in physical space that define a territorial “parish”—stipulates belonging, unless a special population is identified otherwise. And community—both ascribed and achieved—transforms a parish from abstraction into a viable and lived, shared experience of religious and social meaning. A parish is not just a building.

“Parishes” identified Christian communities as long ago as the second century. The Greek source of the term— paroikia—translated to “those living near or besides.” A “paroikos” was a neighbor. Perhaps paradoxically, the word was also used to describe those living as foreigners in a land, with no right to citizenship. As such, the original connotation was as much theological as it was organizational: early Christians saw themselves as outsiders to the world, but insiders together.

In time, paired with the Latin translation “paroecia” and (for awhile) used interchangeably with the Roman administrative term “diocesis,” parish took on an increasingly territorial meaning. A parish identified the jurisdiction of a local bishop. Terminology grew more uniform in the sixth century, as “parish” came to refer to a local congregation served by a priest, grouped together within the larger territory of a bishop; the latter labeled a diocese.

Parish boundaries were not strictly determined prior to the Council of Trent in 1545. Pastors served all who came to them, domicile notwithstanding. The Council of Trent levied a partial indictment of this territorial agnosticism, replacing it with a strict conformity to boundaries parishes subsist at the

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and their delineation. A pastor needed to know whom (and whom not) to serve. The desire for pastoral jurisdiction trumped the original connotation of a parish as a unified community. Parish came to mean isolated, individual geographies of people, with fixed boundaries, under the rule of a local bishop.

The first official compendium of rules and regulations governing the Catholic Church did not come until much later, with the 1917 Code of Canon Law. Although this first official “rulebook” of the global Roman Catholic Church did not explicitly define “parish,” it did identify a parish’s legal components. These included “(1) a territorial section of the diocese; (2) with a portion of the Catholic population assigned to it; and (3) having a proper pastor who looked after the care of souls.” Notably, the focus of the parish was on the pastor, not the people.

Parishes were the ideal administrative, pastoral, organizational structure to be followed universally.

But territory was not the only constitutive characteristic of parishes, even in the 1917 code. A second, non-territorial form of parish constitution also existed—one that resonated more so with earlier etymologies, unifying outsiders marginalized within an otherwise homogenous community.

This alternative form is the personal parish, existing apart from—or in combination with—territory. Personal parishes define membership by the people who belong to them. Given the emphasis on persons rather than (primarily) on territory, they carry the moniker of person-al parishes. A “personal pastor,” ergo, “is one who is appointed for a certain number of persons or for some family.” The national parish was a subcategory of personal parishes, designed to serve Catholics whose language or customs set them apart from other Catholics.

In the Catholic Church, territorial parish boundaries exist as a way to manage things, administratively.

Like public school boundaries or political districts, they specify which Catholics go to which parish church, and which parish church (and pastor) is responsible for which Catholics. “For the faithful, territoriality means that the Church is not a membership organization in which you pick and choose your place or degree of affiliation,” writes Francis Cardinal George.

Photo: iStock

Boundaries safeguard the care of all local Catholics.

Parish boundaries (theoretically) guarantee that the needs of all Catholics therein—regardless of background or circumstance—get addressed. By default, an American Catholic’s home parish is the parish within which he or she physically resides. Parish registration (or “joining” a parish, for that matter) is technically unnecessary. The very idea is a largely modern, North American phenomenon; registration does not exist in canon law. Territorial ascription eliminates the need for it.

Not unlike the once-dominant model of a one-room schoolhouse, parishes acted as the single, one-stop shop for Catholic organizational life. Accordingly, the quintessential neighborhood parish helped build community around shared, localized experience. The parish was an extension of the home, the family, the community, and the weekly routine. Parishes were immovable; American Catholics generally stayed put, too.

Suburbanization began to change all this. Parishes stayed immobile, but people were moving. The default neighborhood parish gave way to a broader, open marketplace of parishes, not accessible by car. Adding to this, the Second Vatican Council advanced the idea of a parish home built upon community and local culture. This begins to change how Catholics identified their parish home, using a rationale less wedded to place. Parish diversification (after Vatican II) destabilized territorial parish belonging. American Catholics started choosing.

A 2012 study found that nearly a third of Catholics live closer to another parish than the one they attend.

The tendency to choose is even stronger among younger Catholics, minority Catholics, and Catholics living in populated urban centers with a higher parish density.

Just under half of U.S. dioceses have established personal parishes in the last thirty years, for a total of 192 new personal parishes since 1983. Combined with older “national” parishes that remain open, there are some 1,317 personal parishes in America today. This constitutes a small but meaningful fraction—8 percent—among all Catholic parishes. Nearly every diocese (96 percent) has at least one personal parish. Even as the total number of parishes is decreasing, the proportion of dioceses with personal parishes grows each year.

Many of today’s personal parishes serve ethnic Catholics, now overwhelmingly non-European. But unlike national parishes formed to serve earlier Catholic immigrants (today subsumed under the “personal parish” label), new personal parishes also serve myriad other purposes: among them, devotion to the Traditional Latin Mass, to social justice, charismatic Catholicism, Anglican use, tourism, and more. In catering to niche populations, personal parishes illuminate an institutional response to diversification. They depict a strategy deployed by leaders of the largest American religious group: an answer to demographic change and heterogeneous lay preference along fundamental lines of difference.

American Catholics are changing, and American parishes are changing...always intertwined within broader structures of authority. Personal parishes enable the U.S. Catholic Church to reconcile voluntary association with authoritative leadership...and Americans’ penchant for preference with formally constituted, institutionally sanctioned church homes.

This broods the chief irony of parish boundaries in the modern American Church: American Catholics are less and less likely to abide by them. Catholics “go where they go to receive what they want to and need to,” shared one personal parish pastor. Fueled by an American ethos of individualism, Catholics frequently decide for themselves which church community constitutes home. ■ Tricia C. Bruce, Ph.D., is a sociologist of religion and author of Parish and Place: Making Room for Diversity in the American Catholic Church (Oxford University Press, 2017) and Faithful Revolution: How Voice of the Faithful Is Changing the Church (Oxford University Press, 2011/2014). She is co-editor of Polarization in the US Catholic Church (Liturgical Press, 2016) and American Parishes: Remaking Local Catholicism (Fordham University Press, 2019).

© Oxford University Press 2017. Reproduced with permission of Oxford University Press through PLSClear.

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PEOPLE & PLACES

The Social Mission of the Parish United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

While a parish is many things to many people—a place of worship, religious education, and prayer— its mission extends far beyond the church building and the people who enter its doors. Below are sections from the USCCB’s Communities of Salt and Light: Reflections on the Social Mission of the Parish, which is intended as “a basic resource for pastors, parish leaders, and all Catholics seeking to strengthen the social ministry of their local community.”

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faith, of action, and of hope. They are where the Gospel is proclaimed and celebrated, where believers are formed and sent to renew the earth. Parishes are the place where God’s people meet Jesus in word and sacrament and come in touch with the source of the Church’s life.

One of the most encouraging signs of the Gospel at work in our midst is the vitality and quality of social justice ministries in our parishes. Across the country, countless local communities of faith are serving those in need, working for justice, and sharing our social teaching as never before. More and more, the social justice dimensions of our faith are moving from the fringes of parishes to become an integral part of local Catholic life.

We see the parish dimensions of social ministry not as an added burden but as a part of what keeps a parish alive and makes it truly Catholic. Effective social ministry helps the parish not only do more but be more: more of a reflection of the Gospel, more of a worshiping and evangelizing people, more of a faithful community. It is parishes are communities of

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an essential part of parish life.

This is not a new message, but it takes on new urgency in light of the increasing clarity and strength of Catholic social teaching and the signs of declining respect for human life and human dignity in society. We preach a gospel of justice and peace in a rapidly changing world and troubled nation.

At a time of rampant individualism, we stand for family and community. At a time of intense consumerism, we insist it is not what we have, but how we treat one another that counts. In an age that does not value permanence or hard work in relationships, we believe marriage is forever and children are a blessing, not a burden. At a time of growing isolation, we remind our nation of its responsibility to the broader world, to pursue peace, to welcome immigrants, to protect the lives of hurting children and refugees. At a time when the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer, we insist the moral test of our society is how we treat and care for the weakest among us.

In these challenging days, we believe that the Catholic community needs to be more than ever a source of clear moral vision and effective action. We are called to be the “salt of the earth” and “light of the world,” in the words of the Scriptures. This task belongs to every believer and every parish. It cannot be assigned to a few or simply delegated to diocesan or national structures.

Our parishes are enormously diverse—in where and whom they serve, in structures and resources, in their members and leaders. This diversity is reflected in how parishes shape their social ministry. The depth and

© Boston College Office of University Communications, Lee Pellegrini

Hundreds of BC Appalachia Volunteers gather for a sendoff Mass before going to more than 30 U.S. cities and towns during spring break, where they live in solidarity with poor and marginalized families.

range of activity are most impressive. Across our country, parishioners offer their time, their money, and their leadership to a wide variety of efforts to meet needs and change structures. Parishes are deeply involved in serving the hungry and homeless, welcoming the stranger and immigrant, reaching out to troubled families, advocating for just public policies, organizing for safer and better communities, and working creatively for a more peaceful world. Our communities and ministries have been greatly enriched and nourished by the faith and wisdom of parishioners who experience injustice and all those who work for greater justice.

But in some parishes the social justice dimensions of parish life are still neglected, underdeveloped, or touch only a few parishioners. For too many parishioners, our social teaching is an unknown tradition. In too many parishes, social ministry is a task for a few, not a challenge for the entire parish community. We believe we are just beginning to realize our potential as a community of faith committed to serve those in need and to work for greater justice.

The parishes that are leaders in this area see social ministry not as a specialized ministry but as an integral part of the entire parish. They weave the Catholic social mission into every aspect of parish life—worship, formation, and action. They follow a strategy of integration and collaboration, which keeps social ministry from becoming isolated or neglected.

The most important setting for the Church’s social teaching is not in a food pantry or in a legislative committee room but in prayer and worship, especially gathered around the altar for the Eucharist. It is in the liturgy

that we find the fundamental direction, motivation, and strength for social ministry. Social ministry not genuinely rooted in prayer can easily burn itself out. On the other hand, worship that does not reflect the Lord’s call to conversion, service, and justice can become pious ritual and empty of the Gospel.

Our social doctrine must also be an essential part of the curriculum and life of our schools, religious education programs, sacramental preparation, and Christian initiation activities. Every parish should regularly assess how well our social teaching is shared in its formation and educational ministries.

Our parishes need to encourage, support, and sustain lay people in living their faith in the family, neighborhood, marketplace, and public arena. It is lay women and men, placing their gifts at the service of others, who will be God’s primary instruments in renewing the earth by their leadership and faithfulness in the community. The most challenging work for justice is not done in church committees but in the secular world of work, family life, and citizenship.

The social mission of the parish begins in the Gospel’s call to conversion; to change our hearts and our lives; to follow in the path of charity, justice, and peace. The parish is the place we should regularly hear the call to conversion and find help in answering the Lord’s call to express our faith in concrete acts of charity and justice. ■ To read the whole document, visit bc.edu/c21parishes

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Charles E. Zech, Mary L. Gautier, Mark M. Gray, Jonathan L. Wiggins, and Thomas P. Gaunt, S.J.

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Š Boston College Office of University Communications, Lee Pellegrini

In 2017, the authors of Catholic Parishes of the 21st Century put forward one of the most comprehensive studies on the state of U.S. Catholic parish life since the 1980 Notre Dame Study of Parish Life. The selections below provide a snapshot of major trends they discovered and the impact on parish communities.

