Father's Reflection 11.5.23

A new mission statement for our parish

Hello all,

After prayer and consultation with the Parish Leadership Team, I’m excited to present to you our updated parish mission statement that will be a guiding principle for me as your pastor and for the direction of our parishes: 

We seek to be transformed by the fire of Jesus’ love
so as to be vessels of that love for others.

Each word has been chosen very intentionally, so I thought I would break down the significance of some of the key words.

• “To be”: The repetition of this expression points to the fact that who we are takes precedence over what we “do”. Activity flows from identity, and in our relationship with God, we are primarily receivers of His love rather than “achievers.” Who we are evangelizes and draws people to God more than anything we say or do.

• “Transformed”: The goal of our faith is not just to become good people but to be actually transformed more and more into Jesus, which is called “divinization." See Romans 12:1-2 to see how St. Paul talks about this “transformation.”

• “Fire”: In the Bible, fire often represents the Holy Spirit. Jesus said His own mission statement in Luke 12:49 was to “cast fire on the earth.” The fire of the Holy Spirit is contagious and can’t help but spread when it is ablaze in our own hearts.

• “Vessels”: an expression that St. Paul himself uses in 2 Corinthians 4:7: “We hold this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that the transcendent power belongs to God and not to us.” Again, the primacy is receiving God’s love and letting that overflow into all of our relationships.

I’ve never been a pastor before nor cast a vision for a parish, but I’m excited to have that opportunity here for the first time. 

Thank you for your support and patience while I learn how to lead you well!

Rejoice in hope,

Fr. Joel