Pastor’s Corner — December 7th, 2022

Major RRM Update: New Governance Structures and Parish Grouping

Dear Parish Family,

On Monday the Diocese sent out via email a major update on the implementation of the Realign Resources for Mission (RRM). In this update, the Diocese explains the decision to shift to a new governance structure for the diocese (new Deaneries led by Deans), which is different from the one the RRM committee recommended to the bishop last November. In addition to explaining why this change was made, they published a short video of me explaining why I think this change is a good move given what we know now. Another part of this update is big news that a few of the parish groupings have changed; ours is one of them. Since it’s critical that parishioners understand this update, I am asking parishioners to read this important update posted on the Diocese’s website.

After reading the update (please do read it first), here are a few comments I have:

1) As I say in my video, I think the change in governance structure is very wise. In fact, I think that the Bishop’s decision to shift the strategy based on new information and feedback from priests is a sign of great leadership. Moreover I think this will set us up better for the long-run.

2) The vast majority of the RRM Final Recommendations will be still be used in the new implementation process called Made for Mission. With the exception of the governance structure, the steering committee, and some change in parish groupings, last year’s recommendations remain the foundation for the Made for Mission process, which is poised to move us forward in realigning our resources for mission.

3) While this new diocesan structure will go into effect end of June 2023, the new Deaneries will take some getting used to. I think the new Deans will also need some time adjusting to their roles. Personally, I don’t see many major changes happening in the parishes and schools for the first six months.

4) Our new parish grouping will take some time to process as well. It’s important to state here that I think this new grouping will significantly affect how we relate to other parishes around us. While our grouping is different from what was recommended by RRM, I think this change represents an opportunity to cooperate with other parishes in ways we haven’t before, thereby enriching our parishes with more effective pastoral care and evangelization.

5) Lest there be any confusion: there are no plans to merge or close the parishes in our grouping at this time. In fact, there are no concrete plans to merge or close parishes anywhere at this point. Nevertheless, those who read the Final Recommendations know that our committee recommended that there be an evaluation of the viability of all parish and school sites within the parish groupings. I have no reason to believe that will change. If Church attendance and demographic trends continue as projected, it is my opinion that this evaluative process of discernment may have to start sooner than later in some areas of our diocese. We need to keep all of this in prayer.

6) Importantly, the reason for the groupings in the first place is so that they can execute the four principles of the Bishop’s Vision for Healthy Parishes (found on page 10 of theFinal Recommendations). In the past, I’ve published and/or referred to these principles multiple times. We will refer to this often in the future.

7) Please pray for everyone involved in this process, especially our leaders: Bishop, Deb Amato, and the priests who will be leading all of us in this Made for Mission process. Where there is leadership supported by sincere prayer from the heart, there is a better chance that our parishes and schools can be renewed in our mission to the gospel of Jesus more effectively for the glory of God.

Your servant in the Lord,
Fr. Mathias