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the past 30 years, both in U.S. society and with respect to the U.S. Catholic Church. In many ways, parish life is different than it was 30 years ago. Catholic parishes have been shaped by five trends that are ongoing and will continue to reshape parish life in the decades ahead. much has changed in

Trend 1: Declining Vocations to Ordained and Non-ordained Religious Life Although the United States is priest-rich relative to the rest of the world, the number of priests has been declining and the number of Catholics per priest has been increasing. This pattern began in the late 1960s. As disappointing as these figures are, they mask another trend: the aging of active clergy and vowed religious. Not only are there fewer of them, but they are much older. This trend has been partially mitigated by the growth in the use of foreign-born priests. There has also been a slight uptick in the number of seminarians. The only clergy group that is growing is the permanent diaconate, which was reestablished after Vatican II. Trend 2: Catholic Migration from the Inner City to the Suburbs and From the Northeast and Midwest to the South and West The early waves of Catholic immigrants tended to settle in the urban Northwest or rural Midwest, where they built their parishes and their schools. But following World War II, as their socioeconomic status improved, they began to migrate to suburban communities. More recently, as employment prospects grew in the South and West, Catholics migrated to those parts of the country, leaving behind the inner city and rural churches and schools that had been built to serve them.

Trend 3: Growth in the U.S. Catholic Population Fueled by Immigration The U.S. Catholic population has continued to grow in numbers, keeping pace with overall population growth in the United States and holding steady at about a quarter of the U.S. population. A significant component of this growth is the result of immigration, especially of Spanish-speaking Catholics but also of Catholics from areas of the world other than Europe. In fact, one in four U.S. Catholics was born outside the United States. As many as one in four U.S. Catholic parishes celebrates their weekend liturgies in more than one language.

Photo: Unsplash

PEOPLE & PLACES

Today’s Parish Life: Current Trends & Future Effects

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Impact 1: The Need to Reconfigure Parish Organizational Structures There exists a serious mismatch between the location of Catholic facilities and the Catholic population. As a generalization, the facilities tend to be located in urban areas in the Northeast and Midwest while the population is increasingly located elsewhere. Meanwhile, dioceses in the South and West are struggling to build new churches as they try to cope with the explosive Catholic population growth.

Many dioceses, faced with both a shortage of priests and a mismatch between the location of their parish facilities, have found the need to reconfigure their parish organizational structures. This frequently requires the closing or merging of parishes or adopting some of the innovative parish organizational structures permitted by canon law. The result is larger and more complex parishes and often disaffected parishioners.

Impact 2: Increase in Multicultural Parishes More than a third of U.S. parishes today serve a particular racial, ethnic, cultural, or linguistic community, with many serving more than one. The data show that in many cases, parishioners of different cultural backgrounds, rather than forming a single parish community, coexist in “shared parishes.” Parishes are challenged by this reality to make a greater effort to become more welcoming in a way that enables community building among all cultures.

Impact 3: Greater Role for Laity The decline in vocations to both the ordained and vowed religious life has opened the door for the laity to carry out

© Boston College Office of University Communications, Lee Pellegrini

What has been the impact of these trends on parish life over the past 30 years?

© Boston College Office of University Communications, Lee Pellegrini

Trend 5: Declining Participation in Sacraments Today, weekend Mass attendance rates are only about 60 percent of the 1985 rate. Participation in other sacraments has also been in decline. Since 1985, the U.S. Catholic population that is connected to a parish has grown by 30 percent, but Catholic marriages are down by 57 percent and infant baptisms have decreased by 27 percent, according to The Official Catholic Directory. Within every ethnic group studied, weekend Mass attendance is lower for members of the millennial generation than it is for both the Vatican II and post-Vatican II generations.

© Boston College Office of University Communications, Lee Pellegrini

Trend 4: The Continuing Impact of Vatican II In the past 30 years, lay involvement as an important component of parish life has grown exponentially, culminating in the 2005 USCCB document Co-Workers in the Vineyard of the Lord, which officially recognized the importance of well-formed laity serving in parish ministry roles.

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the promises of Vatican II. Few parishes could operate today without the professional laity filling roles such as director of religious education, youth minister, music minister, pastoral associate, business manager, and myriad other ministry roles that were once held by clergy, vowed religious, or volunteers. There are nearly 40,000 lay ecclesial ministers in parish ministry in the United States today, an increase of more than 80 percent since 1990.

Impact 4: Effect on Parish and Diocesan Finances A combination of factors has coalesced to place increasing stress on parish and diocesan finances. One is the mismatch between the location of Catholic populations and the location of parish facilities. Many dioceses, particularly in the Northeast and Midwest, are saddled with antiquated facilities, frequently in the inner city, that necessitate large maintenance expenses while serving few Catholics. At the same time, these and other dioceses are charged with providing new facilities to serve parishioners who have migrated to the suburbs and to the South and West. The rapid growth in the number of lay ecclesial ministers, while applauded on a number of levels, has resulted in a similar growth in personnel costs for parishes.

An Emerging Trend Parish leaders are only now beginning to understand the role that technology plays in their parishioners’ lives and how to adapt to it. By now, most parishes have recognized the importance of having a website, although most have not tapped into its full potential. Parishes will need to utilize the current generation of social media and keep up with rapid advances in the way technology enables their parishioners to communicate.

Final Word The very nature of parish life, which today is dominated by parishes that tend to be organizationally complex and multicultural, is dramatically different than it was in the mid-1908s. The nature of parish leadership has changed.

Parishioners’ attachment to their parishes, including attendance at weekend Mass, has changed.

But many things have not changed, including the centrality of the Eucharist to parish life, the efforts of dedicated clergy and lay people to serve God while serving their parishioners, and the attitude of parishioners who recognize that the Church, as a human organization, will make mistakes, but who remain faithful and committed nonetheless. ■

U.S. Hispanic Catholics by the Numbers In March of 2020, the Associated Press reported that while “Hispanics now account for 40% of all U.S. Catholics and a solid majority of school-age Catholics...Hispanic Americans are strikingly underrepresented in Catholic schools and in the priesthood.”

In the National Study of Catholic Parishes with Hispanic Ministry, Boston College’s Hosffman Ospino examines the data about the changing face of parishes: “Have Catholics in the United States come to terms with the growth of the Hispanic presence?

Has the Church adjusted its structures and pastoral commitments to appropriately serve and evangelize [these] millions? These are vital questions. We cannot afford to ignore them.”

Hispanics account for

71%

of the growth of the Catholic population in the United States since 1960.

50.5 MILLION HISPANIC AMERICANS 16 Million US-Born Hispanic & Catholic

13.7 Million Foreign-Born Hispanic & Catholic

20.7 Million Self-Identified Hispanic & Catholic

2 IN 5 U.S. CATHOLICS ARE HISPANIC

© Oxford University Press 2017. Reproduced with permission of Oxford University Press through PLSClear.

To read the full report, visit bc.edu/c21parishes

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A Parish for the Future John Bauer fortable. In striving to do this, though, there is bound to be disappointment. Parishes cannot meet everyone’s expectations. I believe that is a good thing. If parishioners are never disappointed in their parish, they are asking too little of their parish.

4. Parishes need to be places where people’s faith is informed and where their spirits are nurtured. Most obviously this occurs through programs of education and enrichment for all ages. It also occurs, this year , as we celebrate the 150th anniversary of though, through the witness of people’s lives and through our parish, I have been reflecting on how parishes have the sharing of their faith. What helps parishes to do this, changed over the years and what they will be like in the it seems to me, is to never lose sight of the fact that everyfuture. And while I don’t have a crystal thing parishes do must be done in the ball, I think that if parishes are to grow name of and in response to the Lord and thrive there are certain things they Jesus Christ. will need to do and be as we move for5. Parishes must always be If parishioners ward. I would like to suggest six things places of worship and prayer. that I believe parishes in general—and People in parishes may not always are never the Basilica in particular—will need to agree with each other, they may face disappointed do and be as we move into the next difficulties and conflicts, but something 150 years. is wrong when people cannot set aside in their parish, 1. Parishes need to be plactheir differences and worship and pray they are asking together. When we worship and pray es of welcome and acceptance.

More and more often I see groups dewe acknowledge that we are too little of their together, fining themselves by what they stand not sufficient unto ourselves and that parish. in opposition to, rather than what they we need God. It is only in prayer, exsupport and value. Parishes cannot be pressed and experienced in our worplaces of division, exclusion, or sepaship, that a parish can discern God’s ration. I believe that if a parish is to abiding presence and know the guidflourish and grow, the embrace of that parish can be no ance of God’s spirit. Without prayer, our best efforts must less than the embrace of our God’s love. We have a Big surely fall short and our best hopes are not enough.

God, and we need a Big Church. Together, all of us com- 6. Finally, parishes must always keep their pose the Body of Christ. Parishes that fail to be places of eyes trained on the future. Parishes need to continwelcome and acceptance will be parishes that won’t grow ually remind people that our ultimate destination is the and flourish.

Kingdom of God. Parishes that get too caught up in the 2. Parishes need to be places of caring and here and now—important as that might be—run the risk companionship. By this I mean that parishes must be of losing sight of their ultimate goal. Parishes do much places that give voice to and are the physical expression good and important work, but if they are not also chalof God’s love to those in need. We are companions and lenging people to prepare for eternity, they are bound to fellow travelers on the journey of faith. Parishes must give fail. We are journeyers in this world, our ultimate home clear witness to and be concrete examples of our common is heaven. Parishes must always keep this idea in the forediscipleship in Christ Jesus by our care and concern for front of people’s minds. ■ everyone.

3. Parishes must be places of challenge and Father John Bauer is the pastor of the Basilica of St. disappointment. Parishes must continually challenge Mary in Minneapolis, Minnesota. people by always raising the question, “What more is God asking of us?” In this regard, I think people—and A longer version of this piece was published in the fall parishes—function best when they are at the edge of, as 2018 issue of Basilica, the magazine of the Basilica of St. opposed to the middle of, their comfort zone. Parishes Mary’s. must constantly challenge people not to grow too comThe parish is the structure of local Catholic worship and practice, but it has not always been so and might not always be. A variety of factors are already shaping parish closures, mergers, and expansion.

In the reflection below, one pastor looks at what parishes need to be in order to thrive now and in the future.

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PEOPLE & PLACES

God’s Bench

Michael R. Simone, S.J.

Father Michael Simone, S.J., reflects on how throughout its long history, one Boston parish has adapted the way it serves a changing demographic. The flexible and dynamic practices they employ might be useful to other parishes facing population changes.

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worshipped and worked in an historic neighborhood of Boston called the “North End,” a residential district north and east of downtown. The area has been home to diverse peoples: Puritan settlers who arrived in 1630; free people of African descent in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries; Irish immigrants who worked on the waterfront during the nineteenth century, and Italian and Jewish immigrants who came in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. While the Jewish community remained modest in size, Italians came in such numbers that by 1920 they made up the vast majority of residents.

Although the population today is only a quarter what it once was, the North End still bustles with activity. More than 100 Italian restaurants draw thousands of diners every week. Tourists visiting sites on Boston’s Freedom Trail fill the sidewalks. Good housing stock and proximity to corporate headquarters downtown have drawn many young professionals to the neighborhood’s apartments and condos. The result is relentless bustle.

Unlike Italian enclaves in many other cities, which have lost their ethnic population and become, in essence, Italian restaurant districts, the North End still retains a number of Italian-American families. In the warmer months, one can find older residents sitting on front stoups, park benches, and sidewalk chairs. North Enders transact a surprising amount of business this way. Neighbors share news and gossip. Older people offer their thoughts—solicited or not—to passersby, and everyone provides tourists with directions to their favorite pizzeria. People take note of elderly or infirm neighbors, and look in on the ones who haven’t made an appearance in a while. The network of these benches and chairs provides the vital current that keeps the North End a living neighborhood.

