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Who Do You Say I Am? Understanding Jesus in Today’s World

August 9, 2024 • Pastoral Notes • Views: 6

Who Do You Say I Am? Understanding Jesus in Today’s World

Jesus asks this question of his apostles in today’s reading from St. Matthew’s Gospel. If the question was relevant in Jesus’ own...

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Breaking Barriers: God’s Invitation to All Peoples

August 9, 2024 • Pastoral Notes • Views: 12

Breaking Barriers: God’s Invitation to All Peoples

God’s intent, throughout the sacred story of the scriptures, was that the One True God should be known to all the nations of the earth!...

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In our search for faith, we often enough look for God in grand and large things. We look for signs “of biblical proportions,” like earthquakes or great winds. However, we can learn from the Prophet Elijah that God is more often found in the still, small things. The quiet voice in the heart. The soul that has stilled its anxieties and listens in peace. It was in the quiet that Elijah “hid his face,” because he knew he was in the presence of the Almighty. Life has its storms and other upsetting experiences. Jesus never said we would not have these problems. But as with Peter, Jesus bids us to trust Him to bring us peace and to still the storms. Church should be a place where, in the presence of the Holy Eucharist, we may find peace. Yes, it's also a place of community and encounter! However, in our Catholic faith we also have a long tradition of respecting people’s sense of quiet within the sanctuary. It is from the quiet of the heart that our fears and anxieties can be released to the Lord, and from Him that we may find our peace. Call to action: As we welcome new parishioners, visitors, and even skeptics to come into our parish and to join our community, let us also invite them into a deeper spiritual life. We don’t need to be slavish in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament, but we can convey the traditions of quiet respect, both for the Holy Eucharist itself, and for those who engage in quiet prayer in Our Lord’s presence. As we spend these next months educating our people about the presence of Christ in the Holy Eucharist, let us also teach our people to commune with Christ, heart to heart, in peaceful contemplation. Pastoral Action Points The celebration of the Assumption of Our Lady is celebrated this Tuesday. You can use your GC Smart Tools to inform your parishioners about mass times and any special events you may be having. GiveCentral also offers free templates you can adapt and use in your emails, texts, and direct mail. You can find them under global templates. School is starting! Use your GC Smart Tools to connect with your school aged families. This is a great time to reach out and help them to reconnect with the parish! GC Smart Tools make it a snap to reach hundreds of people in seconds! Last call to get into GiveCentral’s 20 for 20 Campaign! We are using the last 20 weeks of the year to help you increase your parish members’ levels of participation and giving by at least 20%. Find more information about 20 for 20 here: https://www.givecentral.org/20-for-20-campaign Connect with GiveCentral Toll-free: 833.716.2612 | Email us at: support@givecentral.org

August 9, 2024 • Pastoral Notes • Views: 12

Listening for the Divine: The Peace of Christ in the Stillness

In our search for faith, we often enough look for God in grand and large things. We look for signs “of biblical proportions,” like...

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Pastoral Reflection There is an irony in the juxtaposition of the first reading and the gospel. Abraham, who thinks he must “give up” his son (after years of having no heir) is able to keep him, whereas God the Father’s Son will be the one sacrificed for human sin. All these events happen on mountain tops, which are spiritual images for peak experiences. However, what stands out in today’s gospel passage from St. Mark are the words of the Father, “this is my beloved Son, listen to Him.” Listening, by which is meant deep listening, is no easy thing. Our minds are ablaze with our thoughts, our “to do” lists, and, let’s be honest, our own prejudices. We tend to filter everything we hear through the thick haze of our own preoccupations. Yet, if we will settle down, calm down, and turn the inner noise down, we might then be able to “listen to Him.” When we listen to God, we are in the act of being obedient. The word obedient comes from the Latin roots meaning “to listen to.” Someone who is disobedient, therefore, is someone who isn’t listening. They are filtering – as we all tend to do. The disciplines of Lent are meant as a gift to help us de-clutter, to cut the “noise,” and to listen to the Lord deeply. Call to action: At Give Central we keep pressing the point about becoming welcoming parishes. Why? Because if we listen to the numbers only 15 to 18% of Catholics are attending mass or being active in some way in their parishes. We must be obedient to the Lord when he told His disciples to out to all the nations and spread the Good News! Our churches must become sanctuaries of welcome where the brokenhearted can find rest and renewal in Christ. As Easter approaches and many “sometime” Catholics will attend our masses please take advantage of your GC Smart Tools, like GC Smart Text and QR Code to “capture” the contact information from your visitors, then follow up by contacting them and making them feel welcome. Once again, form a welcoming ministry, or ask your youth groups and/or senior citizens group to become welcomers. You can also set up a small kiosk in your entry area with information for visitors and guests. Pastoral Action Points Keep your pews equipped with your parish’s pew cards all through Lent to make engaging and giving easy for your donors! GC Guru is launching soon! This your GC AI assistant! You have questions? GC Guru has the answers! You will soon see the GC Guru upon logging into your admin account. If you have not signed up for SmartGive Elite for Lent & Easter - - now is your chance to signup! Time is running out, click here to sign up! Stay up-to-date with news & information - follow us on social! Toll-free: 833.716.2612 | Email us at: support@givecentral.org

