PARISH RENEWAL

What is Parish Renewal at St. James?

Parish renewal is a look at our parish through the lens of a new parishioner.

  • Do they see our Parish as an active vibrant community offering opportunities in which their family could develop their spiritual life?
  • Are we an open, welcoming and caring community looking after each other through our service to our Parish?
  • Would they feel like our Parish is a place they would like to invite others to experience?

We invite you to explore these ideas and look at the different ministries within our parish. Reflect on your interests and how your service in these ministries could affect change within our parish.

You are called. You matter. You belong.

These simple yet profound words define our Pastoral Renewal at St James. We believe that Jesus has a personal call for each of us, a call that affirms our immense value in God’s eyes. Your unique experiences are a vital part of God’s plan. We are a community of disciples, united in a shared mission, which you are a part of and in which you belong. Join us on this journey of renewal, where every person is an integral part of our Lord’s plan in developing a warm welcoming community where we all can develop and grow our relationship with God at all times in our lives.

Renewal within our parish is a journey. We begin with an open heart and an inquiring mind. Our goal is clear and laid out in our mission statement.

“At St. James Parish, we strive to be a caring, open and inviting parish on a mission to enrich our parishioners at all ages, in their developing and deepening relationship with Christ. Our congregation is encouraged to foster meaningful connections, embrace God’s gifts and talents which he has place in each of us, and strengthen our families’ resolve for a life of faith.”

Our renewal journey all began in 2023 when Bishop McGrattan attended the Synod of Bishops and returned with a renewed spirit of hope and enthusiasm. He has challenged Father Domingo and our Parish of St. James the Greater to commit to examine our Parish through its parishioners and to build a strong Parish community in faith, a Parish of encounter and witness all the while strengthening our Parish families throughout all stages of life.

Like the early Church, the synodal renewal of our faith communities depends on the primacy of grace, the witness of prayer and worship, communion, faith formation, outreach and leadership. These are the foundations of every parish faith community. Through this renewal, we seek for you to join us in the journey.

You are called to join us in this journey of Parish Renewal. God has blessed all of us with gifts and it is in us, through God’s will, to find our inner strengths and to be part of his plan for our lives.

You belong in our parish, and we welcome you to become apart of the faith community. To build a parish that inspires you, your friends and your family.

You matter and we want you to be heard and acknowledged. As part of our parish family, we would like to get to know you, accept our invitation to join us in spiritual development, activities and events. You are a part of our parish family.

 

We have listened, considered and now are putting to action our plan for parish renewal. We have had a self examination of our ministries and we have laid out, action items from each of the five areas of parish life.

Word, Worship, Community, Service and Stewardship.

Your gifts are needed to fulfill not only these action items but to pray and consider new areas of development in forming our community to become missionaries in Christ, to strengthen family life within our parish and making St James the Greater a church where your faith can be developed through encounter and witness.

Below is a list of Action items that were developed for this year. If you are inspired to share your talents, we encourage you to reach out and contribute, making a positive impact on both our community and your personal faith journey. Use your talents in a project close to your heart, let us know how we can support you.

Action ItemKey Initiatives
Word (Faith Formation & Evangelization)
  • Invite young parishioners to participate in the word ministry.
  • Evolve the bulletin and website to incorporate content that helps younger people comprehend our faith.
  • Entice members to pray for a specific intention for each of the ministries.
Worship (Liturgy & Sacraments)
  • Parishioners to adopt a participant in RCIA and Sacramental Preparation allowing a deeper relationship for the participants and parishioners.
  • Develop and define activities of ministries and roles of volunteers to help parishioners understand how to become involved and participate as a volunteer.
  • Find an individual who can help us establish a platform in which ministries could share ideas, seek advice, and develop plans.
Community (Fellowship & Parish Life)
  • Find a parishioner who could research, develop, and present programs offered through Form for our parishioners.
  • Coordinate to have each of the ministries rotate in welcome parishioners as they enter the church. Then present their ministry to the Parishioners from the pulpit after mass.
  • Ministry Fair to engage and invite parishioners to engage in the different ministries.
  • Each ministry should display members’ names and photos on bulletin boards to enhance approachability.
Service (Outreach & Care for Others)
  • Create a prayer card to be placed in hampers and offered to grieving families, as well as those visited by the Pastoral Care Team.
  • Create a Video, bulletin announcement, or flyer on how to get involved highlighting the impact of service to others.
  • “Thinking Of You” cards sent to parishioners and others in need of comfort and support.
  • Supporting community outreach by having parishioners join students at St. James to prepare sandwiches for people in need.
Leadership/Stewardship (Parish Leadership & Resources)
  • Create an online directory and pamphlet to give access to parishioners to the various ministries in the parish so they can understand and join if they are interested.
  • Fill the vacant ministries with new leaders through meaningful discussions and thoughtful advertising of the ministries.
  • Establish an effective communication strategy to inform parishioners about parish activities of Finances, Parish Council and of the Renewal team.
  • Begin the process of developing a strategy to engage families and children in a meaningful way.

For a copy of the full plan submitted to the diocese please ask at the office.

 

The Parish Renewal Team at St. James is focused on developing the tools and supports that enable us to meet our mission statement. We support the various ministries in the parish in fulfilling their action items. Our thoughtful discussions find ways to develop our parish in meaningful ways. If you would like to join our team, please let us know.

Join the conversation. As parishioners you matter, and your opinions and thoughts are important. We want to hear from you. In the discussion area below, you will be asked you thoughts on how we can improve our parish. We have broken it down into three areas:
Forming missionaries in Christ, strengthening family life and being a church of encounter and witness.

Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts.

You Are Called