Priest Assignments Announced
Over the past year we have heard various things about Beacons of Light, an initiative in the archdiocese designed to address:
- Declining church attendance
- Underutilization of buildings
- Lack of resources
- Declining numbers of priests and the ever increasing demands on them
Along with the statistics, Archbishop Schnurr and other leaders of the diocese have a deep desire to empower parishes in ways that make them more vibrant, welcoming and ultimately bring people back to the Church.
A first step in this process was to move parishes into family groups, which would decrease the number of pastors needed from 120 to 60. The next step was to identify who those pastors would be, and that is the news I am here to share with you today. Fr. Pat will be moving to Cincinnati to help bring 5 parishes on the east side into a family. As you know from his sharing, this is an assignment that he has great experience to bring to the table. We keep him in our prayers as we move forward.
Fr. Brian Phelps has been named pastor of the sister parishes of Incarnation and St. Francis. He and Fr. Ignatius will shepherd us through the Beacons of Light process.
While we still don’t have lots of details regarding the future, we do know that in the coming months we will make a decision about number and times of masses between our 2 parishes. As indicated in Fr. Pat’s bulletin article this week, various parish groups such as parish staff, pastoral councils, RCIA and others will get together to meet each other and to begin to consider possibilities for collaboration.
Most importantly, we need to pray for all the transitions that lie ahead, and we need to focus on how each of us is living our faith and making Jesus present in our families, at our jobs and in the world each and every day. When we are focused on being Jesus presence for others and are strengthened by prayer and the sacraments, we will be able to meet the challenges ahead with grace and charity.