The Power of a Parish Priest

The Power of a Parish Priest Hector Heredia

In this piece, a young man reflects on the life-changing support and steadfast dedication he received from his local parish priest.

Ttwo-time inductee into the Basketball Hall of Fame Magic Johnson always said, “I grew up poor, but I didn’t have poor dreams.” As a young person, playing basketball in a league at my local church was key to achieving my own dream—a dream I would never have attained without the help and support of a Boston priest, Father Paul O’Brien.

Growing up, my grandmother used to take care of me, and I used to bother her a lot. I was always looking for something to do. She used to tell me to go outside and play basketball to work my energy out. Playing basketball helped me to get things off my mind. It was a big relief. Later, as a teenager, I learned about a basketball program that Father O’Brien ran at St. Patrick in Lawrence. At that time, things weren’t going very well for me. My family wasn’t there for me, I didn’t have a steady home, I had two jobs, and I was struggling to find food to eat. I went all the time to play basketball and, to be honest, to enjoy the food that was there.

I spent a great deal of time on the court and at those games. One day, I had an altercation there. Father Paul pulled me aside, knowing this was not how I usually acted with others, and said, “You really need to tell me what’s going on.” I was ashamed to tell him that by that point, I was homeless and living in my car. I was afraid to tell people about it; even my closest friends and family members did not know.

In the course of our conversations, Father Paul asked me what I dreamed of doing with my life. I told him I had always wanted to go to college but did not have the means to get there. Father Paul said he would help me, and he encouraged me to work hard and chase my dream. This was a big moment for me because no one had ever suggested something like that to me. Not my family or friends, not my teachers—no one.

Father Paul eventually made some calls and got me an interview at a local college. This was incredible to me, and my life-long dream of a college education started to become real for me. I always had the dream of going to college, but I never thought I would actually be able to do it.

With the help and guidance of Father Paul, I was able to attend Regis College, where I also became a member of the basketball team. Through my years at Regis, Father Paul was always there for me, checking in about my class assignments, even arguing with me about finishing my homework. I’ll never forget the day I graduated from college. I was speechless. And Father Paul, my mentor and my friend, was there, yet again, to support me.

Father Paul has been a role model for me at every step of my journey, helping me to navigate several difficult life challenges. He has taught me that treating others with kindness and respect can go a long way, even if I have to keep a distance from them because they have wronged me.

Simply put, Father Paul changed my life. I now work as a school guidance counselor and try to give back to other young people the kind of hope and inspiration that Father Paul gave to me. ■ Hector Heredia played in the basketball league at St. Patrick Parish in Lawrence, MA, where Father Paul O’Brien is the pastor. This essay was published on April 12, 2019 in The Boston Pilot. Father Paul O’Brien looks on from the sidelines as Hector Heredia plays basketball. Heredia went to St. Patrick Parish to play basketball on Sunday nights for years.

To watch “Scenes from a Parish” about the transformation at St. Patrick’s, visit bc.edu/c21parishes

Communities of Practice

Jane Regan

Llet me tell you about three interesting gatherings of people.

Mike’s Muffins—A few years’ back, a parish liturgist named Mike had an idea: the second Tuesday of the month, a group of parish liturgists meet for about an hour and a half at a local diner for conversation and coffee. The routine is generally the same: some time of checkin, followed by conversation about a book or document on liturgy they read over the course of the month, and a discussion about its implications for their own parishes. At the end, they name new prayer requests and share updates on older ones. Ann, one of the members of the group, said it well: “This is one commitment a month that I take seriously. It is important to me as a liturgist and as a person of faith.”

Care for the Caregivers: Twice a month, 8 to 10 people gather in the church hall after the morning Mass. Each person is responsible for the care of some loved one—a parent, spouse, sibling, or friend. Most of them are caring Scholar Jane Regan proposes that a parishioner’s sense of belonging in a parish is often tied to participation in a “community within the parish community.” She shares how those groups can implement some standard practices and behaviors to keep members coming back and feeling seen, known, and loved.

for someone at home; several have loved ones in a nursing home or hospice. The meetings are organized and facilitated by the parish nurse. They begin with coffee and socializing, followed by a reflective experience of prayer. This is followed by a speaker—sometimes live, sometimes on video—and then some time for conversation and a closing prayer. Some people come regularly, others come for a few sessions; there is a core consistent group of about 6 who are there every time. For participants, this is an important part of their own self-care.

