Life Around All Saints - occasional reflections on living our spirituality at All Saints, Highland Park

Our beacon of hope - Fr. Tom
(Apr 25, 2008) I arrived at All Saints sixteen months ago and was immediately engulfed in a flurry of activity. I spent a couple of weeks with the retiring rector to learn about the parish. Something he impressed upon me was the great and demanding pastoral need of the mainly latino community. Being a pastor in a large Latino parish is kind of like being a priest in a small village. Everyone knows you (even though I don't know everyone) and looks at you as a family member. You eat with them, you celebrate with them, their joys are your joys and, of course, their concerns are your concerns. The priest is a de facto part of the family's life.

Lately I have noticed that the pastoral needs have been increasing as the economy is getting worse. Almost every facet of pastoral life is touched: couples struggling in their relationships, more teens getting into trouble, and more people losing jobs and getting hours cut or pay reduced. The anxiety about rising prices and lowering wages is felt throughout the church, and seems to bring out demons all around us.

I am aware that sometimes the church and priest are the only resource people have in their lives, the only place they can go with their troubles. Most parishioners won't look for a therapist or marriage counselor or guidance counselor for their kids. They would rather go to the priest, send their kids off for a good, stern talk with the Father.

The church is important. It promises hope, and through our fellowship and worship we try and communicate what Jesus always taught, that amidst the chaos and endless changes of life there is a God of eternal changelessness, a God of goodness and hope. At times of transition and anxiety, our message becomes honed. It becomes clear, like the light a beacon on a hill which you can see from every direction.

 

Working on our goals for 2008 - Fr. Tom

The Annual Meeting was the opportunity to kick off our goals for the year. We arrived at our 12 goals (which are available in the church Narthex) through a process of listening to parishioners' suggestions for the church and seeing what administrative changes would be necessary for continued growth.

In the area of Liturgy one of the goals is preserving the solemnity and dignity of the Mass, especially by working with the acolytes who help us weekly, and by establishing a Master of Ceremonies position, to insure that everything is smooth. Another goal is to work on choir membership.

In the area of Finance and Administration the ongoing goal is to encourage and maintain pledges, especially by motivating the members who do not yet pledge, as well as plan a calendar of fundraising events. Eventually when the time is right, a final goal will be capital campaign.

There are various goals with respect to the other ministries of the church: Firm up adult support for the Sunday School and Youth Group, establish a regular schedule of Bible Study and Formation opportunities for Adults, establish an Outreach plan, formalize the Pastoral Care with Lay Eucharistic Visitors; and prioritize and begin to work on the Buildings and Grounds.

While these goals may seem ambitious, I keep remembering that there are only 11 of them, and that each is just a small task which can be accomplished easily by a few motivated church members.

See the update of the goals in the Narthex of the church.