St. Thomas the Apostle Parish at 1449 Wilcox Park Drive SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49506 US - Diversity in A Catholic Community

God has incredibly blessed our parish by bringing among us many individuals with talents and personal gifts of all sorts – gifts for inspiring, encouraging and helping to form a life of Catholic faith, action and holiness in their fellow parishioners. In some of these individuals God has fostered a devotion for serving children, youth and young adults. In others, God as fostered a devotion for serving their peers in single life, in married life, or in family life. And in yet others, God has fostered a devotion for serving those who contend with illness, pain or confusion. 

 

Often these individuals form groups and circles of fellowship which follow specific programs for building up Catholic faith and life in one another.  These groups and programs sometimes take their inspiration from one or another of the untold number of spiritual leaders, writers and saints that fill the history of the Catholic Church from the beginning down to contemporary times. The variety and beauty of these spiritual fellowships with their varied paths to authentic Christian holiness and justice is something to be valued and a source of delight. It is evidence of the work of the Holy Spirit in a community of Catholic faith. 

 

It is my charge, as a priest and your pastor, under the scrutiny and direction of our bishop, to shepherd this rich diversity in a way that leads each element in it toward a mutual respect and support for one another, and into a collaboration that contributes to the unity and growth of our parish community as a whole. In the largest dimensions of this task and in long range planning, I seek the counsel of the members of our Pastoral Council. I ask six things of any group that wishes to become active in our parish:

 

1.      Their mission, goals and programs in must in no way foster dissent

in the Church, but rather promote Catholic faith, unity and life.

 

2.      If they are affiliated with a larger network of groups outside our parish,

their presence and activity in our parish and diocese must be known to our

bishop and approved by him.

 

3.   Their mission, goals and programs need to be in harmony with our parish

 

4.      They must be willing to welcome and include all in our parish

who are sincerely interested in being part of them.

 

5.      They must cooperate with our parish structure of accountability

and our parish facility scheduling rules.

 

6.      They may in no way foster rivalry with other similar groups or ministries

in our parish, but respect and encourage those participating in them.

 

I believe that these parameters create and sustain an Authentic Catholic Diversity.
 

 

I have found that where a grace begins to grow, a sin often also appears that wants to defeat it. As a pastor, I have learned to keep my eyes open and my ears alert. Saint Paul writes in the Letter to the Galatians:

 

 

Not only will those who do such things not inherit the kingdom of God, they will destroy

the unity of the faith community in the process, by fostering resentment and animosity in the hearts of its members. Human nature is broken and fallen in us all. There are no exceptions. Our human nature is redeemed by Jesus, and it is restored to right order in so far as we turn

to Jesus in faith, and walk with him in an open-hearted discipleship. If we don’t, our old and broken human nature will quickly rise and show itself in our attitudes, words and actions. 

This happens in all sorts of ways, but perhaps two are most pertinent to the subject of ministries and groups active in our parish.

 

 

…people who belong to a particular group or are engaged in a particular ministry can come

to believe that the group or activity that they are involved in, or the ministry that they are called to exercise, is somehow superior to others. They have a hard time believing that the good things that they are doing are “really good” unless they are somehow “better” than the good things others are doing. Being “better than someone else” gets stuck at the core of their spiritual identity. This leads them to look for and point out the deficiencies in what others are doing so that they can feel good about what they themselves are doing. Saint Paul saw this sin wanting to tear apart the Church in his own time:

 

 

The fact is that some people will grow in the knowledge of Christ and be formed in Christian character through participation in a Faith and Friendship Group. Some will do the same through our Social Justice Advocacy Group. Some will do so through Koinonia, some through one of the Regnum Christi fellowships, some through a Bible Study or a Charismatic Prayer Group. Many will do so though a combination of several of these. And some will grow into great holiness and Christian maturity simply by attending Mass, reading the Scriptures, praying daily, and exercising themselves in doing justice and performing acts of charity – without belonging

to any group at all. We are not all made the same. The Catholic Church, throughout its long and ancient history, has understood this. That is why the Church has such an immense wealth of truly Catholic spiritualities, spiritual fellowships, apostolates and ministries. If you are “Catholic,” you need to understand this and respect it. Hopefully you will come to love it. Jesus makes it clear that a sense of superiority toward any individual Catholic, group or fellowship striving for holiness has no place in the mind or heart of his disciples (See Luke 9:46-50).  It likewise has no place in a Catholic parish.