At the center of the neighborhood is the Roman Catholic parish of Saint Leonard of Port Maurice. Franciscan Friars founded the parish in 1873 and dedicated it to since 2004 , i have

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Leonardo Casanova, a fellow friar canonized in 1867. Casanova had spent his ministry preaching retreats throughout Italy, and was an apt patron for the neighborhood’s burgeoning Italian community. The parish grew quickly, and by 1899 required the sizable building it uses today.

The structure is unapologetically Italianate. Romanesque arches support a central dome and rounded apse.

Statues of saints line the outer aisles, and painted images of saints and angels leave little unused space on the walls.

The first time I walked in, I had to pause and take a breath.

Even the madding street outside did not adequately prepare me for the visual overload of the church’s interior.

In the mid-twentieth century, the North End was home to four Catholic parishes: St. Leonard’s, St. Stephen’s, St. Mary’s, and Sacred Heart. The steady decline in population forced difficult decisions. St. Mary’s closed and was demolished. St. Stephen’s and Sacred Heart ceased operating as parishes but remain open as chapels.

Saint Leonard’s was larger than the other parishes, but because of declining numbers of parishioners, it required a subsidy from the archdiocese to remain open. The scandals and financial shocks of the first years of the 21st century forced a reimagination of the Catholic presence in the North End. I recently spoke with Fr. Antonio Nardoianni, OFM, the Franciscan friar who served as pastor of St. Leonard’s from 2004–2019. Born and raised in Italy, Fr. Antonio came to the U.S. as a young priest, serving at Franciscan parishes in Boston and Toronto. According to him, the biggest change to St. Leonard’s during those fifteen years was a demographic transition. From the 1970s to the 1990s, St. Leonard was an aging parish with declining enrollment. Around 2000, however, the parish saw an upsurge in younger parishioners, especially young professionals who had moved into the neighborhood. This influx has led to a modest increase in the parish census for the first time in decades. Fr. Antonio recognizes this as a

“St. Leonard’s Church, North End, Boston” (CC BY 2.0) by Boston City Archives

In the courtyard of St. Leonard’s parish in Boston’s North End, statues of St. Anthony, the Sacred Heart, and Our Lady of Fatima greet passersby.

blessing, even as it brings new challenges. The neighborhood’s younger people tend to be transient, spending at most five years in the North End before moving elsewhere.

The transience of younger parishioners causes some tension. After years of worship, long-term parishioners find lots of meaning in the formal liturgies, familiar lectors and servers, traditional devotions, and summer festivals. They resist changing them for transient newcomers.

Compromise yields benefits to the wider church, however.

Many young people drift away from their faith; finding a place that welcomes, even if only for a few years, improves the chances that they will continue to practice their faith after they move on.

Yet these same elder parishioners are also behind two recent successes. First, their commitment has helped the parish stabilize its finances and attendance. Antonio points especially to the parishioners who joined Saint Leonard’s after Sacred Heart closed. Even as they mourned the loss of their spiritual home, they doubled down on helping their new parish survive. In general, parishioners have been more than generous with their time and financial resources (Antonio suspects that some may have even given more than their means allow).

This commitment supported the second success, when on December 17, 2017, the church was rededicated after more than a year of rebuilding and restoration. The interior, refurbished in the 1960s after the changes of Vatican II, was by the early 2000s in need of serious cleaning and renovation. More troubling was an engineering assessment that revealed problems that threatened the structural integrity of the church building. The support of current and former parishioners as well as visitors and friends— coupled with an astonishing million-dollar matching gift—resulted in a $2 million budget to seal the leaking roof and foundation, restore the artwork, purchase a new organ, and bring the building up to code.

Tourists walking the Freedom Trail will pass by St.

Divine grace reinforces bonds of friendship and family, and provides unexpected wisdom and comfort to visitors.

Leonard’s between Paul Revere’s house and the Old North Church. Many find the restored, brightly lit interior a destination in itself. The church building is open from early morning until about 10:00 pm, and at any time one can find people inside praying or viewing the artwork. In addition, the parish staff makes an effort to be available; on most days, staff members help run a small store offering books and religious art. Ministry and care to visitors became an increasingly important part of Fr. Antonio’s job during his fifteen years as pastor. During his tenure, he received many letters from one-time visitors who were grateful and surprised to find a place to pray and a listening ear in the heart of a major city. One-time gifts from grateful visitors funded a significant part of the restoration project and continue to help support the parish today.

Just as North End residents keep the neighborhood alive from their chairs on sidewalks and front porches, so does God from St. Leonard’s. The parish is God’s bench.

Divine grace reinforces bonds of friendship and family, and provides unexpected wisdom and comfort to visitors.

Such service is guiding the parish as it imagines its future ministry. Even while honoring its heritage as a close-knit, immigrant faith community, St. Leonard’s has become a place where young people can put down their first roots and strangers can be surprised by grace. In this, I think the parish’s future looks very much like the North End’s past—a place where waves of people coming and going have not changed the reality of a loving God abiding in their midst. ■ Michael Simone, S.J., is an Assistant Professor of Old Testament at Boston College’s School of Theology and Ministry and has also served as a priest at the parishes of Saint Leonard and Saint Cecilia in Boston, and as a chaplain for the Veterans’ Administration Maryland Health Care System.

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PEOPLE & PLACES

Balancing Act:

Collaborative Parish Ministry Katarina Schuth, O.S.F.

In her seminal book, Priestly Ministry in Multiple Parishes, Katarina Schuth explored what changes to parish structure—from singular entities to collaborative or clustered parishes—meant for the priests serving them. More than 900 priests responded to her questions. Her findings take on even greater importance today given the demographic changes affecting many dioceses in the United States. Selections have been edited for length.

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WHERE ARE WE? During the past few years, almost every week has brought news of a parish being combined with one or more parishes and of others being closed. For the most part these events are recorded and then seemingly forgotten, except by the pastor who has just had his duties doubled or tripled, by the staff whose roles are expanded, and by the parishioners who find themselves without their own pastor and sometimes without their former parish.

According to reports from a number of dioceses, the rate at which priests are becoming responsible for more than one parish is growing rapidly.

WHAT’S ON OUR PRIESTS’ PLATES? Priests in clustered parishes, as well as those assigned to a single parish, have a wide range of responsibilities.

Though the sizes of parishes are usually smaller when a priest is pastor to several parishes, he often does not have a staff of more than one or two persons, so he usually carries out most of the duties himself.

Priests indicate how central to the life of parishes are liturgical and sacramental celebrations and put most of their energy into preparing for these celebrations. Eighty percent of respondents celebrate the Eucharist three or four times each weekend. Many priests comment that the number of services is usually manageable, but more burdensome are the hours required for travel and the separate preparation considered necessary for congregations with distinctive and diverse membership.

Besides the Eucharist, other sacraments—including baptism, reconciliation, and marriage—are celebrated frequently on weekends. The concentration of effort in a short period of time takes extraordinary planning and abundant energy. Especially for the one-fourth of priests

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doing this work who are sixty-five or older, the intense nature of this ministry is extremely demanding.

A surprisingly large number of the parishes in this sample maintain an elementary school, and the burden of providing adequate religious education through catechetical programs falls heavily on the pastors. Many have a wide range of additional jobs such as chancellor, vicar, member of the diocesan tribunal, or director of a diocesan office, which stretch them even thinner.

WHAT DO THEY WISH THEY COULD PRIORITIZE? A majority of respondents mention prayer as most important in fostering life and growth in their parishes.

When speaking of the liturgy, priests call attention to the importance of scheduling regular weekend or Sunday celebrations of the Eucharist that are well planned and executed, vibrant and meaningful, faith filled, and spirit filled. The celebration, they believe, should reflect the faith life of the community and demonstrate the pastor’s understanding of the people in a particular parish. Besides its intrinsic value of moving the congregation closer to Christ, liturgy is crucial to parish life because of its intended consequences; namely, building up the community and involving parishioners in good works beyond the parish. Priests recognize the homily, when well prepared, as an essential element in giving life to parishes.

As many respondents attest, being present to parishioners and letting them know you are pleased to be among them is another important factor in giving life to a parish. One should not underestimate the significance of simply “being there as often as possible” and “being present to the people at church, school, and community.”

Others mention the situations or occasions when their presence is especially appreciated, such as at major moments of joy and celebration or grief and sadness—”when they genuinely need you.” The quality of one’s presence, of course, is critical. People know they are genuinely cared for when pastors are attentively listening and when they are not eager to move on to the next task as quickly as they can. Spending time with people beyond Sunday liturgies, being available and approachable to many different personality types, showing a joyful willingness to serve, maintaining the sense of belonging—these are all examples of dedication and commitment that give life to parishes.

Photos: Unsplash/Illustration: Angelo Jesus Canta

WHAT ARE SOME CHALLENGES IN MINISTERING TO MULTIPLE PARISHES? Lack of time dominates the list of what is most difficult in ministering to more than one parish. Duplication of services, drive time, and schedule complications all compound the problem. Difficulties also arise because pastors need to divide their time equitably, shifting attention quickly from one context to another. This concern is especially acute when parishes are dissimilar in style or ethnic background.

A second set of hurdles related to lack of time ais scheduling problems that result in being stretched too thin. Many say they cannot be in town or more places at once or meet all of the expectations of parishioners.

They often feel frustration because of “being able to do no more than scratch the surface of parochial needs and feeling like you are never doing enough for any one parish.” Similarly, a pastor describes being overwhelmed by “the administration of three church buildings, fifteen other buildings, and three cemeteries. Too much administration. We need administrators for parishes, but they cannot afford them.”

WHAT KIND OF SUPPORT IS NEEDED? Respondents offered advice for colleagues new to multiple-parish ministry. Two recommendations about personal and spiritual life are almost universal: take time for prayer and make it a priority to connect with a priest support group, both of which help priests to be more spiritually centered and refreshed for the rigors of their work.

Pertaining to ministry, they advise making changes slowly and with consultation and delegating responsibilities that are not reserved to the ordained.

They say they would be more effective in their ministry

with more support from their leaders—bishops, religious superiors, and diocesan officers. They would appreciate personal encouragement, but also a greater understanding of the nature of their ministry. Most of all, they would like to see that a vision for the diocese is in place and that careful planning is being done for the future of these clustered parishes, the priests who serve them, and the diocese as a whole.

Experienced priests call for those who will enter this ministry to be prayerful, patient, loving, open, and flexible. Seminaries need to cultivate these virtues through their human and spiritual formation programs and they need to expose their students to the experience of serving multiple parishes in academic courses, but especially through pastoral contact with the priests, lay ministers, and parishioners engaged in this ministry.

These priests understand that evangelization is not a matter of simply “covering the sacramental basics” but of providing ways to support, deepen, and extend a vital sense of mission. These priests recognize how important it is for them to listen to leaders—and to staff and parishioners, thereby determining how to offer ministry that truly responds to parishioners’ desires to come closer to God, to educate their children in the faith, and to participate in a vibrant community of love and service. ■ Sister Katarina Schuth, O.S.F., Ph.D., is the Professor Emerita/Endowed Chair for Social Scientific Study of Religion (1991-2017) at the Seminaries of St. Paul in Minnesota. ©2006 by Order of Saint Benedict, Collegeville, Minnesota. Used with permission. Liturgical Press.

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Š Boston College Office of University Communications, Lee Pellegrini

PEOPLE & PLACES

The Joy of Having Loud and Messy Kids at Mass Brian Doyle

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A common complaint among some Mass-goers is that children can be distracting and disruptive, and a common fear among parents is that their children will be noisy or disobedient. It’s why cry rooms were created. In this piece, Brian Doyle argues that if children can’t be themselves in front of God and the community of believers, then we might need to re-examine how we understand the Mass.

