By: Fr. John Jasica
GREAT THINGS ARE HAPPENING!!
Last week I began my sixth year as the pastor of the Chatham Catholic Family of Parishes. The time has gone by so quickly!! I can remember my first months here as we dealt with the final phase of the pandemic which included registering for Masses and social distancing. It was a challenging and difficult time for all of us. I am so happy to have those day long gone!!
Over the years following the pandemic we spent time recovering, rebuilding and transitioning from maintenance to mission. With the wisdom, support and guidance of the Pastoral Council, Finance Committee and staff, we formed our IGNITE THE MISSION PASTORAL PLAN. The heart of this plan is to form disciples who fall in love with Christ and reach out to all with the Good News of the Gospel.
We have also spent time consulting parishioners (and continue to do so) so that we can enhance, adjust and grow our pastoral plan to most effectively engage the faithful. We hope to empower parishioners to embrace the faith more and reach out inviting others to encounter Jesus in our faith community. You can go to our IGNITE THE MISSION page of our website to see how the journey has unfolded so far.
I have often shared the fact that mission dictates structure. Once we know where God wants us to go—we then build what is needed to get there. Over the last few years we have been putting into place what we need to become faithful disciples who reach out to all. This has meant change, making some difficult decisions and re-examining pastoral priorities. With the Lord’s grace and trusting in His guidance—things are happening. I am seeing many powerful signs of our pastoral plan coming to life through the faithfulness and hard work of our entire staff, ministry leaders, volunteers and parishioners.
IMPORTANCE OF COMMUNICATION
While we continue to grow our
pastoral plan and gain a lot of momentum—we need to share our story, allowing the grace of Christ working through our community to be a sign of hope for the people of Chatham and the world. We are seeing more volunteers stepping forward, more ministries being introduced and more people attending our weekend Masses. In order to share all the events taking place, to share the stories of faith and grace in our family of parishes, and to invite the greater community to encounter Jesus through us, we have hired Amy De Ridder, our part-time Communications Lead.
The parish bulletin is no longer the only way to share what is happening in the Chatham Catholic Family of Parishes. Sharing who we are and what we do goes beyond our weekly publication to include social media (Facebook, X, Instagram), podcasts, video presentations, articles and blog posts. In order to connect with the faithful and the greater community we need to create our own consistent content that tells the faith story of our community.
Parishioners have shared with us the power and importance of hearing from witnesses—people sharing their faith experiences and how Jesus guides their lives. The Communications Lead will help promote and share events, create posters, advertise and connect with partners in our greater community but the primary role for Amy will be to help tell stories of faith that can change our lives!!
PODCASTS IN OUR FAMILY OF PARISHES
(1) THE WARM UP—This weekly podcast that I produce is up to 10 minutes in length. It offers insights and brief reflections on the upcoming Sunday Gospel. It can be a small but significant way to help prepare for Mass. I have been making this podcast for the last number of years and enjoy sharing my thoughts about the Sunday gospel. It often helps me prepare to preach too!
(2) STEEPED IN GRACE—This is a new podcast hosted by Maureen MacDonald, our Weekend Experience Lead, and Renée Culverwell, our Discipleship Lead. This new podcast (the first episode is now live at our parish website—www.chathamcatholic.ca) will give our hosts a chance to reflect on their experiences of grace in our family of parishes and in their own lives—I think they even try new tea each episode!!
(3) THE LINE UP—This podcast will be an opportunity for me to share more in-depth on things happening in our family of parishes. Amy De Ridder will host the podcast as we reflect on events, ministries and our pastoral plan seeking to form disciples who reach out to all. Our first episode is now live for all to hear!
(4) FAITH & WORKS—Amy will be taking over this podcast where she will interview parishioners and others reflecting on faith and the good works they are doing. Our newest episode has me interviewing Amy discussing her new role. Check it out today!!
