For the last several months, the Pastoral Council has been discussing goals for the coming few years and strategies that we might use to move toward those goals. We first spent some time thinking about what kind of future we want to move toward. To that end, we decided to write a “vision statement” to complement our “mission statement.” A vision statement tries to describe the future that we want to create, with God’s grace. So we have both a vision of the future and a mission that tries to bring about that vision. The Council approved the following vision statement:
The Church of the Transfiguration will continue to be a vibrant
Catholic community, rooted in Franciscan spirituality, where the
joy of the Gospel of Jesus is lived, loved, and shared. We will be
well known for our responsiveness to the spiritual needs of our
diverse community; our engaging liturgy; our hospitality; and
continuous outreach to the poor.
For the time being, our mission statement remains the same, although the Archdiocese is asking all parishes to review their mission statements in light of the values in Archbishop Vigneron’s Pastoral Letter, Unleash the Gospel. We will be addressing that in the coming months. Our mission statement is:
We are a Franciscan Body of Christ embracing all people through liturgy and service.
The next step is articulate some concrete steps and strategies that we will use to implement our mission and make our vision a reality. Stay tuned! All of this, of course, presumes our good will and the generous cooperation of all. Thank you to all who work so hard to make this parish a vibrant community of faith and service!
The mission of the Archdiocese and the parish, of course, needs support and resources. As you may recall, our goal for the Archdiocesan Annual Appeal this year is $46,192. So far, we have 73% of that amount or $33,954 pledged! THANK YOU! We still need $12,238 to meet our goal. (If we do not meet our goal, we will have to take the amount from savings, which we would rather not do.) We contacted 464 households and 137 responded so far. Would those parishioners who have not yet contributed consider a gift soon? We usually have about 200 of our almost 500 households participate.
Thank you for all that you do to support the vision and mission of the Archdiocese and the Parish.
Fr. Jeff