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Mass on campus is attended by the familiar dozen or so faculty and staff and students and neighbors; but today, to my amazement, there are 4-yearold twin boys in front of me, complete with parents, the father immensely tall and the mother adamantly not.

The noon Mass is legendary for starting on the button and never going more than 25 minutes because afternoon classes start at 12:30 p.m., and you want to give students a chance to make their flip-flopped sprint across usually the daily noon

I love having little kids at Mass. If you are distracted by a little kid being a little kid you are not focused on what’s holy.

Little kids are holy. campus. For the first five minutes the twins sit quietly and respectfully and perhaps even reverently, each in his seat between mom and dad. This does not last. At 12:07 p.m. I see the first flurry of fists and elbows as they jockey and joust. At 12:11 p.m. one of them, incredibly, pulls a bunch of grapes from his pocket and begins to eat some and to lose the rest on the floor. At 12:13 p.m. there are easily a dozen grapes and both boys are under the chairs.

At 12:15 p.m. the mom, clearly a veteran of these sorts of things, pulls two cookies from her pockets for the boys.

At 12:20 p.m. the dad finally bends down from his great height and tersely reads his sons the riot act, a moment I have been waiting for with high fraternal glee, for I have been in his shoes.

I have been at Mass in this very chapel with my small twin sons, who have dropped Cheerios from the balcony onto the bald spots of congregants below and stuck their arms into the baptistry just to see what it would feel like (it’s cold and wet, one son said, indignantly) and made barnyard noises at exactly the wrong moments and run all around the chapel shaking sticky hands with startled, bemused congregants at the Sign of Peace.

After Mass I say to the celebrant with a smile that it is not every day we are graced by rambunctious ruffians who scatter grapes and crumbs on the floor and giggle and yawn and shimmy and snicker and lose their shoes and drop hymnals on the floor with a terrific bang and pay no attention whatsoever to the Gospel readings and the homily and the miracle of the Eucharist but rather gaze raptly at the life-size cedar crucifix and try to blow out a candle on the altar as their parents carry them up for a blessing and say Hi! to the grinning priest as he lays his hand upon their innocent brows and spend the last five minutes of Mass sitting in the same single seat trying to shove the other guy off but only using your butt and not your hands; and the priest, unforgettably, says this to me: I love having little kids at Mass. I love it when they are bored and pay no attention and squirm. I love it when they get distracted by a moth and spend five minutes following the moth’s precarious voyage among the lights.

It’s all good. They are being soaked in the Mass. They hear the words and feel the reverence and maybe they even sense the food of the experience, you know? Sometimes people complain and make veiled remarks about

behavior and discipline and decorum and the rapid dissolution of morals today and stuff like that but I have no patience for it. For one thing they were little kids at Mass once, and for another if there are no little kids at Mass, pretty soon there won’t be any Masses. You have to let kids be kids.

I love having little kids at Mass. If you are distracted by a little kid being a little kid you are not focused on what’s holy. Little kids are holy. Let it be. My only rule is no extended fistfights. Other than that I don’t care about grapes and yawning. I think the cadence and the rhythm and the custom and the peace of the Mass soak into kids without them knowing it. That’s why a lot of the students here come back to Mass, I think—it sparks some emotional memory in them, and once they are back at Mass then they pay attention in new ways and find new food in it. It’s all good. The more the merrier.

I say I do know very well what he means and we shake hands and he heads to the sacristy to disrobe and I head back to work. But about halfway back to my office I feel awfully sad that I do not have grapes and cookies in my jacket pockets. I don’t even have remains of ancient Cheerios anymore, and there were years there when my pockets were so filled with brittle crumbs that birds followed me in rotation, sparrows in the morning and crows in the afternoon.

For a minute I want to shuffle back to the chapel and catch that tiny mom and ask her for a cookie, just because, but then I realize that she will think I am a nut and I remember that I had my run as the dad of little kids squirming at Mass. It was a sweet, glorious, unforgettable run, too, and now it’s someone else’s turn, and how good and holy that is, that there are still little kids under the seats, paying no attention whatsoever.

But they will. ■ Brian Doyle was a writer and poet and the editor of Portland Magazine. He passed away in May 2017.

This article appeared in the October 6, 2014, issue of America Magazine and is reprinted with the permission of America Press, Inc., 2020. All rights reserved. For subscription information, call 1-800-627-9533 or visit www. americamagazine.org.

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BIG PICTURE

The Power of a Parish Priest Hector Heredia

Photos courtesy of WBUR, Unsplash

In this piece, a young man reflects on the life-changing support and steadfast dedication he received from his local parish priest.

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Father Paul O’Brien looks on from the sidelines as Hector Heredia plays basketball. Heredia went to St. Patrick Parish to play basketball on Sunday nights for years.

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the Basketball Hall of Fame Magic Johnson always said, “I grew up poor, but I didn’t have poor dreams.” As a young person, playing basketball in a league at my local church was key to achieving my own dream—a dream I would never have attained without the help and support of a Boston priest, Father Paul O’Brien.

Growing up, my grandmother used to take care of me, and I used to bother her a lot. I was always looking for something to do. She used to tell me to go outside and play basketball to work my energy out. Playing basketball helped me to get things off my mind. It was a big relief. Later, as a teenager, I learned about a basketball program that Father O’Brien ran at St. Patrick in Lawrence. At that time, things weren’t going very well for me. My family wasn’t there for me, I didn’t have a steady home, I had two jobs, and I was struggling to find food to eat. I went all the time to play basketball and, to be honest, to enjoy the food that was there.

I spent a great deal of time on the court and at those games. One day, I had an altercation there. Father Paul pulled me aside, knowing this was not how I usually acted with others, and said, “You really need to tell me what’s going on.” I was ashamed to tell him that by that point, I was homeless and living in my car. I was afraid to tell people about it; even my closest friends and family members did not know.

In the course of our conversations, Father Paul asked me what I dreamed of doing with my life. I told him I had always wanted to go to college but did not have the means to get there. Father Paul said he would help me, and he encouraged me to work hard and chase my dream. This was two - time inductee into

a big moment for me because no one had ever suggested something like that to me. Not my family or friends, not my teachers—no one.

Father Paul eventually made some calls and got me an interview at a local college. This was incredible to me, and my life-long dream of a college education started to become real for me. I always had the dream of going to college, but I never thought I would actually be able to do it.

With the help and guidance of Father Paul, I was able to attend Regis College, where I also became a member of the basketball team. Through my years at Regis, Father Paul was always there for me, checking in about my class assignments, even arguing with me about finishing my homework. I’ll never forget the day I graduated from college. I was speechless. And Father Paul, my mentor and my friend, was there, yet again, to support me.

Father Paul has been a role model for me at every step of my journey, helping me to navigate several difficult life challenges. He has taught me that treating others with kindness and respect can go a long way, even if I have to keep a distance from them because they have wronged me.

Simply put, Father Paul changed my life. I now work as a school guidance counselor and try to give back to other young people the kind of hope and inspiration that Father Paul gave to me. ■

Hector Heredia played in the basketball league at St. Patrick Parish in Lawrence, MA, where Father Paul O’Brien is the pastor.

This essay was published on April 12, 2019 in The Boston Pilot.

To watch “Scenes from a Parish” about the transformation at St. Patrick’s, visit bc.edu/c21parishes

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PRACTICES AT WORK

Communities of Practice Jane Regan Scholar Jane Regan proposes that a parishioner’s sense of belonging in a parish is often tied to participation in a “community within the parish community.” She shares how those groups can implement

some standard practices and behaviors to keep members coming back and feeling seen, known, and loved.

let me tell you about three interesting gatherings of people.

for someone at home; several have loved ones in a nursing home or hospice. The meetings are organized and facilitated by the parish nurse. They begin with coffee and socializing, followed by a reflective experience of prayer. This is followed by a speaker—sometimes live, sometimes on video—and then some time for conversation and a closing prayer. Some people come regularly, others come for a few sessions; there is a core consistent group of about 6 who are there every time. For participants, this is an important part of their own self-care.

Faithful Finance Committee: The Finance Committee of St. Odo the Good meets each month to provide guidance to the pastor on the budget, expenditures, and stewardship. They used to have meetings that lasted exactly an hour, at which time everyone left fairly quickly. Now the meeting lasts exactly one hour and 15 minutes, at which time many people stay around to chat and check in. The change happened gradually. First, the pastoral

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Mike’s Muffins—A few years’ back, a parish liturgist named Mike had an idea: the second Tuesday of the month, a group of parish liturgists meet for about an hour and a half at a local diner for conversation and coffee.

The routine is generally the same: some time of checkin, followed by conversation about a book or document on liturgy they read over the course of the month, and a discussion about its implications for their own parishes. At the end, they name new prayer requests and share updates on older ones. Ann, one of the members of the group, said it well: “This is one commitment a month that I take seriously. It is important to me as a liturgist and as a person of faith.”

Care for the Caregivers: Twice a month, 8 to 10 people gather in the church hall after the morning Mass. Each person is responsible for the care of some loved one—a parent, spouse, sibling, or friend. Most of them are caring

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Photo: iStock

Within a parish are gatherings of people who do the work that gives expression to the parish’s vision and goals.

staff had decided a couple years back to recommend that each parish committee spend the beginning of each meeting in prayer and faith sharing. As people became more comfortable with this activity, the amount of time that the members of the Finance Committee spent reflecting on the Gospel or talking about how they live their faith each day expanded. And relationships were built. So they added 15 minutes to the meeting and enjoy one another’s company more.

Three different groups, with varying reasons for gathering, ways of relating, and patterns of meeting. Yet they share three things in common. First, each group has its own reason for gathering, an enterprise or set of goals that the members all share. Secondly, the members of each group engage with one another in a way that supports their reason for gathering, marked by mutual respect and a willingness to engage in the common enterprise. Thirdly, each group interacts and expresses itself through established patterns of behavior, styles of conversation, vocabulary, and resources.

Each of them, I would propose, is an example of a community of practice (CoP), defined as “a sustained gathering of people whose interactions are marked by mutual engagement, shared enterprise, and common repertoire, and where the collective learning involved in surviving/thriving as a community leads to practices that enhance group identity and further group goals” (Regan).

This concept provides an important resource for rethinking the life and vitality of our parishes.

Within a moderate-sized parish there are a number of contexts in which adults gather, such as: the parish council, youth ministry team, catechetical team, Bible study group, social justice committee, finance committee, or pastoral staff. Each of these groups has the potential to be an effective CoP if they are intentional about their shared enterprise, mutual engagement, and common repertoire. As communities of practice, these committees and working groups have the potential to enliven the faith of the members and further the parish’s mission.

SITUATED LEARNING Before looking a bit more closely at this, let me make a comment about how we learn the important things of life.

Do you know how to make lasagna? Play bridge? Use a new software program? Do you understand hockey?

Have you come to recognize the complexity and challenges of finding a career? Being a parent? Caring for an elderly relative? Living with teenagers? All of those things we learn primarily through “situated learning,” or learning that takes place in the doing of an activity, in real-life

situations (Lave and Wenger).

The same thing is true of faith. We learn what it means to live our Christian faith in real-life situations. I learned what it meant to parent my daughters as a Christian by watching, being with, and talking to other Christians as they parented their own kids. While adult education, Bible studies, and homilies are helpful, we learn best how to live our faith by being with others who are doing the same; that is, by being in communities of people who share our commitment to live lives that are marked by the values and beliefs of faith—communities of practice.

