St. Mary’s A Place to Belong, To Believe, To Become
If you have been reading this bulletin, and if you have noticed the banners in front of the church and the parish center, then you are familiar with the tag line we have been using of late: “St. Mary’s—A Place to Belong, Believe, Become.” This tag line summarizes what we are trying to achieve this year at St. Mary’s. Allow me to explain.
St. Mary’s—A Place to Belong: All of us belong to many different communities. We belong to clubs; we belong to different social circles; we belong to a particular family. The social groups to which we belong support our interests and define who we are. This is why St. Mary’s is so important. It supports us in our Catholic life and defines who we are—the Church, the People of God, the Body of Christ. St. Mary’s is a place to belong because it is a community of people committed to the Catholic faith who shape and support our lives as followers of Jesus Christ. To belong to this community is to belong to a community of disciples who define themselves in light of the Gospel.
St. Mary’s—A Place to Believe:It is not easy to believe today. We live in a secular society that tells us that there is little or no need for faith. But at St. Mary’s we find a like-minded community of people for whom faith is important, a community of people who share our faith values. It is the community of St. Mary’s that strengthens and nourishes our faith. And so St. Mary’s is an environment in which you can believe without apology. St. Mary’s is a place where we can proclaim our faith and strengthen the faith of others, as well as be strengthened by their faith.
St. Mary’s—A Place to Become: Because St. Mary’s is a community of faith, it enables us to become disciples of Jesus Christ. It enables us to become conformed to the image of God’s Son, Jesus Christ. It enables us to become, as Matthew Kelly put it, “the best version of ourselves.” Put another way, the community to which we belongs determines, in large measure, who we are. When someone tells us what community or communities they belong to, we already know a great deal about them since the community to which they belong shapes the values of their lives. And so it is with St. Mary’s. By belonging to this community, our lives are being shaped anew every day after the image and likeness of Jesus Christ.
The Year Ahead: In September we are inaugurating many changes at St. Mary’s, changes that affect our religious education programs and Sunday Mass schedule. External changes such as these, however, do not guarantee that our parish life and Catholic faith will be renewed. After all, as important as these changes are, they are external and so cosmetic. Real change must come from within. It must renew and transform us. Such change can come about if we make St. Mary’s a place where all feel welcome and at home. Such change will come about if St. Mary’s becomes a place where we can express our faith without hesitation and embarrassment. Such change will come about if St. Mary’s is a place of faith where we can become followers of Jesus Christ.
As we return to St. Mary’s refreshed from the summer’s vacation, let’s make it a place to belong, a place to believe, a place to become.
Father Matera