Where should I begin?

Readiness & Gifts

We just finished the second module of Shaping the Parish, a two-year training program drawing on the methods and knowledge of ascetical theology and organization development. We’re 1/3 of the way through. Toward the end of the session one person talked about how it was all coming together for him. We went around the Zoom room. We heard similar comments from others. The many theories, skills, methods, and models had hit a point of integration and clarity. That’s always a moment of harmony and relief in these programs. Maybe this investment of time, energy and money will be worth it. 

There were also comments about ways in which some were beginning to make interventions and some wondering – where should I begin?

Worship and communal listening processes

That’s our top of the head response. In other words our bias. When Robert was the new vicar at Saint Elisabeth’s, South Philadelphia in 1975 he took two immediate actions. Evening Prayer would be done in the chapel at 5:30 Monday through Saturday and for the next six weeks those willing would meet for an hour before Sunday Mass to explore the future direction of the parish. Worship and listening.

So, there are two starting places. Practices that may be established step by step, a bit at a time.

“The rhythms of the Threefold Rule—Eucharist, Daily Office, and personal devotions, especially reflection—offer us a full spiritual life, grounded in ancient wisdom and useful for life in our modern world. This is a spirituality that offers balance within itself and for our daily life. An apostolic stance here allows us to engage the Rule as adults who accept responsibility for our spiritual lives. It provides some detachment from the temptation to get caught up in an obsession with the rector’s liturgical quirks or the changing fads of the wider church.”[i] Plus, live the Church Year -- Eucharist on all Sundays and Principal Feasts (observed on the actual day or the eve of the day, not transferred to Sunday or another “preferred” time); observe our two Fast days and Days of Special Devotion; and add in the appointed Holy Days to celebrate with the Eucharist or Office. In all that we are following the organization development wisdom – focus on shaping the structures, processes and climate.

Parishes can all improve their listening, consultation, and discernment. How is it that a church can develop a collective voice, a common mind, a here-and-now understanding of what we think and feel? There are methods and stances that contribute to developing a shared perception of our situation and an adequate level of agreement regarding a way forward. And once again -- focus on shaping the structures, processes and climate. Over time we’d usually put in place several parish community meetings each year, routinely make use of small groups during meetings to stimulate participation, make use of short surveys[ii] completed and discussed during the meeting, inviting the group to assemble in a gentle manner, and involving everyone in a go-around-the-circle-process. See PDF for more on the this.

Okay. Now you know where to begin. Unless all that just doesn’t fit the current circumstances, competence, and willingness of your parish. Maybe your parish isn’t ready for that. That’s where the leader’s wisdom, or lack thereof, comes in.

Gifts and Readiness

Two considerations. There are more than two – so read all the books. But for now let’s consider gifts and readiness.

Gifts

Most of the time you want to begin with the gifts and strengths of the parish. What is this parish good at? What have we done well over time and under pressure? When do we feel most alive? When do we experience ourselves as being true to the purposes of a parish church?  

Start with the gifts already in that community of people. Build upon them, grow them.

At Saint Clements, Seattle where we attend, the parish development process identified two gifts. First, good liturgy and music. Second, community life. So, much of the initial parish development effort was devoted to strengthening and improving what we already valued and did well.

Readiness

“ ‘Readiness’ is the parish’s ability and willingness to change from some current way of doing things to a different way. An adequate level of ability and willingness are both necessary. Ability is about whether the parish has within it the competence (that is, the skills and knowledge) and resources (for example, enough money or energy) needed to accomplish this particular change. Willingness focuses on the degree of desire or motivation in the parish in support of the change. If we don’t accurately assess readiness that can take us into change efforts that end not only in a failure around that particular project but can increase the frustration of those seeking needed change. Future possible efforts can be undercut this way. Shaping the parish is about wisdom and good judgment. Even for the wisest of leaders it’s not always apparent how to do things in a way that doesn’t jump past the congregation’s readiness.”[iii]

An exploration

Let’s pull a few of the pieces together.

We started this article noting Brother Robert’s first actions at St. Elisabeth’s[iv] -- Evening Prayer in the chapel at 5:30 Monday through Saturday and six weeks of meeting before Sunday Mass to explore the future direction of the parish. How did that relate to gifts and readiness?

The fact is that initially he didn’t have a clue. He was fortunate that he arrived with some basic knowledge of ascetical theology and had considerable training in group and organization development. He knew the parish was disintegrating[v] and that the bishop would be fine with closing the place. He was young and made several mistakes in the first couple of years. But the two first steps ended up being just right.

Robert had no idea what the gifts and strengths were. He’d learn that over time. The response of the parishioners to him, his leadership, and these first two initiatives offered the first inklings of what might be in the parish that they could build upon.

The readiness issue in regard to Evening Prayer every day was what he expected. In the first months most days he said the Office on his own. And no one objected to him spending time and the need to heat the chapel. In fact it soon became apparent that people felt good about it. It was what a church does! It was why we existed! And, of course, the priest should pray! And it meant that the doors were open at 5:15 each day. Many people in the neighborhood thought that the parish had been closed. The sign announcing Evening Prayer, the doors open wide, and occasionally the Vicar in cassock sitting on the steps before or after prayers – parishioners loved the new visibility, even if they weren’t at Evening Prayer.

Usually parishioners will not object to the priest doing the Daily Office at the church. “It’s what we do!” If they do object look for two things going on. They may be angry with the priest for other reasons. And they may be so unformed as a community and lacking in a critical mass at the center of faithful practicing people, that they resist. Often with, “we’re becoming too religious.”

Robert also had no idea if there would be any response to the meetings before mass. However, he wanted to know just how bad things were. How depressed were the members? How deep was the disintegration? He proposed to a parish meeting that anyone who came to all six meetings would then constitute the vestry for the coming year. [Note: The vestry had disintegrated. No one was sure as to who was on the vestry]. Eight people came to the meetings. And based on those discussions Robert proposed a few goals to work on. He had begun to learn about their gifts – an informal catholic piety, a love of the Eucharist, persistence, kindness, tolerance of differences, work hard for your family and parish, loyalty, seek practical solutions, and respond positively to reasonable and caring leadership.

They had a readiness for those first meetings. The success of those meetings generated a readiness to do more.

Sister Michelle, OA & Brother Robert, OA

On the Feast of Saint Scholastica, 2024

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[i] Heyne, Michelle; Gallagher, Robert. An Energy Not its Own: Three Cycles of Parish Life and the Purposes of the Parish Church (Shaping the Parish Series) (p. 89). Ascension Press, 2023

[ii] See chapter 2 in Finding God in All Things on the Process of Planned Change and the later section on Survey Feedback

[iii] For more on readiness see Chapter One, Nothing So Contagious as Holiness,  Heyne, Michelle ; Gallagher, Robert A, Ascension Press . 2024

[iv]  Saint Elisabth’s Stories and Issues  and Pictures of the parish 1975 - 81 

[v] See Chapter 2 Parish Life Cycle, Heyne, Michelle; Gallagher, Robert. An Energy Not its Own, Ascension Press, 2023. Also a PDF of the Parish Life Cycle.