PARISH AS COMMUNITY OF COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE While we speak of the parish as a community of faith, it might be more appropriate to say that it is a community of communities. I have heard people say, “I had been a member of St. Odo the Good for several years, but I came to feel like I was really a part of the parish when I became involved with the choir.” Or, “A big change in my faith came when my kids started faith formation and I volunteered to be a catechist’s aide. Then I felt like I wasn’t just a member of the parish, but that I really belonged.” While the whole parish has the shared enterprise to evangelize by putting faith into action, it does this and expresses it most effectively in smaller CoPs. At St. Odo the Good, catechists prepare on their own, gather their resources, teach their class, clean up their things, and leave. At St. Odo the Great, catechists meet every six weeks in smaller groups based on the peer groups they teach. They pray, share experiences, review the plans for the next six weeks, and socialize. It is the opportunity for mutual engagement; the shared enterprise in attended to; and the common repertoire is learned and enacted. At St. Odo the Great, catechists are invited into a CoP through which they gain the competencies to teach their peer group and be a witness for the Gospel in their lives. In this way, they further the shared enterprise of the catechists and the parish.

CoPs are also communities in which “the collective learning involved in surviving/thriving as a community leads to practices that enhance group identity and further group goals.” Since the learning that takes place within a CoP is situated learning, it takes on certain characteristics.

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PRACTICES AT WORK

First, learning within a CoP is about gaining the competencies to engage effectively as a member of a particular community. The knowledge, skills, and perspective one gains as a member of a CoP are specific to that group and rooted in the relationships among the members. Here’s an example: Maria is a new member of the advisory team for the parish’s youth ministry. She brings a good deal of insights and ideas: she is the parent of two young adult children and had been active in youth ministry in her prior parish. At the same time, she has a good deal to learn: What does youth ministry mean to this group? How does youth ministry relate to other ministries within the parish? How do the members relate to one another? What are the relationships of authority and power within the group? What are the “war stories” of the group (great achievements and less-than-successful endeavors)? Who has a key to the parish center? Who knows how to fix the copier when it gets jammed?

Second, even as a newcomer to the youth ministry advisory team gaining knowledge and skills, Maria will influence the CoP. Her membership, over time, contributes to the transformation of the team. As she strives to understand the repertoire of the CoP, she asks questions about perspectives or positions that had been unexamined for some time. Or she makes an inquiry that causes others to ask questions that lead to change. As she moves into ever fuller participation, Maria’s own ideas and insights naturally become part of the community’s understanding of its shared enterprise and common repertoire. This mutual learning is part of what strengthens the group and enhances the vitality of the parish.

FOSTERING COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE Within a parish are gatherings of people who do the work that gives expression to the parish’s vision and goals. The question remains: how do we begin the process of shifting parish committees or interest groups into effective CoPs so that they not only address their specific tasks but become a source of vitality for the parish and strengthen their members’ commitment to the parish and to each other? Groups and committees can start by reflecting on their identity and goals. The following questions can serve as a guide in that process: SHARED ENTERPRISE • How does the community recognize that its role goes beyond the tasks of a particular meeting to a broader goal of participating in the parish’s role of evangelization?

• Does the description of the community’s charge include the call to be evangelizers and foster the faith of its members?

• To what extent does the community integrate prayer, reflection, and faith conversations into its regular work, making them more than simply addons to a busy agenda?

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• How is the faith life of the members of the community intentionally enhanced through participating in the community’s gathering and engaging in the community’s work?

MUTUAL ENGAGEMENT • How do people treat one another, those with whom they agree and those who hold a differing position?

• Does the community welcome new members and provide mentoring so they understand the community’s shared enterprise?

• To what extent are their interactions marked by care and mutual respect of each person’s strengths and contribution?

• In what ways is the identity of the community as a community of faith and of faithful people strengthened and enhanced?

COMMON REPERTOIRE • How attentive are the community members to recognizing the ways in which they convey (or fail to convey) the message of the Gospel?

• In what ways are the community’s members supported in gaining the competencies necessary to participate in the particular CoP and in the broader enterprise of the parish?

• Does the community reflect a consciousness that the various modes of communication convey a spirit of hospitality?

• To what extent is there interaction and mutual support with other communities within the parish and beyond that support the shared enterprise?

Imagining our parish groups and committees as CoPs has the potential to enhance their effectiveness in their own areas of responsibility and in the life of the parish. They can serve as a context for prayer and sharing faith, for learning and developing competencies, and for participating in the parish’s mission to be and become an ever more effective agent of evangelization. ■ Jane E. Regan, Ph.D., is Associate Professor of Theology and Religious Education in the Department of Religious Education and Pastoral Ministry at the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry.

References: Lave, Jean and Etienne Wenger, Situated Learning: Legitimate Peripheral Participation, New York: Cambridge University Press, 1991.

Regan, Jane E., Where Two or Three are Gathered: Transforming the Parish through Communities of Practice. New York: Paulist Press, 2016.

Photo: Angelo Jesus Canta

Having a faith conversation with old and new friends is as easy as setting the table.

FAITH FEEDS is a program created for individuals in parishes and other Catholic communities who are hungry to share faith conversations over a cup of coffee or a potluck meal. You decide the location.

A volunteer host facilitates conversation using downloadable FAITH FEEDS Guides that offer themed articles and easy instructions for planning. The program is parishioner-led and designed to make faith conversations with old and new friends as easy as setting the table.

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Sacraments for Every Child:

How Parishes Can Welcome Children with Disabilities Peter J. Smith In this essay, author Peter J. Smith, professor of pediatrics at the University of Chicago, offers ideas as to how parishes can implement specialized sacramental preparation and catechesis for persons with physical and developmental disabilities.

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children with disabilities and ensure that they receive the sacraments and become active Christians to the fullest extent they can? Since most families do not want to stand out or make demands, the parish staff and parish leaders must anticipate the needs of children (and others) with disabilities and initiate changes. That means holding a meeting focused on welcoming those with disabilities and inviting parents so they can help make the list of potential problems or obstacles before their children reach the age for reception of the sacraments. Then the parish should address the issues raised.

Since they lead us into a deeper relationship with God, the sacraments are vital to all. The U.S. Catholic bishops expressed this sentiment in their 1978 pastoral statement on persons with disabilities: “Just as the Church must do all in its power to help ensure people with disabilities a secure place in the human community, so it must reach how can parishes welcome

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out to welcome gratefully those who seek to participate in the ecclesial community.”

To “reach out” to people with disabilities, most Catholic parishes need to use inclusive language; learn the different types of disability and respond appropriately in reshaping the physical parish environment and the educational preparation for the sacraments; and allow a spirit of welcome to overcome any misconceptions, inertia, and bias toward persons with disabilities, including children.

CAREFUL LANGUAGE AND DISTINCTIONS Much progress has been made in the area of language.

Today, parishioners typically understand that many formerly acceptable terms are no longer acceptable. It is better to use precise and accurate terms like a “child with cerebral palsy” or to speak of a “person with a disability,” which communicates that one sees the person first and the disability second. If needed, parish leaders can invite experts to instruct parishioners on such changes in a workshop format.

Parishioners and parish leaders must also learn to recognize distinctions within disabilities and the different patterns of disability. Those who plan the parish initiation rites may have already begun to account for them.

Pope Francis greets a girl after celebrating a Mass for the sick and disabled in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican June 12. The Mass was an event of the Jubilee of Mercy (CNS Photo/Paul Haring)

Examples include children with hearing or visual impairments; they can be seated close to the action and/or be given amplification (earphones) and other assistance, like signing or someone to accompany them throughout the rite. Children with motor impairments may need a wider pew, an aisle seat, a walker, wheelchair, or other seating supports. Good resources from the National Catholic Disability Partnership are available to help guide parish leaders.

SACRAMENTAL PREPARATION More subtly, impairments and disabilities may require parishioners to revise their general understanding of the sacraments and what sacramental preparation entails.

Religion teachers and parish staff in particular should be schooled in such matters. For example, certain conditions of childhood lead to a shortened lifespan, which necessitates an accelerated pace in receiving the sacraments.

Does this apply to someone in your parish?

Or consider: What is the role of the anointing of the sick with regard to childhood impairments and disabilities? It is not always clear. Or consider an adult sacrament: it is now quite common for individuals with Down syndrome to date and marry. If this is the case in your parish, how does the pre-Cana program take it into account?

Leaders should also be prepared for surprises, like the unintended benefits that will probably emerge for the parish at large. When a parish builds accommodations for wheelchair use, it eases the transportation of children in strollers and helps all who use canes or walkers or have joint problems. In creating large-print resources for children with visual impairments, a parish assists many other individuals, too.

Of course, building a ramp or buying large-print music materials may not address the most significant needs of parishioners with disabilities. Nothing takes the place of asking the people affected what would help them. In the case of children, the parish must work closely with their parents or guardians and teachers.

It also helps when parish leaders become acquainted with the communities and agencies nearby that work with persons who have disabilities. In turn, the parish can help families connect with these agencies. All children with disabilities are entitled to therapies through early intervention programs (from birth through their third birthday) and through the public school system (from age 3 to 22). Those who attend public schools will have tailored support detailed in an individualized education plan, called an I.E.P. The plan may also be helpful in making

accommodations for children to receive the sacraments.

In such a case where there is a developmental disability, such as autism, the pastor or deacon or other appropriate member of the parish team should meet with the child and see what he actually understands about reconciliation or communion and how he can engage with the sacrament.

The biggest distinction between physical and developmental disabilities is that the latter are more often misunderstood or even missed. The similarities are even more important than distinctions. The parish must see each individual as unique instead of dividing people into classes or classifications.

A WELCOMING SPIRIT Sometimes a change in practice can lead a community to a change of attitude. At other times, the change of attitude precedes the change in practice. The United States has a long history of housing “undesirables” outside the home and local community. But it has gradually become clear that separate means unequal, that is, less than equal, which is detrimental not only for the individuals who are separated but for the larger community, too.

My own children benefit from sharing classes and parish activities with other children who are different from them. They instantly recognize difference, and they have learned that I welcome a discussion about it. Such conversations allow them to be comfortable with their own uniqueness and with what is different about others.

Any discussion of individuals with “disabilities” contains irony, but that is especially true for Christians, who embrace a host of unexpected exceptions to the norm: a king born in a manger, redemption won on a cross, life found in a tomb. For Christians, no barrier in attitude or thought or practice should prevent us from extending a hearty welcome to all parish children and inviting them to the sacraments. All of us are “individuals with disabilities.” All of us need the healing power that comes from “the water flowing out from beneath the threshold of the temple.” And none of us will achieve self-actualization outside union with Christ. ■ Peter J. Smith, M.D., is Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Chicago in Illinois.

This article appeared in the May 24, 2010, issue of America Magazine and is reprinted with the permission of America Press, Inc., 2020. All rights reserved. For subscription information, call 1-800-627-9533 or visit www. americamagazine.org.

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Photo: Unsplash

PRACTICES AT WORK

Untying Wet Knots

Reflections on Effective Multicultural Ministry Bill Barman

Father Bill Barman, pastor of a multilingual and multiethnic parish in California, chronicles the challenges he faced and success he found when it came to unifying his parish community. He offers hopeful, practical suggestions for anyone with a similar task and mission.

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a pair of sneakers is hard to untie—even harder when they’re on your feet. As the pastor of a multigenerational, multicultural, and multilingual parish, I at times feel responsible for untying a lot of wet knots.

Farm workers from Central Mexico founded the parish where I serve, La Purisima Church in Orange, California, in 1923. They gathered under a pepper tree for Mass until they saved enough money for a wooden mission church. The parish built a new church in 1958 and another in 2005. Normally new construction signals a healthy community coming together. However, the Hispanic community came to believe that the parish was discriminating against their community and started picketing on the sidewalk before the new church opened in 2005. Protests continued through 2014. a wet knot on

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I did not serve at the parish during most of its history and can comment only on the repercussions. I don’t believe enough people considered the effect the new large worship space, driven by donations from mostly white parishioners, could have on others. The Mass schedule offered 10 liturgies in English, one in Vietnamese, and one in Spanish. This created a sense of loss and alienation for the Latino community, who founded the church and yet felt they were not welcome. The new church, they felt, neglected to value them as agents of their own pastoral needs or religious practices. Eventually, their alienation and disempowerment found expression in picketing, which began before construction was completed and lasted for almost a decade.

