About six months ago, the Archbishop called the parish priests together to speak about strategic planning for the future of the Church in St. Louis. The number of able-bodied priests here and in the US is becoming smaller and older. In the Archdiocese, it is projected that we will lose 5-6 priests a year for the next 10 years due to retirement, death, and health issues. In other words, over the next decade, there will be 50-60 fewer priests, and even with the ordination of our new priests, — we will have more parishes than priests. Now I am not saying we should panic. In fact we are incredibly fortunate in St. Louis to have a relatively large number of men studying for the priesthood and we have one of the best ratios of priests to Catholics in the country. Nevertheless, we need to have a plan for the future and how to run our parishes when some of them will no longer have a priest. The archbishop asked each pastor to form a committee from different members of the parish and evaluate the parish according to a 123-question survey. The purpose was to highlight the parish’s strengths, weaknesses, and ultimately whether or not it is viable.
The committee of ten parishioners and I had a 5-hour super-meeting last month and the good news is at the end of the survey, St. Michael was given a viability rating of “good”, leaning towards “very good”. It also identified our strengths and areas for growth.
In regards to strengths, let me give you the highlights. Our St. Vincent de Paul Society has a steady list of clients that they serve each month and the organization has been able to help the many people who call needing assistance with food, utilities, rent, clothes, and more. The contributions from parishioners remains steady and there is a literal army of volunteers from among you who serve the less-fortunate. Our sacraments, especially the Eucharist are readily available and celebrated according to the norms of the Church. The parish promotes the education of our children by its participation in Holy Cross Academy and our own PSR program. We are blessed with a friendly and knowledgeable staff in the parish office and the parish has a strong sense of community as a whole. Currently St. Michael is debt-free and increased its Sunday collections by 12% over last year.
Of course, there are still ways we can grow! Some particular areas that need our attention are: becoming even more welcoming to our new members and helping them to get involved in parish activities and organizations. We can improve in our practice of evangelization by reaching out to neighbors who either claim no faith or no longer practice their catholic faith. Our parish can also benefit from becoming more aware of social issues that affect the Church and world at large and becoming a voice for justice in these issues. Finally, we can do even more to offer opportunities and resources for our parents and adults to grow in their understanding and practice of the catholic faith.
In the course of the past year, 33 children were baptized into the Faith while 16 funerals were celebrated at our church. We witnessed 13 weddings and welcomed 34 new families into the parish. During this time, we have also improved the physical campus by building the pavilion, repairing and re-hanging the leather doors in the church vestibule, installing a new sound system, tuck-pointing the church, repairing the roof, and installing new flashing. The church bells were repaired and automated, the sofitting and doors of church were painted, a teachers’ lounge and learning consultant rooms were built in school. We refurbished the old wooden altar and placed the tabernacle in center of sanctuary, trimmed the trees around parish grounds, and are in the process of planning and planting native Missouri species around the parish campus.
These are all wonderful signs of a growing parish that is alive in Christ! This growth and vibrancy is happening because you, the members of this wonderful parish, practice your faith, make sacrifices to support St, Michael, and share the same values in your home that unite us in the faith. I am also convinced that this parish is capable of even more because of the tight-knit community that we are and the genuine charity and compassion that you have for your neighbor. As Catholics, we should never be content with good enough. In fact, in the spiritual life, in the practice of our faith, if we are not growing and developing in our relationship with God and with others, then we are actually sliding backwards. It’s just not possible to sit back and be content with where we are.
We have had a great year! And this parish is moving forward in a right and exciting direction. But we have to keep working at it in every area. That includes our weekly collection, our hospitality and welcoming others, our charitable outreach, our attendance at weekend Mass, our sharing the faith with friends and neighbors, and our improvement and updating of the parish grounds.
You are the key to making this happen and keeping St. Michael viable for years to come. After all the Masses next weekend, members of the viability committee will be available in the rectory to discuss the results of the parish viability survey. I want to invite you to look over the survey in whole or just the sections that interest you. You are welcome to disagree with our results and to make suggestions we might have overlooked. Your feedback and observations will be compiled into the final report which will be written next month by the committee of your fellow parishioners and submitted to the Archbishop. Archbishop Carlson will use the information and recommendations that we, all of us, give him when he makes future priestly assignments for St. Michael and the surrounding parishes.
I hope you feel the same excitement and passion that I do when I think of St. Michael Parish. Let’s continue to move forward in faith, eager to learn from God and ready to share our Catholicism with others. May this parish be defined by generosity, prayer, and charity in the coming year and for many to follow!
