A few months ago, I brought our finances to your attention and informed you that we had a YTD budget deficit of $11,000.00. As we come to the close of the fiscal year, I want to thank you all for rising to the occasion. We closed that gap and ending this fiscal year paying our ordinary expenses with ordinary income. Thank you all so very much. Parish viability however is not only fiscal responsibility.
I am concerned for the future of our parish. For the first time in my many years as your pastor we have no teens showing any interest in serving a one-year term on our Pastoral Planning Team (PPT). The PPT is the decision-making body of our parish, and many of the young people who have served came away with a better understanding of all that is involved in the behind-the-scenes operation of our faith community. Each summer we invite two young people to serve and seek their input in our parish life. When there are no young people interested in serving, we need to recognize that our parish has a limited future. Our by-laws state that the youth representative must be confirmed. Someone recommended that we change the by-laws and invite all high school aged parishioners. That may address the situation for this year, but when do we realize that our young people are not engaged in parish life?
This is a concern we all should have. Our Catholic faith teaches that “faith is caught, not taught.” Somewhere along the line we are not sharing the greatest gift we can ever give someone, the gift of faith. How do we proceed? How do we move forward? At this time, we also have a part-time paid position in Faith Formation. There has always been a parishioner who has stepped forward to take responsibility for working with parents and youth in our faith community. This is not the case at this time. We should all be concerned about this situation.
Pam, Tina, and I are doing all we can to keep everything up and running. Several people have shared their wisdom in assisting in the planning and offerings for Faith Formation, most especially Karen Daige. However, we cannot continue to function at this level into the future. I bring this to your attention so that everyone, not just the members of the PPT are aware that not all things are rosy here in our parish. Someone mentioned that other parishes are in the same boat. That is no consolation, we are not other parishes. We have a responsibility to engage in Faith Formation and engage our young people in the ways of our faith. Any wisdom you may have to offer would be greatly appreciated.