 

 

…people who don’t belong to a particular group or fellowship sometimes become

jealous of and resentful toward people who do. They begin saying things like, “they are exclusive” or “they are too conservative.” And, if a group happens to attract a lot of interest, they say: “This is becoming a So and So Parish – if you don’t belong you’re not welcome.” Seeing someone else achieve grow in any talent or skill – virtue and holiness included – makes some personalities very self-conscious and sometimes defensive about their own progress or lack of it in that regard. Sometimes they become actively oppositional toward anyone who is growing and changing in a way they are not. The reasons for this can be found in our psychological development and in our sin-prone human nature. If any group at Saint Thomas Parish were truly becoming exclusive, or were engaging in rivalries based upon a conviction of being superior, this would be an immediate concern to myself and the Pastoral Council. But it should be clear that a group is not “exclusive” just because someone decides to start saying that it is, nor are they fostering rivalry based upon a conviction that they superior just because someone says they are. 
 

When studying the Scriptures or a document of the Church, the focus is supposed to be:

How am I hearing what is being said?
How might I try to ebody it in my life?

How effectively am I conforming to the good that it calls for?
The problem is that the study and the conversation can quickly turn to:
How are they hearing what is being said?
How are they conforming to the good that is calls for?

When learning new spiritual exercises or taking on spiritual disciplines, the focus is supposed to be:
How am I benefiting this exercise or discipline?
How is it strengthening me as a Christian?
The focus, however, can quickly shift to:
Why aren't they doing the same things that I am doing?
Why aren't they doing them the same way I do?
The conclusion quickly becomes:
They must be negligent.
They must be doing something wrong.

"They being someone other than me or someone outside our group.  Over the years I have found that there are personalities that cannot scrutinize their own thoughts and conduct without giving in to the temptation to scrutinize and evaluate the thoughts and conduct of others.  The leader of a Saint Thomas sponsored study group or fellowship for spiritual growth must be trained and prepared to quickly, gently and firmly, close down this scrutiny of others and redirect the focus back to personal reflection, self-examination and reform.

If the evaluation of others, the community and the way things are done is not quickly shut down then the members of the group generate among themselves a sense of somehow being more authentically Christian or Catholic than others in the larger parish community.  This holds them aloof in their attitudes towards other members of the community whom they have come to suspect or believe are defective in the practice of Faith.  The members of the larger community quickly pick up this attitude, even when it is not directly verbalized.  This was obviously a concern of Jesus, which he makes clear in the parable of the Pharisee and the Publican (Luke 18:9-14).

The Pharisee with head unbowed prayed in this fashion:
'I give you thanks, O God, that I am not like the rest of men-
grasping, crooked and adulterous - or even like this tax collector."

It is also a vigilant concern of my own and the Pastoral Council.  Arrogance and an obtuse spirit (Mark 7:22) is a sin that can have devastating consequences in a Christian community, even when it is done with the best of intentions.  The intentional digging up or uninvited drawing out of the thoughts, attitudes and behavior of others for evaluation and judgement, or even just to provoke thoughts, attitudes and behavior of others for evaluation and judgement, or even just to provoke them is devastating to a community of Faith.  Going up to another parishioner, unexpected and unwelcomed, and quizzing them on their attitudes and thoughts is not acceptable behavior.  It is more than clear to people inside and outside of Saint Thomas Parish, that the Gospel and the Teachings of the Church are preached here fully, faithfuly and with clarity.  The Gospel and the Truths of Faith that flow from it have their own power (See Hebrews 4L12-13) to strike the consciences of those who are active in our parish and worship here.  Any "policing" of attitudes, thoughts and behaviors of others, I reserve to myself, as pastor - and only for the purpose of avoiding public scandal to the Faith.

A Catholic church is not the "Home of the Arrived."  Since the time it came out of the catacombs and the great persecutions ended in the fourth century, the Catholic Church has always been "A House For Those On the Way."  A community of Catholic Faith always has individuals in the process of conversion of heart who are at various points "along the Way."  As a priest I believe a Catholic parish must always organize its ministries and encourage the attitude of its members (individually and in groups) to meet souls where they are "along the Way" and encourage them to take "the next step forward."  This may well include a personal word of admonition by someone they know and respect, and who they have good reason to believe loves them (the emphasis here is "by someone they know and respect, and who they have good reason to believe loves them.")  The next step for them, however, may not be where you are in your faith or where you think they ought to be.  After thirty-four years in the priestly and pastoral ministry, I have good reason to believe that the guy you see at the back of Church who is not yet doing everything as Catholic as you are, is probably saying in his or her heart: "O God, be merciful to me a sinner!"  If you are not careful, he or she may be going home (I mean "Home") more justified before God than you.  To this day I tremble at that thought.

 

In our parish Long Range Plan, we commit ourselves to pay vigilant attention to a number of principles and concerns.  Among the List of Thematic Concerns in our Long Range Plan are the following: