Press Release
The Catholic Church worldwide is undertaking a “fact finding mission” to the extent that has never happened before. This project starts in Rome with the Pope and extends down right to St. Mary’s in Fairhaven. The Catholic Church hierarchy is very interested in what Catholics around the world are thinking about their Church.
Participating Catholics, former Catholics and non-participating Catholics, are all invited to a one-time meeting where your thoughts, opinions, and questions will be heard and communicated.
The Vatican will address issues worldwide; but if you attend the session at St. Mary’s in Fairhaven, this local parish will be able to take action immediately on positive ideas and suggestions!
Over the past years the attendance at Catholic churches has been declining; and with the Pandemic, the attendance in many Churches has been cut in half. The Church scandals that have had an effect, the Catholic population is aging, some Catholic churches have closed, and of course the Pandemic which forced families to stay away from in person masses for over a year. When people get in the habit of not going, it can be a challenge to get them to change their new habits.
On a positive note, although attendance at weekly Catholic Mass has declined, the registration at Catholic Private Schools has been growing over the recent years, especially during the Pandemic!
In Fairhaven, New Bedford, Acushnet, Dartmouth, and Fall River, there are 10 elementary schools, and two Catholic high schools.
The Catholic Church also operates Catholic Charities and nursing homes.
But the School System and the Charity work are different from the benefits Parishioners get from weekly mass and Parish Activity!
The main focus on this “fact finding” process is to focus on the issue of weekly mass attendance and local Parish participation by the parishioners themselves.
The goal of the process is to make each parish in the US, and here in the Southcoast, the best it can be for our current parishioners and to make the Church as welcoming as possible to any new parishioners.
The time involved for you would be one meeting, a couple of hours. Your part is not an ongoing process.
The official name for this world wide “fact finding” process is a Synod.
This type of meeting for discussions and input is generally held at the senior levels of the Church hierarchy, but now for the first time the process is being implemented at the local level.
It will be refreshing to hear first-hand what all Catholics, participating or not, are thinking about Parish life in their Church. The discussions will be a judgement free zone where all ideas are open for discussion.
It’s important that everyone involved in the Church now, or those who are thinking about the Church, will have an avenue where their individual thoughts, ideas, feelings, and impressions will be listened to and heard. This is a one-time meeting, a couple of hours, not an ongoing process.
And immediate changes or adjustments may be made at St. Mary’s Fairhaven, if there is consensus and the suggestions are doable for the local Church.
To participate, please send your contact information to St. Mary’s Fairhaven: stmarysfairhaven@comcast.net (508)992-7300 or text to 603-493-2512.
Thank you for your consideration!
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