Faithful Finance Committee: The Finance Committee of St. Odo the Good meets each month to provide guidance to the pastor on the budget, expenditures, and stewardship. They used to have meetings that lasted exactly an hour, at which time everyone left fairly quickly. Now the meeting lasts exactly one hour and 15 minutes, at which time many people stay around to chat and check in. The change happened gradually. First, the pastoral

staff had decided a couple years back to recommend that each parish committee spend the beginning of each meeting in prayer and faith sharing. As people became more comfortable with this activity, the amount of time that the members of the Finance Committee spent reflecting on the Gospel or talking about how they live their faith each day expanded. And relationships were built. So they added 15 minutes to the meeting and enjoy one another’s company more.

Three different groups, with varying reasons for gathering, ways of relating, and patterns of meeting. Yet they share three things in common. First, each group has its own reason for gathering, an enterprise or set of goals that the members all share. Secondly, the members of each group engage with one another in a way that supports their reason for gathering, marked by mutual respect and a willingness to engage in the common enterprise. Thirdly, each group interacts and expresses itself through established patterns of behavior, styles of conversation, vocabulary, and resources.

Each of them, I would propose, is an example of a community of practice (CoP), defined as “a sustained gathering of people whose interactions are marked by mutual engagement, shared enterprise, and common repertoire, and where the collective learning involved in surviving/thriving as a community leads to practices that enhance group identity and further group goals” (Regan). This concept provides an important resource for rethinking the life and vitality of our parishes.

Within a moderate-sized parish there are a number of contexts in which adults gather, such as: the parish council, youth ministry team, catechetical team, Bible study group, social justice committee, finance committee, or pastoral staff. Each of these groups has the potential to be an effective CoP if they are intentional about their shared enterprise, mutual engagement, and common repertoire. As communities of practice, these committees and working groups have the potential to enliven the faith of the members and further the parish’s mission. SITUATED LEARNING Before looking a bit more closely at this, let me make a comment about how we learn the important things of life. Do you know how to make lasagna? Play bridge? Use a new software program? Do you understand hockey? Have you come to recognize the complexity and challenges of finding a career? Being a parent? Caring for an elderly relative? Living with teenagers? All of those things we learn primarily through “situated learning,” or learning that takes place in the doing of an activity, in real-life situations (Lave and Wenger).

The same thing is true of faith. We learn what it means to live our Christian faith in real-life situations. I learned what it meant to parent my daughters as a Christian by watching, being with, and talking to other Christians as they parented their own kids. While adult education, Bible studies, and homilies are helpful, we learn best how to live our faith by being with others who are doing the same; that is, by being in communities of people who share our commitment to live lives that are marked by the values and beliefs of faith—communities of practice. PARISH AS COMMUNITY OF COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE While we speak of the parish as a community of faith, it might be more appropriate to say that it is a community of communities. I have heard people say, “I had been a member of St. Odo the Good for several years, but I came to feel like I was really a part of the parish when I became involved with the choir.” Or, “A big change in my faith came when my kids started faith formation and I volunteered to be a catechist’s aide. Then I felt like I wasn’t just a member of the parish, but that I really belonged.” While the whole parish has the shared enterprise to evangelize by putting faith into action, it does this and expresses it most effectively in smaller CoPs.

At St. Odo the Good, catechists prepare on their own, gather their resources, teach their class, clean up their things, and leave. At St. Odo the Great, catechists meet every six weeks in smaller groups based on the peer groups they teach. They pray, share experiences, review the plans for the next six weeks, and socialize. It is the opportunity for mutual engagement; the shared enterprise in attended to; and the common repertoire is learned and enacted. At St. Odo the Great, catechists are invited into a CoP through which they gain the competencies to teach their peer group and be a witness for the Gospel in their lives. In this way, they further the shared enterprise of the catechists and the parish.

