Stewardship Weeks Approaching

Those who know me, know that I believe stewardship is the foundation of the Christian life.  Properly understood, stewardship begins with a sense of being blessed, graced by Jesus, Father and the Spirit.  Essential and powerful experiences of Jesus’ love and mercy make us into disciples of Jesus who serve his Kingdom through generosity of time, talent and treasure, which in turn inspires others to become disciples from our witness and invitation.
            Those who also know me, know that I categorize stewardship of Time as time spent in lifelong faith formation, stewardship of Talent as talents given to Jesus and the Church to build it up and stewardship of Treasure as the wealth given back to God out of thanks for God’s generosity to us.
            The year, our stewardship weeks will be

• Stewardship of Talent: September 22nd
• Stewardship of Treasure: September 29th
• Stewardship of Time: before and during Lent

See page 11 of the bulletin for more information.  Thanks to parishioners who follow stewardship materials in the bulletin before the dates above and special thanks to parishioners who actively engage in the process of becoming better disciples of Jesus through good stewardship!
 
St. Saviour Parishioner Feedback Sought
As squared-away pastoral councils do, St. Saviour Pastoral Council is seeking feedback from parishioners in order to make the best recommendation to me regarding the possibility of selling a portion of St. Saviour’s vacant land.

This weekend a frequently asked question handout will be given to parishioners attending Mass at St. John and St. Saviour to give general background surrounding the possibility of selling some of St. Saviour’s land. The handout will also be available on our website. In two weeks, parishioners will be asked to offer feedback on a small card during Masses at St. John and St. Saviour. 
 
Fr Pat’s Health
My surgical follow-up appointment was July 29, the day before leaving for vacation.  Joyfully, some wonderful things came from that appointment. 

The surgery was a success.  I am blessed to have no complications.  My first test after prostate removal showed a non-detectable prostate-specific antigen (PSA). If this remains non-detectable over the next months and years, I will not need radiation.  Thanks so much to those who prayed for me and to those who attend Mass on a weekly basis, which is the most powerful prayer we can pray!

After that appointment, all lifting and exercise restrictions were removed!!  Now I can lift more than a gallon of milk, dig to plant trees, get exercise and ride on two wheels as before!
 
Beacons of Light Year Three (Phase 3) Kickoff Meeting:  Parish Culture
On August 20 at St. Maximilian Kolbe Parish, the Crescent Parishes Parish Leadership Team (PLT) met with other PLTs in the archdiocese for the kickoff of the third year of Beacons of Light (BoL), for which culture is the focus.  For me, the day was the best BoL formation yet because of the presenters.

 The first was Mr. Scott McGohan who is the author of a recent book entitled Culture is an Inside Job.  His presentation was particularly powerful because he offered a wealth of information about how to sense the culture of an institution.   In addition, he offered outstanding insights from his own experience, as well as intimate personal witnesses of his own struggles to live the culture he was calling employees/people to live.

The second speaker was Fr. David Sizemore a pastor from Columbus Diocese.  He and his staff did something simple, but revolutionary: they continually called parishioners to 1. Change and 2. Meet reasonable expectations for faith growth.   Fr. David’s talk was also impactful not only for some of the key learnings he related but also because of his personal witness to his own and the struggles of his people.  I marveled that he calls staff, parishioners and school staff alike to accountability in four areas 1. Faithfully attending Mass 2. Belong to a lifelong faith formation group or endeavor 3. Make adoration of Jesus in the blessed sacrament a weekly practice and 4. Have a spiritual director.

Those kinds of high expectations are unheard of in church life.  No wonder his parish, on the decline before higher expectations were offered, is now thriving in every dimension of stewardship:  time, talent, and treasure!
 
More Next Week
 I’ll say more about the third year of Beacons of Light and culture next week.  In the meantime, please take some time this week to wonder about your parish.  Can you list some essential dimensions of your parish culture?  This can be trickier than we might imagine.
            
Thanks for wondering more about culture.  We are going to spend this year wondering about culture and consciously building the culture of our new parish.
 
Sincerely and with Love in Christ,
Fr. Pat