Bringing Families Back to the Parish

By Juan Rodriguez

Welcome friends to “Bringing Families Back to the Parish.” My name is Juan Rodriguez and I am the Pastoral Associate at Queen of Angels Church. I am also the Director of Faith Formation, and the Youth Minister of the Parish. I bring to you my personal experiences close to 14 Years of Pastoral Ministry for a Young Guy doing what he loves most... Building a Mini-Civilization of Love that will affect the Vocations of every individual who Encounters and Journeys with Christ and Saints.  

 

I also am the unofficial Business Manager, negotiator for upgrading Parish Networking with companies, businesses, and religious organizations that provide resources. 

 

On my spare time I refurbish old technology, write shorts stories for Role Playing Games like Dungeons and Dragons, cook, iron, sow, and make a really good Coquito. 

 

My current work includes Gardening, and Bonsai, which I combined with Catholic Devotion and Spirituality.  

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I do so much, because I was a procrastinator, so I needed to develop a template for me to practice my gifts and talents, and combine it with my Vocation as a Pastoral Associate. I believe it has helped me in my approach to reaching families in the Community come closer to Christ. Has it been successful, I am the worst critique of myself – but I believe my experience, combined with your can help in our Parish Mission.   

 

Now.... this talk is not a discussion about what is going on in parishes, so I will not talk about theory, studies, statistics, or any current trends that make your parish thrive, rather to give you an insight to creating a Parish Mission that can draw folks to parish life.  

 

We’re speaking about Families who bring their children to the Sacraments and leave when they have received it.  

 

We’re speaking about the Families or individuals who participate in small areas of the Parish that could be giving more of their gifts and talents.  

 

Lastly, the fallen away in your community, or the members that do not know Christ within your Parish Boundaries. You see, during our Spiritual Journey towards Pentecost, the Church has been inviting us to look at the story of the Acts of the Apostle – one in particular comes this passage: 
 
Acts 4: 32-37 Life of the Community. The Saints of old showed us a written account of how they built their community. What made them spiritually strong and value each other was based on Communication. Replicating that in the Year 2022 is about using your imagination, and sticking to one method, but learning a multitude of methods, incorporating new ones that can strength your Parish Mission work.

 

I am not saying it will be perfect, but Our Lord will perfect it by His Grace – all we have to do is listen to His Voice in the Mass, the Sacred Scriptures, the Catechism, the Teachings of the Saints.

 

You know the issues that are in your Parish: from the Pastoral Outreach, to Parish Group and Ministries that seem disconnected to the Parish Mission.  All are called to Bring Families to Christ – not one individual, group, or ministry

 

I will take three Images and explain to you how it has changed my Vision. 

 

1.       St. Joseph the Dreamer – also known as one of our fathers in the Old Testament, who saved the Egyptian Empire, and his own family – the 12 Tribes of Israel.  

 

2.       A laptop – an instrument I used throughout my time as a Pastoral Associate that has taught me the value of learning and networking.  

 

3.       A Martial Art Master – who taught me the value of continuous practice of my craft.  

 

I – Lessons from St Joseph the Dreamer – Genesis 37-50 

1.       Much of our inspiration comes from the Stories of the Saints in the Old and New Testament. Their stories and actions aid us in developing Mission to Evangelize, Faith Formation, and to commit ourselves to Parish Mission. Remember Genesis 39:2 

 

a.       Parish Mission is key to thriving. If a Parish has lost its purpose, simply come back to the Patron Saint, or Devotional Name of the Parish.  

b.       With the Name, like our Creed, helps us to get back to our Mission. In other words, the Parish Name points to the Mission.  

c.       If Leadership and Membership know this, they continue to find ways to develop the Parish. 

d.       When I started I was the youngest male Pastoral Associate in the Diocese of Brooklyn. I was considered but some of my collegues a failure, a Dreamer, or crazy. Ignored, I worked at producing for a poor a Parish a dynamic mission. I can recall only having a Laptop that become my most powerful weapon, using it to reach folks within Parish Boundaries. From this mission, I used it to upgrade our Networking capabilities that included a Cloud Based Networking System – the first of its kind in the whole Diocese of Brooklyn.  

 

2.       It was my devotion to Joseph that drew me closer to my Spiritual Mother, Queen of Angels. How? In Genesis, Joseph was a devoted to his father Jacob, otherwise known as “Israel”. Keeping connected to that Family Line was important, even if his brothers sold him into slavery. It is through Joseph one can find a vision of possibilities, even when hardship is present in ones life – Mercy and Forgiveness can be given by God through his beloved. It’s family line and communication that I looking at:

See IS THIS YOUR PARISH?