CoPs are also communities in which “the collective learning involved in surviving/thriving as a community leads to practices that enhance group identity and further group goals.” Since the learning that takes place within a CoP is situated learning, it takes on certain characteristics. Within a parish are gatherings of people who do the work that gives expression to the parish’s vision and goals.

First, learning within a CoP is about gaining the competencies to engage effectively as a member of a particular community. The knowledge, skills, and perspective one gains as a member of a CoP are specific to that group and rooted in the relationships among the members. Here’s an example: Maria is a new member of the advisory team for the parish’s youth ministry. She brings a good deal of insights and ideas: she is the parent of two young adult children and had been active in youth ministry in her prior parish. At the same time, she has a good deal to learn: What does youth ministry mean to this group? How does youth ministry relate to other ministries within the parish? How do the members relate to one another? What are the relationships of authority and power within the group? What are the “war stories” of the group (great achievements and less-than-successful endeavors)? Who has a key to the parish center? Who knows how to fix the copier when it gets jammed?

Second, even as a newcomer to the youth ministry advisory team gaining knowledge and skills, Maria will influence the CoP. Her membership, over time, contributes to the transformation of the team. As she strives to understand the repertoire of the CoP, she asks questions about perspectives or positions that had been unexamined for some time. Or she makes an inquiry that causes others to ask questions that lead to change. As she moves into ever fuller participation, Maria’s own ideas and insights naturally become part of the community’s understanding of its shared enterprise and common repertoire. This mutual learning is part of what strengthens the group and enhances the vitality of the parish.

FOSTERING COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE Within a parish are gatherings of people who do the work that gives expression to the parish’s vision and goals. The question remains: how do we begin the process of shifting parish committees or interest groups into effective CoPs so that they not only address their specific tasks but become a source of vitality for the parish and strengthen their members’ commitment to the parish and to each other? Groups and committees can start by reflecting on their identity and goals. The following questions can serve as a guide in that process:

SHARED ENTERPRISE • How does the community recognize that its role goes beyond the tasks of a particular meeting to a broader goal of participating in the parish’s role of evangelization? • Does the description of the community’s charge include the call to be evangelizers and foster the faith of its members? • To what extent does the community integrate prayer, reflection, and faith conversations into its regular work, making them more than simply addons to a busy agenda? • How is the faith life of the members of the community intentionally enhanced through participating in the community’s gathering and engaging in the community’s work?

MUTUAL ENGAGEMENT • How do people treat one another, those with whom they agree and those who hold a differing position? • Does the community welcome new members and provide mentoring so they understand the community’s shared enterprise? • To what extent are their interactions marked by care and mutual respect of each person’s strengths and contribution? • In what ways is the identity of the community as a community of faith and of faithful people strengthened and enhanced?

COMMON REPERTOIRE • How attentive are the community members to recognizing the ways in which they convey (or fail to convey) the message of the Gospel? • In what ways are the community’s members supported in gaining the competencies necessary to participate in the particular CoP and in the broader enterprise of the parish? • Does the community reflect a consciousness that the various modes of communication convey a spirit of hospitality? • To what extent is there interaction and mutual support with other communities within the parish and beyond that support the shared enterprise?

Imagining our parish groups and committees as CoPs has the potential to enhance their effectiveness in their own areas of responsibility and in the life of the parish. They can serve as a context for prayer and sharing faith, for learning and developing competencies, and for participating in the parish’s mission to be and become an ever more effective agent of evangelization. ■

Jane E. Regan, Ph.D., is Associate Professor of Theology and Religious Education in the Department of Religious Education and Pastoral Ministry at the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry.

References:

Lave, Jean and Etienne Wenger, Situated Learning: Legitimate Peripheral Participation, New York: Cambridge University Press, 1991.

Regan, Jane E., Where Two or Three are Gathered: Transforming the Parish through Communities of Practice. New York: Paulist Press, 2016.

