Denver Catholic

18 SEPTEMBER 2022 | DENVER CATHOLIC Mission of the Parish On the most basic level, the Holy Spirit reminded our parishes that they need to be places where you and I are equipped to live our mission as disciples and as a family. We need support, teaching, accompaniment, community, etc., and our parishes should be the places we find all of that and more. Given that point, there was some unique clarity the Holy Spirit gave to our parishes regarding what is most important right now and how they can better live their mis- sion in this new apostolic age: T H E H O LY S P I R IT I S A S K I N G O U R PA R I S H E S TO B E M O R E W E LCO M I N G . The scriptural image that was received with this theme was that of the father in the Prodigal Son parable (Lk 15). Our parishes need to be like the Father in that parable, looking for, seeking and welcoming all those who are returning to the Father's house. Our parishes should be a home where people are expected and awaited, seen, known and loved. A key fea- ture to this reflection was that you and I are responsible for making our parishes into homes like this. It's no use expecting "those other people" in the parish to "do the work." We are all jointly responsible for this, there is no hidden cavalry who will do it for us while we watch; you and I must be the cavalry. Knowing the current broad meaning to the word "welcom- ing," the Holy Spirit was very clear to define what he meant by that term. Welcoming does not mean compromising on either loving the other or speaking the truth. Authentic welcome does both. Our parishes must be where people are loved uncondition- ally and also given the truth of the Gospel. O U R PA R I S H E S N E E D TO B E AC TI V E LY WO R K I N G TOWA R D S A S U P E R N AT U R A L U N IT Y A N D H E A L I N G B E T W E E N C AT H O L I C S O F D I FFE R E N T L A N G UAG E / CU LT U R A L B ACKG R O U N D S , L IT U R G I C A L E X P R E S S I O N S , P O L ITI C A L A FFI L I ATI O N S , E TC . We can't pretend there have not been or are not wounds within the Church. We've inflicted wounds, been wounded ourselves, and are all in need of healing through reconciliation — reconciliation to Christ first (2 Cor 5:16-21) and then from that, with one another. Our parishes are not meant to be buildings in which many different communities simply cohabitate with one another. Rather, our parishes need to be places where all the diverse communities within them truly become "one body in Christ" (1 Cor 12). This is not a sociologi- cal project, but a supernatural one. T H E PA R I S H D O E S N OT E X I S T FO R IT S OW N S A K E B U T I S S E N T O U T FO R T H E S A K E O F T H E B R OA D E R CO M M U N IT Y. W E N E E D TO R E ACH O U T W IT H T H E G O O D N E W S; T H E T R E A S U R E W E H AV E N E E D S TO B E S H A R E D. Our parishes cannot be content looking after and serving only the needs of her current members. Our parishes need to have outreach to those who have fallen away, to the poor and to the broader commu- nit y within her boundaries. We need to get to know the people, both in our pews and in the surrounding neighborhoods. Although we each have an individual responsibilit y to carry out the mission of evangeli- zation, we aren't meant to do that alone. The parish should be the place from which we can be sent out together. Photo by Cari Ervin | Denver Catholic

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