Opportunities to Embrace 

Consultation Process Update 

Friends, we are well underway with our parish consultation process, and I want to thank all those who have participated so far. We have 11 different worshipping communities in our parish and that means many different conversations are   being held – from many different perspectives.

I am happy to announce that by the end of this weekend, most communities will have completed their first consultation: Conversations in the Spirit. The purpose of this 8-10 person conversation is to listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying to a small, diverse range of parishioners in a circle of prayer – the mature and young, Australians and immigrants, the weak and the strong – as they respond to simple questions such as, ‘What do you love about your community?’ and ‘What     challenges do you see for your community going forward?’

The recorded data taken from these conversations is then summarized and sent to the wider community, who will then have a chance to meet together to discuss. It’s only after my leadership team and I have had a chance to listen to what both the Holy Spirit and the people are saying that we can even begin the process of decision-making. In saying that, however, it is becoming apparent, even at this early stage, that there may be a need to offer some possibilities around a future Mass schedule.

Sanctity of Mass and Routine

I completely understand that Sunday Mass is an anchor and staple of many people’s existence, and that any changes to time and location may have a negative impact – even on a person’s mental health. I am sincerely sorry for this, but this change is something that we cannot avoid. We have been insulated from this reality for much longer than many parishes, both in our Archdiocese and beyond.

Please trust me when I say that I would not choose this for our parish. I invite you to choose to join me in focusing on the possibilities for growth and renewal in our parish that this time of change offers.

The Challenge of Metrics

We have received advice from the Archdiocese about the number of Masses in our parish, which is based on quantitative data.

• All but two of our weekend Masses currently have, on average, less than 90 people in attendance;
• Our Mass Count Data summary from May 2024, issued from the Archdiocese, shows average Mass attendance for the past five years – see the summary at the end of this post;
• Connon Law 905.2 states: If there is a shortage of priests, the local ordinary (bishop) can allow priests to celebrate (Mass) twice a day for a just cause, or if pastoral necessity requires it, even three times on weekends and holy days of obligation;
• Lay-led liturgies on Sundays are not an option for a parish like ours, where driving time to neighbouring communities is, for the majority, less than 15mins.

While this may be difficult to accept – and notwithstanding the importance of doing what we can to preserve the community spirit which exists in every community in our parish – there are most certainly opportunities ahead of us which lead to a greater sense of unity and community in our parish.

Other Considerations

The health and wellbeing of our priests 

There are other important factors to consider including the mental, emotional and physical fatigue that priests experience, which is why three Masses is the limit. This limit has been established to protect the workplace health and safety of our priests.

The current weekly workload of our priests is often extremely draining and is not sustainable into the long term. This workload often includes emergency end of life care and funerals, preaching preparation, sacramental preparation (weddings, baptisms, confirmation and first holy communion) and their celebration, office administration, leadership    development – to say nothing of the priority we are trying place on our evangelizing mission.

Areas of Growth 

We also need to consider our current areas of growth and fruitfulness. These include good news stories such as the 13 teenagers who are choosing to become Catholic as a direct result of our parish’s continued investment in youth ministry, and the promotion of Alpha as our primary tool for evangelization.

I offer these words in the sincere hope (hope is a significant theme of this Sunday’s readings) that they may broaden our horizons as to the necessary aspects of both our community consultations and individual thinking. Please be gentle with your words as we navigate this time together.

Peace be with you at this time, Fr Josh .