31st Sunday in Ordinary Time |
[Father Paul]
Last week, the clergy in the diocese spent several days together, sharing insights into how we can be missionary disciples and inspire our parishes to grow in discipleship. We heard from a priest from Indiana who had fantastic success in the growth of his parish and has created an incredible experience at his parish over his 23-year tenure there! For example, he described his hospitality ministry and how his team of hospitality ministers greet people outside the Church and at various moments inside the Church as well. It sounded like he had 5 or 6 hospitality ministers. Deacon Gunther, also at the event, asked a great question: How do you recruit and train all these ministers? His answer was great; he talked about being attentive to his parishioners, asking them about their talents and where they think God is calling them. but something in his response made me think of a question of my own, which I asked: "How many paid staff do you have?" "24" was the answer, with two part-time staff. Wow. We have one full-time person, Jeanie, and three part-time people - Laura, our Youth Minister, Lucy, our Director of Marketing and Communications, and Danica, our Music Director. He then mentioned his annual budget: 4 million dollars. And he had almost a 100,000 dollar surplus this year. Wow. We should have that as our goal - to raise 4 million dollars and hire 24 full-time.
No, that's not our approach. But it's not magic, either. During November here in our parish, we pay particular attention to our financial situation and giving. We call it parish stewardship month when I ask all parishioners to think about their giving. I will be giving four homilies related to this: Next week, I'll be talking about small groups and the following week, I'll be speaking about the 5 Ps of giving to charity - priority, planned, percentage, progressive and prayerful. Then, the last Sunday of November is Stewardship Sunday, where I'll be speaking more directly about our budget and allowing you to set up your online giving right now. But this week, I want to discuss why we're doing all this.
So here's my question: Why bother coming here? Can't I have a personal relationship with Jesus without coming to Church? Can't I just read my bible at home and try hard to live a good life? And pray in the privacy of my room? Jesus even said: When you pray, don't pray as the hypocrites do; go to your room in private, and Jesus, who sees all that we do in secret, will reward you. Aren't my Christian values better served at work or home with my family? I mean, 4 million dollars among 5000 parishioners is still a lot of money. Couldn't that money be spent somewhere other than creating and maintaining a church building and all these programs? It's a great question.
For one thing, I'd be out of a job. I'm kidding, that's not the answer. There are three answers:
First, let's ask what it means to be a follower of Jesus. It means a personal encounter with Christ, surrendering to and following him. Here is my favourite quote from Pope Francis: "I invite all Christians, everywhere, at this very moment, to a renewed personal encounter with Jesus Christ, or at least an openness to letting him encounter them; I ask all of you to do this unfailingly each day. ... The Lord does not disappoint those who take this risk; whenever we take a step towards Jesus, we come to realize that he is already there, waiting for us with open arms."
The first reason for our existence as a parish is to lead you to experience that transformation and equip you to bring others to that realization. If your only mission is a personal relationship with Jesus, then you might think that all you need to do is go home and pray, but Jesus specifically asked us to transform the world and our communities. "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations." Jesus has given us this mission, which is challenging to do alone; it is much easier and better to support each other and be there for each other as Christians.
I still remember fondly being on a boat on the Sea of Galilee. I couldn't help but think of how much they must have enjoyed each other's company as they learned from such an incredible person. But that encounter with Jesus led to a surrender to Him (they dropped everything) and to follow Him. This is our path as well.
Secondly, Jesus asked us to continue worshipping Him after he ascended. In particular, he asked us to continue the Last Supper ritual, which we now call Mass. After the last supper, Jesus told His disciples, "Do this in memory of me." He formed a community of disciples around him, and after his ascension, they gathered together as a community to love and support each other in that mission. That community comes from the heart of Christ; it is his will and intention, and it is our wisdom to follow that. transformatTransition: what is a disciple? Someone who has encountered Jesus has surrendered to and is a follower of him.
I remember once hearing from a friend of mine who told me that he had been on the verge of suicide when he decided to visit his sister, who was at that very moment hosting a small group in her house. At the end of the evening, my friend decided to open his heart to Jesus - he did, and it changed his life. This is the transformation that we are hoping for here.
Thirdly, we can do so much more working together than separately. Jesus said, "When two or more are gathered, there I am in your midst." There is tremendous grace that comes from praying together.
I remember presiding at a funeral mass once, where many people gathered who hadn't seen each other for a long time. "I've got to start getting back to church." The strength we find to go into our rooms and pray, to read ourselves and study scriptures, does not end there; it allows us to go into the workplace and share our joy, goodness, and ethical principles. It is a natural grace that comes from being with like-minded people forming a community of intentional disciples.
So, everything we do as a parish, all our programs, all our budget, and every nickel we spend is designed to equip you and me to encounter Jesus, to surrender to him and to follow him, which means to do His will. How are we going to do that? We have five strategic anchors: to grow wider, to grow deeper, to grow smarter, to create profound weekend experiences at Mass, and to develop layers of leadership. This is why a church like St. John the Evangelist in Indiana has a budget of 4 million dollars and a full-time staff 24. However, the purpose of St. John the Evangelist is not to raise 4 million dollars but to raise disciples. If they are giving at that level, they haven't been guilted into it; it's because the parishioners of St. John the Evangelist have realized and felt in their hearts that being a follower of Jesus means to have a generous heart, a forgiving heart. A heart that understands that we are not alone, that the salvation of our friends and neighbours as they turn their lives to Christ is worth celebrating. I know this is also why we're doing so well financially.
If our mission is to make disciples, how will we know we are fruitful? I will give you a clue: that measurement has nothing to do with how much we bring into the collection; it has to do with how many lives are changed. Fr. David Mallon, author of Divine Renovation, talks about asking parishioners at Pentecost to come forward for a blessing if Jesus has changed their lives. We will do the same, and I hope Jesus touches everyone and changes their lives.
I conclude with the rest of the quote from Pope Francis: "Now is the time to say to Jesus: "Lord, I have let myself be deceived; in a thousand ways I have shunned your love, yet here I am once more, to renew my covenant with you. I need you. Save me once again, Lord, take me once more into your redeeming embrace."
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