August 9, 2024 • Pastoral Notes • Views: 12

The Power of Silence: How Lent Helps Us Hear God’s Voice

Pastoral Reflection There is an irony in the juxtaposition of the first reading and the gospel. Abraham, who thinks he must “give up”...

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Pastoral Reflection The Epiphany of the Lord, and tomorrow’s feast of the Baptism of the Lord bring to a conclusion our Christmas seasonal celebrations. The gifts brought by the Magi signify a transition in the story of Jesus’ birth by pointing to his future as King, his divine nature, and his death for our freedom. And we know that this story marks a transition for Joseph and Mary who will have to go haste, once again, to exile in Egypt to save the life of this child. Our lives are filled with transitions, aren’t they? Some are joyful, like the birth of a child, and some are full of anxiety, like the flight into Egypt and wondering what the future may hold. Whether our transitions are joyful or anxious, we can turn to the one whose name is Emmanuel -- “God is with us.” Jesus has come to accompany us in all our joys and sorrows, hopes and griefs. Jesus accompanies us especially in his Word, the gospels; his living body, the Church; and most especially in the Holy Eucharist, where, in his body and blood, he continues to enter our humanity so that we might share in his divinity. Emmanuel -- “God is with us.” Call to action: In the United States we are in a special year devoted to a deepening of our understanding of the Holy Eucharist. It is a special time of catechesis and an invitation to encounter Our Lord in the mystery of his Sacramental Presence – body and blood, soul and divinity. Use this year as a time of invitation. Let the beauty of the mystery of the Lord’s Eucharistic presence speak to the hearts of his people – especially those who have been away. The Church has understood that there are three important “portals” that open the door of the soul to an encounter with God. They are sometimes referred to as the transcendentals: goodness, truth, and beauty! Through telling the stories of the Eucharistic saints we may demonstrate the power of goodness. Through clear but gentle catechesis we may demonstrate the truth of Christ’s real presence in the Eucharist. But most especially through beauty will the hearts of believers and non-believers alike be opened to the love of Christ made known in the Holy Eucharist. Pope Benedict XVI, of blessed memory, said that it was beauty, in the end, that would save the Church. Then let your Eucharistic celebrations be beautiful, and Christ will speak for himself! Pastoral Action Points Use your GC Smart Tools as a means for educating your people about the Holy Eucharist through texts, emails, and direct mails. There are many who, for various reasons, may not be able to receive the Eucharist at this time. Yet, they can still attend mass and adore the Lord in the Holy Eucharist. Take advantage of the opportunities for Holy Hours and Benedictions, and even Eucharistic processions as ways to include the many. GiveCentral has some exciting new tools coming your way later this month! Stay tuned for more information. As always, GiveCentral stands ready to assist you in using the full array of GC Smart Tools to make your ministry more effective and easier. If you need some help or just want to know more, contact us at support@givecentral.org. Stay up-to-date with news & information - follow us on social! Toll-free: 833.716.2612 | Email us at: support@givecentral.org

August 9, 2024 • Pastoral Notes • Views: 10

Finding God in Every Transition: Lessons from the Epiphany and the Baptism of the Lord

Pastoral Reflection As we celebrate the Epiphany of the Lord today and the Baptism of the Lord tomorrow, we bring our Christmas season to a...

