Sample Projects
These samples are intended as illustrations to stimulate creativity for what is possible in your parish on the pathway to parish vitality. The illustrations include urban, suburban and rural parishes.
RURAL SETTING - Holy Sabbath Parish
Just 3 years after the closing of their school, Holy Sabbath Parish, in a rural community, is still seeking to fill the void that seems to have been left behind. Membership continues to decline even after both the initial loss of the school and challenges related to the Journey of Faith and Grace. Recently attendance at the week-night religious education classes has dropped off, and even the participation in a few of the parish social events traditionally held on week nights has also fallen off. Some parishioners travel a long distance to attend Mass on Sunday and are unlikely to make the trip during the week or in the evening.
The pastor and staff are overworked and the congregation seems uninspired. Fortunately, the new parish catechetical leader has come along with new energy and ideas to save the day! After several discussions with the parish leaders, who are all volunteers, the pastor and catechetical leader decide to bring all parish programs to the Sunday calendar. With a focus on the “Sunday Eucharist as the source and summit” of parish life from which all else flows, the parish calendar is re-vamped so that times before and after parish worship are used for catechesis, service, and fellowship. The parish implements a survey to identify the target audience and focus all parish programs for access and strategic impact.
In order to foster a re-establishment of the Sunday as a true Sabbath they do the following (with proposed budget):
- Parish survey on parish vitality ($150 – postage/paper)
- Consult community calendar to avoid major school district conflicts, etc.
- Host a quarterly parish brunch ($2000)
- Create a relationship with a service organization for a regular Sunday service event, provide transportation for 25 people 4 times ($800)
- Create an interactive website, Facebook, webinars, etc for non-gathered learning across generations ($1500 + 1000 for equipment)
- Help households continue conversations/topics started at Sunday mass at home and in small groups to reflect upon their role as evangelizers using Question of the Week format ($200)
- Create a ‘feedback loop’ to allow households/families to share ideas from their discussions on the mission of their parish using social networking technologies ($200)
- Inform the congregation at-large about the Eucharist and how it is a sacrament of mission
- Implement monthly spiritual renewal sessions for topics and groups based upon results of parish survey ($1000)
- Provide training to parish leaders in order to create a leadership paradigm that fosters congregational participation and leadership in the absence of paid-staff and/or changes in pastor ($1000)
- Resurvey, assess outcomes
Cost: $6850
Contact:
Office of Parish Life - Dennis Mahaney
795 Main Street, Buffalo, NY 14203
Phone: 716-847-5531
Fax: 716-847-2206
Department of Lifelong Faith Formation - Mary Beth Coates
795 Main Street, Buffalo, NY 14203
Phone: 716-847-5501
Fax: 716-847-5593