My first pastoral decision was to un-employ the armed guard hired to “keep the peace.” I also began the typical task of putting names to faces and meeting my staff, who shared in the task of ministering to this diverse community of 4,000 parishioners. My next decision was to declare a pastoral amnesty and a new beginning for everyone in the parish. Anyone seeking the Lord would be welcome. Access to parish facilities and involvement in Masses was open to all.

Three weeks later, just as I thought things were set- While many Spanish-speaking parishioners will attend tling down, 30 families picketing in front of the church daily liturgy in English, the English-speaking crowd voted surprised me. Armed with a thermos of coffee, some pa- with their feet and left for a nearby parish. Even when we per cups, and a trembling heart, I headed out to the side- projected the scriptures in the opposite language on large walk. Surprised and startled, they eventually took me up screens and offered multilingual prayers of the faithful, on the coffee, but hesitated on my offer to speak with many were uncomfortable and unwilling to remain part them in my office regarding their concerns. Eventually my of the parish family. pastoral mantra became, “You can serve at the altar or Attendance by the English-language community may continue protesting in the street; you are free to choose be down, but participation at the Vietnamese- and Spanone or the other.” ish-speaking Masses has increased. One of the great exam I spent the next three years trying to figure out how ples of leadership came from Deacon Tony Bube, who, at the Hispanic community could become so alienated and the age of 94, learned his parts in Spanish and is now a fixfeel completely like outsiders in their ture at the 6:30 a.m. Spanish liturgies. own parish. Along the way, I puzzled

I discovered that the group of over how to achieve greater harmony volunteers who lock and unlock the and collaboration between the Spanparish did not include a single SpanThe first step ish-, English-, and Vietnamese-speakish-speaking person. Today, more than ing communities. It became obvious half the team speaks Spanish. Closing to integrate early on that each language commutime for parish meetings is no longer a parish and nity and ministry were living comfortan inflexible 9 p.m. curfew. Each minably in their own silos. Parallel and istry is trusted and receives a key simcreate a fair tangential community life is easier to ply by asking for it. distribution manage in some ways.

If sacraments are spiritual signs The first step to integrate a parish that reveal an inner truth and beauty, of resources and create a fair distribution of rethen our physical appearance should is to have the sources is to have the desire for unialso reveal our community’s spiritual ty in less than a superficial manner. I To an immigrant community, desire for unity roots. proceeded to make some changes that, many of whom are undocumented, a in less than while small, ended up having a huge church fence, a locked playground, or influence on the culture of the parish. an English-only room-use form is ina superficial The first morning I arrived I was timidating. They don’t say, “Come to manner. struck by the number of signs on the plame who are weary and burdened and I za: nine in total. Affixed to the church, will refresh you.” If our sense of order in two languages, were the words “No and rules prioritizes legalism before Loitering” and “Restrooms are not for welcome, redemption, and forgiveness, public use.” How odd to tell people they can’t congregate then we fail as a community of Jesus. in the parish’s plaza. And if people do gather, don’t ex- I am pained by those who have withdrawn from the pect them to use the restrooms. Doesn’t that already limit parish. But those who have stayed and those who are reour options for hospitality? I also noted small metal signs turning hearten me. I believe we are getting stronger in our in various planters around the parking lot with an arrow unity and shared life and mission. I love the challenge to pointing toward the parish office. Besides being too small engage this parish dynamically and justly and in a culturalto be useful, these were only in English. We created a new ly sensitive manner. Today at La Purisima we are mostly at mantra: If it’s worth announcing, it’s worth announcing in peace and the poor are always welcomed, as I continue to all three of our languages. untie a motley assortment of wet pastoral knots. ■ Our community is 75 percent working-class Mexican Americans, 5 percent elderly Vietnamese immigrants, and Fr. Bill Barman has been the pastor of La Purisima the remainder are white English-speaking Americans of Church in Orange, California, since 2013. He has worked various origins. While I felt the Mass schedule to be one in parish ministry since his ordination in 1981. of the most egregious examples of injustice in the parish, I delayed changing it in the hope that I could bring the Excerpted with permission from U.S. Catholic, 205 W. white English-speaking community into a greater aware- Monroe St., Chicago, IL 60606; uscatholic.org. To read ness of the inequality and stir in them a desire to redress the article in its entirety please visit: https://www.uscaththis wrong. That was not to be. olic.org/articles/201707/can-pastor-make-everyone-hap I took various polls while also offering multiple op- py-multicultural-parish-31082 tions until a consensus was reached—four Masses in English, four in Spanish, and two in Vietnamese each week.

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PRACTICES AT WORK

What’s Working in Your Parish?

We asked you—our readers and our online community—to tell us your favorite thing about your parish.

We want to share the good news about what’s going well in parishes and inspire you to bring some of these ideas to your own community. The responses below are representative of common themes and have been edited for length and formatting.

COMMUNICATION

My parish is effective in utilizing multimedia to engage the faith community online—these activities include recording and transcribing homilies on the parish website with real-time video recordings of daily Mass.

—Patrick, St. Clement Shrine (Boston, MA)

that helps kids recognize that church can be fun and instills lessons about faith and a sense of belonging in the church. For parents, there are Bible studies and groups at times that work for them. Even for the oldest people in the community there are programs to help them further their faith. It has created a sense of community in which every person is recognized, known, and celebrated that I haven’t found anywhere else.

—Ashley, Holy Mother’s Collaborative (Hanover, MA)

LGBTQ INCLUSION

My parish offers three different types of Sunday liturgies: a more solemn liturgy with more traditional music on Saturday evenings, a contemporary Mass on Sunday mornings, and a praise and worship Mass on Sunday evening. My pastor held a series of town halls, and what people really wanted was a liturgy that felt comfortable to them. With these different options available, everyone from the community feels welcomed and included.

—Andrew, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton (Crofton, MD)

I was blessed to learn of different Catholic ministries in Chicago that are focused on outreach to the LGBTQ community. It’s sometimes difficult to reconcile these two facets of my life, but finding a community that embraces and strengthens them has made a world of difference.

I attend regular Sunday Mass with AGLO, the Chicago Archdiocese’s Gay and Lesbian Outreach ministry, and meet with Affirmed at St. Clement’s parish on a monthly basis to dive deeper into my faith through readings, discussions, acts of service, and Q&As with Church leaders.

It is an especially meaningful blessing in my life as I’ve made friends with some wonderful people who dare to open doors, build bridges, and shine a light on Jesus’ welcoming message.

—Marty, St. Clement (Chicago, IL)

PROGRAMMING

FAMILY MASS

LITURGY

GIFT: Generations in Faith Together. It’s a program for people of all ages to be learning, sharing, and eating together. Teenagers eat with other people’s grandmothers.

Young moms get support from older moms. Fathers learn with children, and older men are welcomed and appreciated. The program is run by a lay team.

—Faith, Our Lady of Victory (Centerville, MA)

MARRIAGE PREPARATION

My parish has a monthly ministry for newly married couples. Newlyweds meet with older couples in the parish who offer mentorship in all aspects of married life, from finances to communication to supporting one another’s professional and personal goals. Our pastor came up with the idea to strengthen young marriages, because the first five years are the hardest. Many parishes do a great job with pre-Cana. This extends the community’s support long after a couple says “I do.”

—Elise, St. Mary of the Assumption (Brookline, MA)

FAITH FORMATION

My parish focuses on faith formation for people at all ages. The younger kids love going to CCD and learning from the older ones. There’s a flourishing teen program

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My favorite thing about St. Ignatius is the joyful Family Mass community. Families host the Mass: there are adults and kids in the music ministry, and the celebrant always makes an effort to have messages for both kids and adults in the homily. You get to know other families and are able to support one another through the challenges of parenting. You can come to Mass as a parent and not be stressed or fearful that your child is going to be loud in a silent church!

—Heather, St. Ignatius, (Chestnut Hill, MA)

HOSPITAL MINISTRY

Our pastor established a Hospital Visitation Ministry.

Each volunteer covers four weeks per year. During our week, we receive an email with the name and room number of hospitalized patients who are members of the parish. Over the course of the week, the visitation minister can visit as much as his or her schedule allows. We have prayer cards to share with hospitalized patients and from time to time our CCD children create artwork/cards to distribute. Being present to members of our parish family in times of need is a gift to give.

—Kathleen, St. Therese (Havertown, PA)

YOUTH MINISTRY

Our pastor has gone out of his way to welcome youth. He has recreated the “CYO” activities that were once offered years ago, including snow tubing, Red Sox games, etc.

He welcomes all children to the altar during Mass and speaks to them directly. He has made the initiation of altar servers into a communal event by having them take their “oath” at Mass. He has created a warm sense of community for not only the children but for their families and everyone else who visits the church.

—Rosemary, St. Patrick (Watertown, MA)

Parish Ministry in a Time of Pandemic As this magazine was being edited, the coronavirus pandemic was beginning to unfold. Catholic priests and parishes are adapting in real time to an evolving situation and are finding creative and prophetic ways to be close to their parishioners and to help facilitate an encounter with Jesus.

Download our digital supplement: bc.edu/c21parishes

PARISH LINKING

We have been linked with a parish and Catholic elementary school in El Salvador for the past 15 years.

Each year, we raise scholarship funds that help the local children get an education and meet other urgent needs that arise. Our two parishes pray a Guadalupe Novena for one another on the Feast of the Transfiguration. In alternate years, people from the parish in El Salvador visit us, stay in our homes, meet our parishioners, eat dinners in our homes, and speak to us from the altar at Mass. The next year, people from our parish visit El Salvador, stopping at the sites which pay homage to Cardinal Romero, the Maryknoll Sisters, and Jesuit martyrs. Together, both groups assess what is working best, and make plans for the following year. The Parish Twinning program is what has kept many of us engaged in our parish and given us hope in the Church.

—Ellen, Transfiguration Church (Tarrytown, NY)

Fr. Giuseppe Corbari asked his parishioners to send him photos of themselves so that while they could not gather together, he could remember them while he said the Mass.

NEW IDEAS

St. Ignatius truly is an inclusive parish. The pastor, Fr. Greg, gets to know each parishioner by name. Fr. Greg’s passion for serving the Church is visible through his love of Mass and his willingness to come up with new ideas to better serve us. One of his newer ideas is “Home 4 Dinner.” On the third Sunday of each month all of the weekend Masses are combined to a new time with a parish-wide meal served afterwards. Fr. Greg has also created a prayer request system for anyone who wishes to share with an intention.

This high level of caring for the people of the parish makes St. Ignatius a place where parishioners care for one another through the example of Fr. Greg.

—Alyse, St. Ignatius (San Francisco, CA)

Fr. Scott Holmer, pastor at St. Edward the Confessor Catholic Church in Bowie, Md., offers drive-through confessions (CNS/Catholic Standard/Andrew Biraj) Tell us how your parish is connecting with its community in a time of social isolation. Email us at church21@bc.edu to share your own stories.

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Karen Baker

Most Catholics participate in parish life through the Sunday liturgy. For some, it’s the only encounter with the parish they will have in a given week; for others, it’s the first step toward more robust participation. Either way, it’s arguably the most important thing for a parish to get right. The following article looks at best practices in liturgy and worship.

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I noticed an announcement before Mass: “In order to more fully, consciously, and actively participate in the liturgy, please silence all pagers, beepers, and cell phones at this time.”