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Pastoral Reflection The first reading from the Book of Leviticus and the gospel passage from St. Mark’s Gospel stand in sharp contrast to one another. In the first reading, if someone thinks they might have leprosy they are to go to the priest who will confirm the diagnosis. If the priest agrees, the leper is to make himself look disheveled and exclude himself from the rest of the community until he is healed or dies. There were practical reasons for this, of course. The self-exile was intended to protect the rest of the community from infection. But soon enough these self-exiled people were looked down upon, forgotten, and thought to have brought disease upon themselves. No one was to touch them or approach them. By contrast, in the gospel, a leper approaches Jesus (something he should not have done) and asks if it is Jesus’ will that he be healed. Jesus does will this man’s healing and he is healed! No longer is he “on the outside,” but now he is back, restored, renewed! How often do we exclude ourselves from others because of our past or current mistakes, addictions, or problems? Do we “self-exile?” Or, in other cases, do we feel judged and excluded by the community? It is Jesus’ will that we be healed, restored, and renewed! As Ash Wednesday approaches this week, let us take the opportunity to return to the Lord who loves us beyond all measure with all our hearts! Call to action: With the beginning of Lent on Wednesday this is an important time to reach out to your people, especially those we may not have seen in a while. Two full years after the Covid emergency Churches still haven’t returned to previous levels of active participation. Our job, like that of Jesus, is to reach-out to those “self-exiled” and to offer God’s grace of healing love and the renewal of life and spirit. Use your GC Smart Tools to reach out to everyone on your email and direct mail lists! We have email and letter templates you can adapt to your own parish for free. Please use them to renew souls and restore hearts! Call your people home for Lent. Pastoral Action Points GiveCentral has hard evidence that using our GC Smart Tools increases participation and giving. Check out our End of the Year report for more information. Read our Year in Review Report! Save your seat for our upcoming webinar on Monday, February 12, 2024 at 12:00:00?PM Join us to learn the many ways GiveCentral can support you in welcoming and engaging parishioners and visitors throughout the Lenten and on Easter Sunday. Learn the best welcoming and engaging practices. Save your seat now! Use your GC Smart Tools to email, text, or direct mail to your people Lenten messages of renewal and hope. Do this weekly and you will see growth in your participation. Sending a mass email or text literally takes only seconds with GC Smart Tools! Stay up-to-date with news & information - follow us on social! Toll-free: 833.716.2612 | Email us at: support@givecentral.org

August 9, 2024 • Pastoral Notes • Views: 12

Breaking Self-Exile: Returning to Community and Christ’s Love

Pastoral Reflection A Message of Hope: Healing, Restoration, and Renewal In today’s first reading from the Book of Leviticus, we see a...

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Pastoral Reflection In the 1st reading for today we see that poor Job, who has suffered so many problems and deprivations, is tempted to despair. How often have the people in our pews been tempted to despair when life takes hard turns, or when the choices we make turn out to be the wrong ones? Yet, God is the God who “heals the brokenhearted,” as the Psalmist reminds us. In the gospel we see that Jesus, once again, confronts the evil and the effects of evil that afflict God’s people. He is there to heal. He is there to save. He is there to restore the goodness His Father intended for the human person. He is the light of the world who drives out the darkness, who converts the shadows into places of light. He lifts us from what oppresses us just as surely as he lifted Peter’s mother-in-law when he took her hand. Call to action: Very often in Church we are admonishing people to avoid sin and evil. They do need to be taught and formed, and they do need the reminder to avoid sin. But the Church must also be a place where they can come to be healed, where they can cast their cares upon Him who cares for them and be lifted up – just like Peter’s mother-in-law. Use this year of Eucharistic education to hold special moments of adoration for the purpose of healing. Acknowledge the pains and hardships, physical, mental, and spiritual, that your people endure. Use your GC Smart Tools to invite and remind people of these Eucharistic events. You can email them, send a broadcast text, or even use direct mail to reach all your parishioners. Pastoral Action Points Plan some Eucharistic events, like Holy Hours or Benedictions where your people can come and venerate the Lord in His sacramental presence. Make them times of healing and hope for people who are carrying burdens in their hearts. Lent is coming in two weeks! We have GiveCentral pew cards, emails, and direct mail templates available for you to customize and use. You can find them in your Communications Portal. If you need assistance with the Communications Portal, or would like some training on these features, please email implementation@givecentral.org Our monthly monitor is a very powerful tool that you can use to help enhance engagement and increase giving for your location. The report can currently be found in your admin dashboard or click the link to check out your Monthly Monitor today! https://www.givecentral.org/admin/report/location-report-card Stay up-to-date with news & information - follow us on social! Toll-free: 833.716.2612 | Email us at: support@givecentral.org

