Dear Friends,
Because I wrote a multi-part series on the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for many, many weeks (which I hope to be able to collect into a book-like form for everyone), I did not have the opportunity to share insights from the Amazing Parish Conference, which was held back in June. Perhaps you have wondered what fruit has been born from the conference or what we will now do because of the conference. It’s good to remember this: Amazing Parish is not a program in which we follow simple steps or implement a detailed yet preset plan. Amazing Parish is a movement following the inspiration and prompting of the Holy Spirit. If we think of the Church as a building with Jesus Christ as the cornerstone, maybe we better understand what St. Peter says in 1 Peter 2:4-5, “Come to him, a living stone, rejected by human beings but chosen and precious in the sight of God, and like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house.” We are meant to form the spiritual house of the Church as living stones, built upon Jesus Christ—this is what makes an Amazing Parish.
So what helps to become living stones? The first approach is to pray without ceasing. As Catholics, we are pretty good at praying before meals, maybe even praying before meetings. We have Holy Mass, the highest and most sublime form of prayer. We have beautiful and powerful devotional prayers, such as the Rosary. With all of this in mind, what does it mean to pray without ceasing? None of us reading this are contemplative nuns or monks, living cloistered lives. Many of us have to work, and employers probably don’t want to pay for people to pray (although they should!). There are simple ways to pray without ceasing: asking others (family, friends, acquaintances, even coworkers) how you can pray for them and then actually praying with them; asking others to pray for you in time of need; stopping by the church and praying before the Blessed Sacrament when making a decision; asking God for what He wants in decision making. These are all things that will be incorporated at the parish level, and in small ways, can be incorporated into your daily lives as well.
Fostering a culture of healthy teamwork is another way to help build a culture of living stones. This clearly deals with operations at the parish level, but it is worthwhile to discuss healthy teamwork. This means that everyone is working toward the same goal, the same mission. When the Browns hired Kevin Stefanski as head coach and Andrew Berry as general manager, there was constant discussion about there being “alignment” between the coaching staff and front office; healthy teamwork is the same notion. While there may be disagreements and occasional conflict, everyone is on the same page. There aren’t silos, islands, or pet projects where someone or some group is doing it’s own thing, apart from the mission and direction of the parish. Healthy teamwork includes offering to help each other in achieving the mission of the Church to bring people to Christ.
Lastly, living stones are active disciples, and an Amazing Parish fosters a culture of active discipleship. A part of active discipleship is having intentional conversations about faith, speaking with others about Jesus Christ, not just as a historical figure, but speaking about how Jesus is alive and at work in our own lives. We’re often not comfortable talking about faith or Jesus. Active discipleship calls us to bring Christ into every aspect of our lives: financial, social, career, recreation, family. In the coming weeks and months, more will be said about unceasing prayer, healthy teamwork, and active discipleship, and more will be shared from the Amazing Parish Conference.
We are saints under construction, seeking to become living stones who pray unceasingly, are healthy in teamwork, and active in discipleship. Have a great week!
In Christ,
Fr. Matt