Church of Christ the King
Contact: Renee Villa
Priority: Technology and Faith Formation
Purpose: Engage young families by developing effective methods of communicating with parishioners and providing relevant faith formation.
Method: Update communication technologies (e.g. website) to enable effective communication, conduct presentations on possibilities for parishioner involvement and host events to foster faith and build community. For example, focus on the call to ministry given at Baptism - at the feast of the Baptism of the Lord conduct a session, after Easter host another formation session on the call of discipleship and around Pentecost sponsor a retreat with a baptismal theme. At these events, members of the parish council will connect, welcome and engage with parishioners to encourage greater ministry participation.
Priority: Technology and Faith Formation
Purpose: Engage young families by developing effective methods of communicating with parishioners and providing relevant faith formation.
Method: Update communication technologies (e.g. website) to enable effective communication, conduct presentations on possibilities for parishioner involvement and host events to foster faith and build community. For example, focus on the call to ministry given at Baptism - at the feast of the Baptism of the Lord conduct a session, after Easter host another formation session on the call of discipleship and around Pentecost sponsor a retreat with a baptismal theme. At these events, members of the parish council will connect, welcome and engage with parishioners to encourage greater ministry participation.
February 2012 - Parents Renewing ApprBaptism
Goal: Develop a relationship between parents of recently baptized infants and our faith community. Continue to be a spiritual resource and partner with parents.
Activity: A potluck luncheon. Theme: Creating our identity though the sacrament of baptism. Invitations bore the image of a half shell on the cover. This is the shell that was used to pour the baptismal water over their child. The afternoon began with a brief prayer asking for “God’s grace to shine upon us.” After lunch there was a brief testimony about the importance of creating our identity in the Catholic Church – “why are we here” and “ways to establish a connection to the church community.”
Result: We received interest from several families. Five couples attended and were joined by six members from the pastoral council. In two cases, couples asked to bring a friend.
One spouse who was an inactive Catholic and who had admitted not wanting to attend was deeply affected. The spouse came back to talk things over with the pastoral associate. The visit ended in prayer at the adoration chapel. Because a seminarian who has been a genuine presence at every weekend Mass for the past year was unknown to several people who attended this Luncheon, it was evident that many had not been attending church with any regularity since the baptism of their child.
Follow Up: More classes and casual connections are planned – maybe a wine tasting and childcare. Topics might explore why we continue to be Catholic and stay members of this parish.
Activity: A potluck luncheon. Theme: Creating our identity though the sacrament of baptism. Invitations bore the image of a half shell on the cover. This is the shell that was used to pour the baptismal water over their child. The afternoon began with a brief prayer asking for “God’s grace to shine upon us.” After lunch there was a brief testimony about the importance of creating our identity in the Catholic Church – “why are we here” and “ways to establish a connection to the church community.”
Result: We received interest from several families. Five couples attended and were joined by six members from the pastoral council. In two cases, couples asked to bring a friend.
One spouse who was an inactive Catholic and who had admitted not wanting to attend was deeply affected. The spouse came back to talk things over with the pastoral associate. The visit ended in prayer at the adoration chapel. Because a seminarian who has been a genuine presence at every weekend Mass for the past year was unknown to several people who attended this Luncheon, it was evident that many had not been attending church with any regularity since the baptism of their child.
Follow Up: More classes and casual connections are planned – maybe a wine tasting and childcare. Topics might explore why we continue to be Catholic and stay members of this parish.