  

a.       I worked on a Parish Slogan “We Are Queen of Angels”, putting her image at the fore front of the Community, New York, and throughout the United States.

b.       It didn’t stop there – we've even created t-shirts, picture frames, icons, mass cards, even our first Chasable for our Parish.  

 c.       St. Joseph the Dreamer taught me the value of interpreting our Parish Mission, and putting family first.  

 

3. The practice of our Imagination brought me to looking at technology as a Teacher to Networking, which has a strong connection to the Devotion to the Saint or Devotional Name of the Parish I serve.  

  

II – Lessons from an Old Laptop 

 

1. This old laptop is still with me. I have repaired it with used parts. It was my most prized possession, like my old Christian Prayer Book.  

 

2. Many of us have computers, laptops, or even mobile devices that we’ve purchased or have been given by our Parish or Diocese, but can we all say that you know how to use it?

 

a. There are ports on our devices that can be used to advance our Mission in ways you cannot imagine. Using YouTube, and asked questions and modified devices – think of it, you may have an old mobile device and turn it into a computer. Some of the leaders would ask me, “How do you send out some much promos of the Parishes?” I tell them, “Using my cell phone.” I am able to reach about 3,000 people and more.  SEE RTV – Part 2 / Goal 2

 

b. My Laptop taught me the importance of networking – using the writings of Renewing the Vision, which gives youth ministers a template on how to reach families within the community. It was about connecting them to the Parish. My laptop taught me not to be afraid to connect parishioners to ministries in the Parish. It has also taught me to support new ideas for Mission Work, like Sacramental Formation, Spiritual Studies, Vocation development, Social Justice Missions for the needy, Pro-Life work, Career Development, and so much more.  

 

c. What we were creating was a Parish Mission, connecting parish leadership to Spiritual Ports of the Church. 

 

d. This would take years to develop, but our hopes in Christ’s Words became reality to creating a Parish Mission. Even better, we have our Patron Saint to be our guide. 

 

e. There are families that are struggling to come to Jesus... To commit to Jesus in His Mission, we must learn from His words and actions, including those of the Saints who dedicated their lives to Proclaiming His Life and Teachings.  

  

3. The practice of networking can be a drudgery. Dragging, annoying, and sometimes boring – but it is necessary commit ourselves to Christ’s Mission. The important lessons learned helped us to strengthen our patience and perseverance. In order for me to put into practice, I needed the help of Taekwondo Artist who taught me the value of practice. 

 

III – Lessons from a Martial Artist Master 

 

“The family is often called the principal cell or building block of human society. Since we are used to thinking about the family as the place where our Catholic faith is handed on and lived, we sometimes pay too little attention to how the family itself is related to the plan of God revealed in Scripture for the sake of our salvation in Jesus Christ.”  The Family in the Catechism of the Catholic Church - The Catechism’s Teaching on the Family - Cardinal William J. Levada Valencia  (Spain), July 7, 2006

 

1.       My Wife and I passed by a Martial Arts school one afternoon. My daughter walked up to the window to see children learning how to kick, punch, block, and jump. For her, it meant fun! We enrolled her into the class. I observed how my daughter listened to the Master commands, as she was invited to break a thin piece of wood with her foot. First time doing it, she received the cheers and support from the other children, and broke the wood in front of us all. Little did she know, she achieved for herself, courage.  

 

a.       I tried to train with her, using the one item that the Master taught her to value, her belt. You see, the Belt was a prized possession, and she needed to Master tying it correctly. So I helped her to practice it before a mirror for half hour a day. I explained to her that the Belt symbolizes how she treats her duties, tasks, and responsibilities. It was painful to see her cry, while trying to Master it. One day she screamed and ran out of the room with Belt tied correctly. She said, “Dad, I did it!’ I grabbed her and hugged her tight, telling her how proud I was of her.  

 

b.       The practice of strikes, kicks, and exercises helped me to understand that I needed to practice my Pastoral Ministry. I needed to learn it, ask questions, and practice all the Theology, and Catechesis that I had learned through years. If Christ needed to be seen, my Vocation has to be convincing when I am doing outreach. The individuals I encounter needed to see Jesus in me.  

 

c.       Sure, many will not respond, but some families will, if you’re connected to Your Master, Jesus.  

 

Questions: 

 

1.       Do you find it hard to connect to your Parish Mission? Does your Parish have a Mission Statement? 

2.       What are you doing to strengthen your Parish Mission and Outreach to Families? Do you have one or has your Parish talked about it, but haven’t gotten the Mission off the ground to reach families?