“Wow,” I thought to myself, “our pastor can really turn a phrase!” It took me five years to discover that the desire for “full and active participation of all the people” comes straight from Sacrosanctum Concilium, the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy. It took the seeds of liturgical reform and gave them room to blossom. Fifty years after that document was approved, parish liturgy in the United States has taken many twists and turns, from rainbow banners to guitar Masses to a swing back to incense, Latin, and chanting.

What exactly makes for a “good” parish Mass? Answers are likely to differ from inner-city Chicago to the suburbs of Houston, from pre-Vatican II Catholics to millennials. For most churchgoing Catholics, three themes emerge: powerful preaching, excellent music, and actively engaged people in the pews. about 15 years ago ,

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1. LIVELY AND ACTIVE, SOLEMN AND SERIOUS According to Benedictine Father Anthony Ruff, a liturgist who teaches theology at St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota, “it’s important that people believe in what is happening, that people want to draw from the texts and truly want to connect with God, with creation, and with people in the community.”

Those who plan worship can help people make that connection, Ruff says. The trick is to make things “lively and active” without sacrificing the solemn and serious nature of the Mass.

Good liturgy does not mean a return to pre-Vatican II practices, nor only relying on the post-Vatican II experiments; it means forging a new path. “Here’s the problem,” Ruff says. “We tried so hard after Vatican II for active participation that we veered to gimmicks and silliness.” As a result, some Catholics went in the opposite direction and called for a return to the pre-Vatican II Mass.

“That’s the wrong solution,” says Ruff. “We need to find out how to deepen the liturgy in a way that is more engaging.” We need, he said, to make the Mass beautiful without being stuffy.

How does a parish do that?

“Instead of just pre- and post-Vatican II, the Church has many centuries of particular styles of worship, and we inherit from all of this,” says Daniella Zsupan-Jerome, professor of theology at the Loyola Institute for Ministry in New Orleans. Zsupan-Jerome suggests that when planning liturgy, parishes should not be afraid to create their own blend of old and new.

Photos: © Boston College Office of University Communications, Lee Pellegrini

PRACTICES AT WORK

Best Practices for Worship and Liturgy

2. MAKE BEAUTIFUL MUSIC That’s what Father Michael White and his pastoral associate, Tom Corcoran, do at Church of the Nativity in Baltimore, Maryland. In their book Rebuilt: Awakening the Faithful, Reaching the Lost, and Making Church Matter, they describe the use of Gregorian chant in their otherwise “contemporary approach to the weekend experience.” Gregorian chant during the acclamations of the Eucharistic prayers, they say, “seems to very effectively summon our congregation into the very heart of the mystery we celebrate.”

The mystery, after all, is what we desire. Good music gets us there. Music binds the congregation together and lifts a common prayer to heaven. Good liturgy demands songs that are singable and a choir that has good leadership, says Ruff. “We need better musicians, music that really draws people in.”

That means taking the time to find talented musicians who can serve as worship leaders. It also doesn’t hurt to repeat music from week to week, as repetition encourages participation, which in turn promotes good liturgy.

3. CONNECT WITH THE PEOPLE When a pastor can preach, the people will come. Tony Oltremari is a parishioner at St. Laurence Parish in Sugarland, Texas. He says his pastor, Father Drew Wood, is a gifted homilist, and that’s what people want. “If the homilies don’t connect, if the music is not engaging,” all is lost, Oltremari says.

Tom Neal, dean of academics and professor of spiritual theology at Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans, agrees that homilies must connect with the people in the pews. “It has to be relevant to people’s real-time circumstances, even as it may deeply challenge them and mess with the status quo,” he says.

“Use stories taken from personal experience, from the news, [or] from literature to bring alive the scriptural and liturgical texts,” Neal says. “People think in narratives, and if you don’t speak in narratives, they will rarely remember your ideas.” That requires long preparation, prayer, and hard work, and he believes preachers should focus all of their energy on their Sunday homilies. That homily may be, he says, “the one and only Christ-inspired message [people] hear all week.”

Neal urges homilists to have “some honest people who can give you critical feedback on your preaching so you can grow,” perhaps even holding a weekly Bible study on the next Sunday’s readings and “stealing the good insights of your Spirit-filled people.”

4. CONSIDER THE DIFFERENCES Many parishes have a diverse congregation to consider when planning the liturgy, including people who have different preferences—some may want only a choir at Mass, while others would rather hear more contemporary music with guitars and drums. And when it comes to ages, how do we keep youth, in particular, from drifting into dreamland? Should parishes offer specialized liturgies like a Mass for teens or a children’s Mass to best engage those segments of the parish?

Zsupan-Jerome sees a real drawback in this approach, as she believes these types of liturgies detract from our unity as the one body of Christ. “The liturgy is by definition a public event for and by the people,” she says.

“Vatican II’s emphasis on full and active participation of all reinforced this important sense of inclusiveness. Having a specialized liturgy that is just for teens or those who like a certain style of music will in some sense hinder this all-inclusiveness. The very style of the liturgy cannot be overemphasized at the expense of its basic reality as the gathering of the body.”

In our ordinary lives, she adds, we choose the people we spend time with, but church is different. “We choose to come together to express something very meaningful and very intimate with people we may not know,” she says.

“There is a great gift and challenge in expressing this profound identity together.” The Mass speaks through music, preaching, prayers; it speaks through posture, colors, vestments; it speaks in silence when we come together, warts and all, to encounter the mystery.

Good liturgy depends not only on the pastor or the choir—it depends on you and me. So speak up: What works and what doesn’t in your parish? Does the music move you to sing? Does the homily inspire you to go and glorify the Lord with your life? The liturgy is the “work of the people,” so let’s get to work—fully, consciously, and actively worshipping our God. ■ Karen Baker is a freelance writer for The New Orleans Advocate and the Clarion Herald. She holds a master’s degree in pastoral studies from the Loyola Institute for Ministry in New Orleans and works in parish ministry at Mary, Queen of Peace Catholic Church in Mandeville, Louisiana.

Excerpted with permission from U.S. Catholic, 205 W. Monroe St., Chicago, IL 60606; uscatholic.org. To read the article in its entirety, please visit: https://www.uscatholic.org/articles/201403/best-practices-worship-28548

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PRACTICES AT WORK

Going to the Digital Margins

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A Q&A WITH JOHN GROSSO

1. Is it important that parishes utilize digital and social media?

It’s vital. In an age in which the Church in the United States (at least in the Northeast) is facing a crisis in Mass attendance, sacramental celebrations, and Catholic burials, we must use every avenue available to us to preach the Good News and spread the message of Christ.

Pope Francis talks about “going out into the margins of society” to help our neighbors and to spread the Gospel. What about the digital margins? Social media is where many of us spend large portions of our day being exposed to dangerous rhetoric, horrifying images of violence and oppression, fake news, racism, and sexism.

On the other hand, social media has the ability to connect us to distant family members, spur social change, and help others in need. If Christ was physically present in 2020, would He not communicate on Twitter or Instagram, where millions of people are each day?

Parishes should utilize digital media as part of a larger communications strategy. The parish bulletin is still statistically the number one source of church information, but it won’t stay that way forever. You are only reaching people “in the pews” with print materials.

Increasingly, millennials are identifying as having no religious affiliation or are disaffiliating from the Church.

How can we reach them when the only way we communicate is a piece of paper we hand out at a Mass they are not attending? The best way for a parish to show the world that they are a loving, warm, and welcoming community is through social media.

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John Grosso, BC’14, is the Director of Digital Media for the Diocese of Bridgeport. In this interview, he shares his thoughts on why digital media is essential for parish mission and offers practical ideas for pastors and a parish staff. For an in-depth look at how Boston College influenced John’s career and vocation, visit bc.edu/c21parishes. The interview has been edited for length.

2. What are some digital platforms that are effective for parish ministry?

I would like to see all parishes equipped with effective websites and good email newsletters. A lot can be accomplished with a well-organized, intuitive website and a weekly email newsletter sent to parishioners. I like Flocknote for email newsletters, because their programs are easy to use and scalable to the size of a parish.

In terms of social media, I always recommend parishes start with Facebook, which usually attracts people already in the pews (due to algorithms and the fact that those who are most active on it tend to be older). I then recommend they develop an Instagram account for the younger crowd. A lot of people can be reached with those two social media accounts.

3. Producing digital content is time-consuming and often a responsibility added to a staff member’s already-full plate. What are some resources available to pastors or a parish staff to ease that burden?

When I make the case for social media to pastors and parishes, I always tell them that it is vital to designate a lay member of their staff as a communications person, whether that person is stipended, part time, or full time. Creating content and managing social media does not work unless someone with experience has ownership over it. You wouldn’t have someone without faith formation experience serve as your Director of Religious Education, so why have inexperienced staff members run Facebook pages?

John Grosso reacts to The Diocese of Bridgeport’s response to the coronavirus pandemic in a Tweet dated March 22, 2020.

It doesn’t have to be hard. Graphic design websites like Canva can create beautiful graphics in less than 10 minutes. Nearly all of us have a camera that records images and video at our fingertips and the ability to share that content at any time. One only needs to make use of the tools on the smartphones that we already have.

In my ideal world, every parish would employ someone to manage their communications, but in many cases, this is unrealistic. For those parishes that can’t hire someone, I recommend that the parish designate one person to maintain social media, and that he or she find 2 hours once weekly to schedule social media posts for that week.

If they can’t monitor it at all hours, they should designate a time to schedule posts for the week, and then check in once a day for a couple of minutes to respond to comments or update content.

4. What are the most important elements of a parish website?

This is something I am very passionate about, and there’s really only one answer here: it has to be easy to navigate.

I should be able to find Mass times within 3 seconds of landing on a parish website. Since my wife and I live between the two dioceses in which we work and often work on weekends, we find ourselves searching for Mass times with regularity. I can’t tell you the number of parishes that don’t have their Mass times easily accessible or even updated!

The second most important element would be images and videos that show a snapshot of what it’s like to worship in that community. When my wife and I are trying to decide where to go to Mass on a given weekend, we first check the Mass times, and then we try and get a feel for the parish. Welcoming and warm pictures that convey a sense of community, family, and reverence are a must.

5. Are young adults coming back to participate in parishes that are effectively using social and digital media?

The key word there is effectively. The parishes that treat social and digital media as a full-time ministry are hav-

ing success engaging young adults. There really are some great success stories out there, but it’s hard to measure how many people are coming back specifically because of parish social media efforts.

Social media is only as good as the content it is magnifying, and so it is vital that parishes are welcoming, inclusive, and reverent environments. Social media may convince young adults to give the Church a second look, but if parishes don’t welcome and accompany young adults, encourage their involvement, empower them in leadership roles, and provide opportunities for mentorship, then young adults may be lost to us for good.

The goal of social media is to get people to the front door of a parish, a school, or to an event. The parish community needs to take it from there, creating a welcoming environment, allowing for opportunities to encounter Jesus through His Church, and accompanying young adults throughout their lives.

Social media isn’t a silver bullet that can solve declining Mass attendance or bring young people to the faith, but it does give us the ability to share our message. Social media is a remarkable tool that can be enormously effective when it’s in the right hands. And what better hands are there than that of the Catholic Church? We can use social and digital media to articulate the message of the Gospel to a searching world. There is nothing more authentic, no narrative more powerful, and no message more challenging than the Gospel. We just have to share it with people in the right way. ■

CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION: Want to ensure that your parish bulletin is an effective tool for communication? Read “Ten Ways To Up Your Parish Bulletin Design (So People Will Actually Read It)” by Angelo Jesus Canta (STM ‘20) on bc.edu/c21parishes.

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PRACTICES AT WORK

Feedback from the Flock Paul Senz Research shows that parishioners’ attitudes about their parish correlate to their perception of their pastor. And many people’s views about their pastor correlate with how much they like his homilies.

One author explores how getting feedback from the faithful is an effective way to master the art of preaching.

