From the Pastoral Council: 2023 Listening Sessions Report
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Dear Parishioners,
The 2023 Listening Session was the first initiative undertaken by our Pastoral Council. First and foremost, it was conducted in response to the invitation of Pope Francis to dioceses throughout the world to engage in a synodal process of listening to the Word of God and one another, encountering the person of Jesus Christ, and discerning God’s will for the Church. Simultaneously, it was a wonderful opportunity for us as Pastoral Council members to have the time and space to hear about the needs and concerns of STA parishioners directly.
As we were all new to our posts, the intention was to take stock of the current spiritual, social and organizational state of our parish. It was important to us that our way forward as a parish, our investment of our time, talent and treasure, the vision we have been tasked with executing be rooted in the guidance provided by the people of God that we have been called to serve.
Over the course of two days, we met with about 60 participants and pooled feedback by offering virtual and in-person opportunities. Parishioners were invited to attend the Listening Sessions on the evening of October 20th, 2022, as well as on Sunday October 23rd, after the 10 am Mass. A google form was made available through the church website with the same set of questions. The questions were 1. What do you like about our Parish? 2. How can our Parish improve? and 3. What do you want to see happen at STA in the future? Parishioners were able to submit their responses digitally throughout the month of November. We must express our gratitude to those who shared their thoughts with us in such an honest, thoughtful and caring manner. It was very encouraging to see all those who took part in prayer, listening and efforts to discern what the Holy Spirit is calling us to in the twenty-first century.
The Pastoral Council coordinated with our youth group leader, Francesca Leite, to hold a STAYG Listening Session. On the evening of December 4th, the members of our youth group relayed their faith formation experiences with openness, maturity and frankness, giving us a much-appreciated insight into what our high schoolers need from our church. We cannot thank all of the participants enough for your feedback. Your feedback was honest, heartfelt and thoughtful; the process of digesting the feedback was also thoughtful, methodical and took time throughout the Winter and Spring. Our members held five meetings throughout the Winter and Spring devoted to organizing and prioritizing the feedback. We used an application called Jamboard to create dozens of virtual color coded post-it notes and a priority matrix to evaluate the viability of the ideas in the coming year.
Four areas emerged that we will be attending to in the coming year. Your Listening Session input made it clear that people in our Parish want to connect with one another and each priority honors that fundamental desire.
First, we will renew our efforts to create and support prayer groups and bible study groups at St. Thomas. These are wonderful opportunities to connect with fellow Parishioners around the word of God.
Our second priority is to follow up with families and Parishioners after they have completed Sacraments to further connect with and welcome members of the Parish.
Our third priority will be to bring back regular socials and dances. After the great success of our Parish Picnic last September it is clear that we are calling for more opportunities to gather together socially.
Our last priority is to give ministry members the opportunity to promote and advertise their ministries from the pulpit. It is so powerful to hear from a member that you can connect a face and name to when their ministry is promoted and we will provide those opportunities.
Father Larry stands by our priorities, the Pastoral Council stands by our priorities, and we invite you to take part in carrying our priorities out.
The Pandemic made us aware of how valuable our time is, and the Listening Sessions were a tool to clarify how we can focus our time and efforts as a community. The feedback you provided has made it clear that STA is to be a place of encounter and connection. How blessed are we that, in a time when the perceived trend may be rancor, incivility and apathy, we are given people – in the pews and up on the altar – who are keenly aware that faith formation, development and maintenance is served best by an environment of warm welcome and earnest appreciation for the talents each of us brings as we continue to build the Kingdom of God in the here and now.
The Pastoral Council plans to meet with heads of our various ministries to discuss the realities of bringing this vision to life in each of their respective areas. We will also want to assess what kind of help they need to be able to successfully serve our parishioners. In the meantime, we ask for your continued participation in our parish life. You have shown us that you care deeply about STA, its present and its future. Please keep sharing your thoughts, your talents, and your time with us.
Thank you and God Bless!
Yours in service,
Saint Thomas the Apostle Pastoral Council
