Parochial vs Universal - A New Way to Think!

Last year during our Lenten Series, Fr. Bill Berrier. OFM CAP. gave a talk on this subject.  He spoke about the four marks of the Catholic Church as being One, Holy, Catholic,  and Apostolic.  He reminded us that Catholic means “universal” where we practice the same doctrines and traditions of the church. It is traced back to Jesus Christ and was the first Christian Church.  Catholics are world-wide and the oldest and largest international church. 

 In the past we were considered “parochial” because it was organized into local communities called parishes, where each parish was led by a priest and served a specific geographical area, making “parochial” a fundamental aspect of its structure, essentially, every Catholic church belongs to a parish within a larger diocese. 

 Today’s focus is much different. We are universal, a part of the Body of Christ. The church is the people, not just a building. Our culture has changed, and we can make these changes through prayer and discernment.  It is inevitable even when we don’t like it.  It has happened before, is currently happening, and will happen in the future.  The question to ask is, “Will we help the process of renewal or be an agent of mediocrity and manage to just sit back idly and decline?”

In the past we had stand alone parishes, which is the traditional model, the one we think of when someone mentions a parish.  It is a single community of believers, who have their own pastor that they do not share with anyone, they have their own church, their own finances and their own parish staff and office. Not only standalone but a part of a greater diocese and a part of the Universal Church.

In contrast, today due to the lack of priests and declining attendance, our churches have become partnered parishes.  Partnered parishes are still canonically distinct with their own finances and the like.

The big differences are they are now being asked to share a pastor, parochial vicar, and deacons collectively.  Partnered parishes should respect each other’s unique identity while sharing and advocating for each other whenever possible.  They can share things like religious education programs, Lenten series,  evangelization efforts and different ministries.  This provides better stewardship of resources and personal gifts and relieves some of the financial burden on the parishes.  It also allows us to share our gifts with one another.

The impact of sharing our priests is a challenging task for our priests to undertake.  It is an immense responsibility.  Our pastor, priests and deacon need our support and prayers. In Lakewood, Ohio we have three parishs that share a pastor, vicar, and a  priest in residence.

We heard about the Seven Sister’s Apostolate a prayer group for parish priests where seven women volunteer to pray one day  a week for an assigned priest. So seven days a week there are ongoing prayers. With three priest it gives us 21 apostolates that pray on a assigned day of the week in our adoration  chapel.   This has involved our three parishes in prayer and fellowship that has enhanced our parish communities. 

We need to remember that it is no longer “my church” and “your church” it is “our church”  We need to go back to the ideology that the Catholic Church is universal and not just parochial. The “parochial” nature of the church remains, the experience of attending mass or participating in parish activities are different when a priest is spread across multiple locations.

Fr. Bill also talked about how we see new leadership with one pastor at our three churches?  How do we support this and evolve by taking our parochial boundaries and become united as the Body of Christ? How can we bear witness so that the walls do not fall down?  He further explained that we are called at our baptism to universal holiness and the three knots on his belt are poverty, chastity, and obedience.  So how do we begin to experience it as our church,  not my church?  Let’s not forget that wherever the church is in the world it will be the same.  The church are the people, not just the building. 

He pointed out that universality is the new Mass, and community comes together in a new way with combined pastors and shared churches.  He reminded us that all our welcomed and are called to be brothers and sisters in Christ.

One analogy he used was “there’s a lot of wood” in our parishes.  Meaning “Pews” There is room for people to be a part of the Body of Christ by attending Mass not just on Easter and Christmas.  We can evangelize to others, invite people to Mass, pray for strength to endure these challenges.  We can look to the scriptures for guidance and understand that in 1 John 4:19 “ We are called to love, just as He loves us”  It means we can make these changes with obedience as brothers and sisters in Christ.