August 9, 2024 • Pastoral Notes • Views: 3

Restoring Light: How the Church Can Lift the Burdened

Pastoral Reflection In the 1st reading for today we see that poor Job, who has suffered so many problems and deprivations, is tempted to...

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Pastoral Reflection Notice that when Jesus encounters the man with the unclean spirit, he does not condemn the man so afflicted. Rather, he has compassion for him, and his wrath is turned toward the unclean spirit afflicting him. Jesus confronts evil and its power directly and immediately throughout the Gospel of Mark. Please notice that Jesus makes a distinction between the person and that which is afflicting the person! His compassion is for the suffering person, but his judgment is upon what afflicts him. Do we sometimes judge others as persons without regard to their circumstances or “what afflicts them?” There is that wonderful saying that goes something like this: “every person you see is fighting silent battles within you know nothing about.” As Christians we need to get beyond making judgments about others based on superficial appearances or circumstances. We don’t know why people are in the situations they are in or why they think or act the way they do. First, we must see them as God’s child, a human being who has dignity before God. Then, we must both pray and work for their wellbeing! Call to action: Are all people welcome in your church? Maybe not everyone is ready for communion, but are they still welcome? Does your congregation foster a welcoming attitude toward others? Or, through sour facial expressions, or an unwillingness to create room in the pew display an attitude of judgment, a spirit of unwelcome? Judgmentalism has been a plague within the church from the earliest days, and it festers and pops up all too easily. It’s time to call it out, and push it out, just like Jesus casting out the unclean spirit! Resolve that as Lent approaches your parish will become more dedicated to developing the spirit of welcome. Pastoral Action Points Resolve that your parish will be a place of welcome, solace, and pastoral love. In this year of Eucharistic education, plan events that allow people to open their hearts to Christ in his sacramental presence. Use your GiveCentral GC Smart Tools to get contact information from new parishioners and visitors, then follow up with an email, a text, or a call within 24 to 48 hours! If you need assistance in setting this up please contact the GC Implementation Team at implementation@givecentral.org Plan for Lent now, if you haven’t already! Ask your teens to be welcomers at masses. Ask your senior citizens to run a “welcome booth” near your main doors! The 2024 GiveCentral Webinar Schedule is now available! Save your seat to attend a webinar, expert insight, parish roundtable discussion, onboarding or reboarding training session! Click here to save your seat. Stay up-to-date with news & information - follow us on social! Toll-free: 833.716.2612 | Email us at: support@givecentral.org

August 9, 2024 • Pastoral Notes • Views: 3

Welcoming All with Grace: A Call to Compassionate Ministry

Pastoral Reflection Notice that when Jesus encounters the man with the unclean spirit, he does not condemn the man so afflicted. Rather, he...