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every congregation is different ,

and every congregation’s response to a given priest’s homily is going to be different. In order to have the most effective communication with the congregation, priests benefit in knowing how their homilies are being received.

But how can this be done? Is it inherently disrespectful to give such feedback? Should priests simply give the congregation what they feel they need to hear, without consideration of preferences?

PREACH THE GOSPEL An important part of seminary formation is homiletics, when future priests learn the art of preaching. Benedictine Father Guerric DeBona is a professor of homiletics at St. Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology in Indiana.

“If it is the priest’s first duty to preach the Gospel,” he said, “then how will we know this evangelization has been effective unless we check with those who have heard the word?”

Feedback is the way that priests can see just how that word was received and under what conditions, he said.

In Evangelii Gaudium, Pope Francis discusses the homily as a gold mine for concrete images and stories.

When the U.S. Conference of Catholic bishops (USCCB) released its document on the homily, “Preaching the Mystery of Faith,” it used the story of Emmaus in the Gospel of Luke to call the preacher’s attention to the necessity of the liturgical homily igniting the fire in the hearts of those who hear the word.

OPENING THE WORD “Like Jesus, the preacher must strive to allow the incarnate Word to be fulfilled in their hearing at the celebration of the liturgy and call forth a faith-filled response,” Father DeBona said. On the road to Emmaus, Jesus presented himself to the disciples in a sort of homily, opening the Scriptures.

“Jesus opened up the Scriptures and broke bread for the discouraged disciples, and in so doing was present to

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them in a new and astonishing way,” he said. “Recalling God’s wonderful works in our lives and in salvation history becomes the locus of the Eucharist, where the assembly is repositioned from a conflicted and discouraged society to remember the risen Lord until he comes again.”

APPROACHING FEEDBACK “Feedback from the Sunday homily is not a time to receive approval ratings or check to see if people like you or not,” Father DeBona said. “Greeting the congregation with the hopes that everyone will say, ‘Nice homily, Father!’ is sad as much as useless.”

Preachers need to approach feedback dispassionately, he said. One concrete suggestion he has is to distribute cards that the faithful can fill out at the end of Mass. “We make time for announcements of all sorts, so why not a minute or two in order to answer the following question: ‘Can you say in one sentence what you heard at the homily?’”

People often report that homilies have too many ideas going on, and there is a general lack of focus. If the congregation cannot follow the homily, they certainly will not get the point.

Father DeBona said that if preachers decide on a focus sentence to guide the homily and then figure out specific tactics to make that focus sentence land, there is a good chance everyone will walk away with the point made.

In response to those who may not feel comfortable giving feedback to the priest about his preaching, Father DeBona explains that it is important for everyone to offer constructive criticism when it’s warranted.

“They are listeners of the word of God, members of the baptized assembly,” he said. “The People of God have a right to hear the word as members of the faithful.”

PREACHING AND EVANGELIZATION Father DeBona sees a link between preaching and evangelization.

“We partner with the assembly as we proclaim the word for the sake of the Church’s mission as mandated by the risen Lord,” he said. “Frankly, it stands to reason that if the people demand more from preaching, they will ramp up expectations for better evangelization.”

He hopes that, if expectations for the homily are high, priests “will also evolve a crucial personal theology of preaching, based on the pastoral growth in the hearts of those who are waiting for the word to be fulfilled in their hearing.” ■ Paul Senz has a master of arts in pastoral ministry from the University of Portland and lives in Oregon with his family.

Selections taken from”Feedback from the Flock” by Paul Senz from The Priest, August 2019. © OSV Publishing.

1-800-348-2440. Used by permission. No other use of this material is authorized. www.osvnews.com.

R E S OURCE S FROM B O ST O N CO LLEGE

Boston College Parish Partnership Boston College School of Theology and Ministry is excited to announce a 50% scholarship for all applicants to our M.A. in Theology and Ministry program working full time in parish ministry across the United States.

The M.A. program is designed to be flexible. It can be completed through on-campus courses during the academic year and summer, or through a hybrid model combining online and summer in-person coursework. Housing is available over the summer.

More information: bc.edu/stmparish Questions: stmadm@bc.edu or 617-552-6506

Drawing God Parish Partnership “A charming and inspiring book that will help children and their parents begin to understand the beauty and mystery of God, through artful words and expressive art.”

—James Martin, S.J., New York Times bestselling author Parishes and Catholic schools are using the new book, Drawing God, to creatively ignite the faith imagination of children by engaging them in the art of drawing God. The book shares an important message that we all see God differently.

The Guide at the back of Drawing God shares unique project ideas that are perfect for the parish, the home and the classroom.

Visit the website to learn more about the book and World Drawing God Day 2020. drawing-god.com.

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PRACTICES AT WORK

Leaving the Church Doors Open Terence Sweeney

The website of St. Francis de Sales parish in Philadelphia boasts, “Our doors are open every day to all.” In this essay, the parish sacristan chronicles the humorous and touching encounters he has with the many people who take advantage of the open-

door policy. Though the risks of such a practice are obvious, the experiences of God’s grace and mercy that he witnesses make the case that the benefits far outweigh them.

after Mass or other services, leaving big cavernous halls empty of people and all they bring with them. Several years ago, however, my parish started keeping its doors open after the sisters had walked over to the school to teach, the daily Mass attendees drifted off to their jobs, and the priests retreated to their rectory. I turn off most of the lights, snuff out the candles, lock the sacristy, and leave our half-crumbling, half-sublime church wide open. In the winter, we hang out a sign to say that the doors are unlocked. I come back midday from my writing, reading, or teaching and ring the noon Angelus and then I am back at 6 p.m. to ring the evening Angelus. Only then do the big old doors get closed and locked. I leave and wish Jesus a good night.

All kinds pass through the building; most of them I never see. They leave clues that they were there, often in the form of the three-hour candles lit before various

shrines. We have the normal ones: Mary, Joseph, and our patron St. Francis de Sales. The most popular candle station surrounds a pillar, which is strange. I call it the shrine of the unknown God. I wonder what people think when they light those candles and say their prayers.

Other people leave candy wrappers, coins at statues, umbrellas, or novena cards. I once found notes stuffed into nooks in our statue of St. Anne and Mary as a child: a grandmother’s prayers for the safety of her grandchildren in a broken home.

I do get to see some people, particularly when I lock up. Some hesitantly walk through the doors, unsure why they are open. Maybe they don’t know that the open doors are always a welcome. Come inside, the doors tell them. Inside the church, I always know the first-timers.

Their necks crane up and they take in a deep breath. It is something about the combination of enclosure and vast-

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most churches lock up

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Photo: Emil Adiels

ness. Sure, the sky is bigger, but our grand dome with its ring of windows feels like it creates space. I am humbled when I see them look up; I so rarely do anymore. Some people seem nervous to walk too far past the threshold.

Maybe they are closer to God in their reverence. One shouldn’t just waltz into the building like I do, rushing across it because it is quicker than walking around.

Other people are more at home. They know where to kneel and get right to it. There are some regulars who pray for long hours. I like them. I feel more stable in the world knowing that my erratic prayer life may be balanced by their consistency. I once watched an old nun praying. She had her Stations of the Cross book, and she muttered the prayers at each station. Our church can be dark some days and she must have had difficulty reading Alphonsus Liguori’s sentimental prayers: “I love you, Jesus, my love.” I chuckled at the old devotion. I suddenly realized she wasn’t looking at her book. The dark corners of the church didn’t bother her; the prayers had long since been written in her heart. I am not sure what has been written in my heart.

The homeless and the broken come in too. They give me the creeps sometimes. One man always has me touch the scar on his scalp. Another asked me about the celebrant’s chair: “Do you know why the black angels sit on the chair?” I said I didn’t know as I sidled away from him. “To watch over us black folks and keep Satan away.” I thought him addled, but maybe I am. Why don’t I see the angels? He asked me for money; I told him I have none.

He held my hand—“blessings, then”—and walked away.

He has moved on now. I hope his angel is watching out for him; I hope my angel keeps an eye on him, too.

One time a photographer and a classical guitarist came in for a photo shoot. He played his guitar during the photos. The camera flashed and the songs he played reached up to the cupola. They liked the light and the long lines of the pews. I sat and read. I thought the church was just right for a classical guitarist. It was pouring out and a woman came in from the rain. A good reason to walk into a church with its doors open. To stay dry and hear a little music.

I like talking to people when they come in. I tell them a little history: “We are called the cathedral of West Philadelphia,” or “We have had three albums recorded in this church,” or “Yes, the organ still works, it is a French-style organ … although I don’t know what that means.” When people come in and ask me about the place, I look up at the dome with them. I bring them up to ring our bells.

People love to ring the bells. Their eyes go wide with their first ding; they stay wide for the second dong. I am always banging away at those bells. It probably bothers people in the neighborhood, but I love to ring. When I talk to people, they tell me how lovely it is that the church is open.

The church is here for you, I tell them. These days, it is

hard to believe that this statement could possibly be true, and yet I still believe it.

Sometimes, I don’t want to talk to people. Mostly based on their looks. The attractive, the young, the hip-looking walk in and five minutes later they are ringing the bells. A frumpy fellow comes in and suddenly I am busy putting out bulletins. But love is not meant only for the easily loved. Jesus spent time with lepers because it is hard to be with the sick. I should be able to spend time with the frumpy.

Recently, a woman came in wearing her pajamas. I had seen her earlier hugging a statue of Mary in the garden (we keep that open, too). I quietly thought to myself, “What a nut!” and went to fold some vestments. I was just about ready to lock up when she came in. I wanted to get home, have dinner, drink beer, not talk to her.

The lights were mostly out; I was so close to getting out of there. She asked me if she could come in. She gasped when she saw the windows in the dome. She muttered something about the sixteen chapels and the angel of Da-

When I talk to people, they tell me how lovely it is that the church is open. The church is here for you, I tell them. vid. I was thinking about Miller High Life. She looked at me and asked earnestly, “Is he here?” Jesus, I presumed. I said yes. I walked next to her up the center aisle, the lingering light shining off the golden tiles on the high altar.

She started to cry. “I just want a hug,” she said. This made me nervous. But she went on, starting to cry, “I want a hug from Jesus.” It was so corny, so hokey; I felt some tears swimming in my own eyes. She looked at me expectantly. I surprised myself and pointing at the crucifix replied, “He is hugging us all, he is hugging you.” Looking at the cross with none of my tired irony, she said: “He is right now.” I believed her words more than mine. We walked slowly out of the church. She looked back at his open arms, and walked out through the open doors. ■ Terence Sweeney is a doctoral candidate in philosophy at Villanova University. He has written for America Magazine, First Things, Church Life Journal, and Dappled Things, and is a contributor to the Genealogies of Modernity Project. He is a sacristan at his parish, St Francis de Sales in West Philadelphia.

Originally published in Plough Quarterly No. 23 (Winter 2020) digital edition. Copyright © 2020 by Plough Publishing House, www.plough.com. Reprinted with permission.

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DIGITAL SUPPLEMENT

PARISHES IN A TIME OF PANDEMIC This supplement to the C21 Resources issue, “Catholic Parishes: Grace at Work� highlights and celebrates the work of Catholic parishes in the face of the pandemic. You can see the Spirit at work in the creative solutions and practices shared.

Visit bc.edu/c21parishes

FEATURED RESOURCES

Agape Latte AGAPE LATTE Agape Latte is a national faith-storytelling series, started at Boston College, that shares personal narratives in comfortable settings to offer transformative life lessons.

FAITH FEEDS This new program is for individuals in parishes or other Catholic communities who are hungry to share faith conversation over a potluck meal with old and new friends.

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Visit bc.edu/c21 c21 resources spring the church in the 21st century center | boston college | 110 college rd. | chestnut hill, |ma 02467

2020

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