"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever" (Heb 13:8). Our Lord is unchanging in His love for us, in His fidelity, and in His ever-present grace.
In the midst of changes and transitions, it is good to remember that the Lord never changes. We can always rely on Him. This is good for us to remember as we are in a time of transition at St. Joseph's Parish. We have said farewell and "thanks" to Father Michael Lawlor for his service as pastor, and we await the arrival of our new pastor, Father David O'Donnell. There are other changes taking place in parishes all around us. Yet, in the midst of change, Christ never changes.
The Church in the Boston Archdiocese, in size and numbers, is shrinking. The percentage of Catholics who are active participants (attend Mass regularly and are involved in their parish) has dwindled from 70% in the 1960s to 18% today. The number of parishes was, at one time, over 400; today the total is 290. The number of active priests was over 1,000 just two decades ago while today there are only 470. It is estimated that there will be approximately 300 priests within 5 years. (Like our own Msgr. McGann, there are also many senior priests who continue to serve in parishes). The number of men and women religious has declined significantly, too. Locally, we see the consequences of these shrinking numbers. Father O'Donnell can't come to St. Joseph's until a priest is found to take his place in Brockton. However, he does expect to be here early in September. Our neighboring pastor, Father John Grimes at Most Precious Blood in Dover, has also been appointed as pastor of St. Theresa's in Sherborn because there are no priests available to send there.
If we just look at the numbers, the picture is somewhat bleak. But, as disciples of Christ we have to look at more than just the numbers. We have to add the Lord into any equation of numbers and resources. When Christ taught the crowds who had grown hungry, His disciples asked Him how they could feed so many people. It was then that Jesus fed four to five thousand people with just a few loaves of bread and a couple of fish.
Certainly, we must plan for the future and be realistic about our resources both at the parish level and at the Archdiocesan level. More importantly, however, we have to put our faith in the Lord, just as those disciples did who gave Him their few loaves and fish. Think of all those who have gone before us and lived by faith in Christ. St. Francis of Assisi was called by Christ to "rebuild the Church" that had become infected with corruption and immorality, and his Franciscans eventually helped renew the Church throughout the world. St. Elizabeth Seton, a young destitute widow raising five children, eventually founded the Sisters of Charity and established the first Catholic schools in our country. Pope John Paul II lost his parents and his only sibling before he was 20. Soon after he suffered these losses, he entered the seminary while the Nazis were rampaging across Europe. As we all know, he eventually became pope and traveled throughout the world calling people to find true joy and hope in Christ.
The challenges we face are significant. Parishes and parish structures will likely have to change throughout the Archdiocese. But the Lord will never change…. in His mercy, in His Presence among us in the sacraments, and in the Holy Spirit He sends to renew the face of the earth. The most important challenge for us is to remain faithful to Him, Who is faithful to us.
If we put our faith in Christ the Good Shepherd, He will lead us into the future with joy and hope. Years from now we will be able to look back and see how the Lord accepted "the few loaves and fishes" that we gave to Him and brought about many miracles.
Father Paul Sullivan
Lord and giver of all life, help us to value each person, created in love by you.