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Pastoral Reflection Although Sts. Matthew and Luke give us more detail about Jesus’ desert experience, St. Mark notes that it is the beginning of Jesus’ ministry in the world. He is announcing good news: “the Kingdom of God is at hand.” The response he is looking for: “repent and believe the good news!” As has been mentioned before, repentance means a change of heart, or literally, to change the heart’s general direction. Lent is a time for those who live the Christian life to take some time out, to review and reflect, and, if necessary, to change our direction. We are drowning in a sea of secularity, and before you know it the ways of the world seep into your thoughts, decisions, and way of living. However, to be a disciple of Jesus is to be in this world in a different way – a salvific way. A way that leads us deeper into the heart of the God who loves us so. It is a special time for those who are preparing to celebrate the Easter sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, and the Holy Eucharist at the Easter Vigil. Having studied the Christian faith and being sponsored by the faithful of the community they are making their 1st full commitment to Christ in the fullness of the Catholic faith. It is then, for their sakes and ours that embark on this penitential journey of 40 days we call Lent. Call to action: The catechumens and the candidates who are preparing for their big night at the Easter Vigil are not only sponsored by individual Christians, but, in fact, the individual sponsor stands in place for the sponsorship of the community of the Christian faithful. Do your parishioners know the names of those who are joining the faith? Is the whole of the community praying and fasting for them? You can use your GC Smart Tools to communicate with your parishioners and unite them more closely as members of the Body of Christ. Invite them to connect their Lenten journey with those of the catechumens and candidates. Pastoral Action Points Be sure to have your pew cards updated for Lent. We have free templates you can adapt for your use. Explore Pew Cards Now! Lent is a wonderful time to re-engage with your community. For many parishes, the number of active donors has been decreasing. We can help with this. We have created tools that help with engagement that can be put in your bulletin and in your pews. On your dashboard, we call them pew cards but they are more than that. We also have tools to help identify all of those donors that aren't signed up for Easter who can be as many as 50%+ of your donors. Please let us help. We will help you send out a SmartGive communication which allows those donors to set up their Easter gift in less than 10 seconds. Please let us help you make it easier to engage and re-engage those praying with your community and those who are most likely to financially support you. You can join us for a webinar. You can have your team learn. Even better....You can ask us to do it for you. Email teresa@givecentral.org with the subject line--Please help us with Lent and Easter SmartGive. Stay up-to-date with news & information - follow us on social! Toll-free: 833.716.2612 | Email us at: support@givecentral.org

August 9, 2024 • Pastoral Notes • Views: 9

Journeying Through Lent: Aligning Our Hearts with Christ

Pastoral Reflection Sts. Matthew and Luke offer more details about Jesus’ time in the desert, but St. Mark highlights that this moment...

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Pastoral Reflection (based on the reading for mass at dawn) The shepherds referenced here by St. Luke were remarkably simple people who lived in the fields among the sheep. We have romanticized the idea of the shepherds and turned them into cute Knick Knacks for our nativity sets. But what is said by St. Luke is actually shocking! “All who heard it were amazed by what had been told them by the shepherds!” And what the shepherds told the people was the message they had received from the angels; namely, that the Christ (messiah) had been born. The fact that people were amazed does not mean they believed the shepherds! Swarms of people did not come out from Bethlehem to see him. The only other account we have of visitors were the magi in St. Matthew’s gospel. Proof once again that God uses the simple people of the earth to tell His story, to tell of His might and glory. Most people who come to our churches feel that they are simple people. They are not famous, nor do they wish to be. Their lives are not perfect, and they humbly rely on God’s grace to bring about a perfection which we humans, unaided, can never achieve. Let those who feel simple and in need of God’s grace be welcome in our church, just as the visiting shepherds were at the manger. Call to action: With so many visitors, family members, and former parishioners visiting this weekend it is a critical moment for connection with them. Please do use your GC Smart Tools to assist you in making these connections. Use your text number, your QR code, your pew cards, banners, bulletin announcements, greeters, pulpit announcements – every means you have to get the information you need for growing your parish and widening the circle of relationships among your people! These next few days are busy, but GiveCentral stands ready to help! Don’t be afraid to call us or contact us at support@givecentral.org with any question or request you have. Pastoral Action Points Make sure your ushers/greeters/staff personnel are ready and keep the pew cards restocked for each mass and service this weekend. You don’t get second chances to make first impressions. Have your staff or volunteers ready to keep your lavatories clean and well stocked between each mass or service! You want your church to look great and be welcoming. Ask your High School aged youth to get involved as extra greeters and information ambassadors for this weekend! It will be a wonderful experience for them, and it will help visitors feel wanted and welcome. Stay up-to-date with news & information - follow us on social! Toll-free: 833.716.2612 | Email us at: support@givecentral.org

August 9, 2024 • Pastoral Notes • Views: 12

God’s Simple Messengers: The Shepherds’ Lesson for Our Parish Community

Pastoral Reflection (based on the reading for mass at dawn) The shepherds mentioned in St. Luke’s Gospel were simple, humble people who...

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