Photo: Angelo Jesus Canta

Having a faith conversation with old and new friends is as easy as setting the table.

FAITH FEEDS is a program created for individuals in parishes and other Catholic communities who are hungry to share faith conversations over a cup of coffee or a potluck meal. You decide the location.

A volunteer host facilitates conversation using downloadable FAITH FEEDS Guides that offer themed articles and easy instructions for planning. The program is parishioner-led and designed to make faith conversations with old and new friends as easy as setting the table.

To download free Faith Feeds Guides for hosts and guests, go to bc.edu/faithfeeds

Sacraments for Every Child: How Parishes Can Welcome Children with Disabilities

Peter J. Smith

HIn this essay, author Peter J. Smith, professor of pediatrics at the University of Chicago, offers ideas as to how parishes can implement specialized sacramental preparation and catechesis for persons with physical and developmental disabilities. how can parishes welcome children with disabilities and ensure that they receive the sacraments and become active Christians to the fullest extent they can? Since most families do not want to stand out or make demands, the parish staff and parish leaders must anticipate the needs of children (and others) with disabilities and initiate changes. That means holding a meeting focused on welcoming those with disabilities and inviting parents so they can help make the list of potential problems or obstacles before their children reach the age for reception of the sacraments. Then the parish should address the issues raised.

Since they lead us into a deeper relationship with God, the sacraments are vital to all. The U.S. Catholic bishops expressed this sentiment in their 1978 pastoral statement on persons with disabilities: “Just as the Church must do all in its power to help ensure people with disabilities a secure place in the human community, so it must reach out to welcome gratefully those who seek to participate in the ecclesial community.”

To “reach out” to people with disabilities, most Catholic parishes need to use inclusive language; learn the different types of disability and respond appropriately in reshaping the physical parish environment and the educational preparation for the sacraments; and allow a spirit of welcome to overcome any misconceptions, inertia, and bias toward persons with disabilities, including children.

CAREFUL LANGUAGE AND DISTINCTIONS Much progress has been made in the area of language. Today, parishioners typically understand that many formerly acceptable terms are no longer acceptable. It is better to use precise and accurate terms like a “child with cerebral palsy” or to speak of a “person with a disability,” which communicates that one sees the person first and the disability second. If needed, parish leaders can invite experts to instruct parishioners on such changes in a workshop format.

Parishioners and parish leaders must also learn to recognize distinctions within disabilities and the different patterns of disability. Those who plan the parish initiation rites may have already begun to account for them.

Examples include children with hearing or visual impairments; they can be seated close to the action and/or be given amplification (earphones) and other assistance, like signing or someone to accompany them throughout the rite. Children with motor impairments may need a wider pew, an aisle seat, a walker, wheelchair, or other seating supports. Good resources from the National Catholic Disability Partnership are available to help guide parish leaders.

SACRAMENTAL PREPARATION More subtly, impairments and disabilities may require parishioners to revise their general understanding of the sacraments and what sacramental preparation entails. Religion teachers and parish staff in particular should be schooled in such matters. For example, certain conditions of childhood lead to a shortened lifespan, which necessitates an accelerated pace in receiving the sacraments. Does this apply to someone in your parish?

Or consider: What is the role of the anointing of the sick with regard to childhood impairments and disabilities? It is not always clear. Or consider an adult sacrament: it is now quite common for individuals with Down syndrome to date and marry. If this is the case in your parish, how does the pre-Cana program take it into account?

Leaders should also be prepared for surprises, like the unintended benefits that will probably emerge for the parish at large. When a parish builds accommodations for wheelchair use, it eases the transportation of children in strollers and helps all who use canes or walkers or have joint problems. In creating large-print resources for children with visual impairments, a parish assists many other individuals, too.

Of course, building a ramp or buying large-print music materials may not address the most significant needs of parishioners with disabilities. Nothing takes the place of asking the people affected what would help them. In the case of children, the parish must work closely with their parents or guardians and teachers.

It also helps when parish leaders become acquainted with the communities and agencies nearby that work with persons who have disabilities. In turn, the parish can help families connect with these agencies. All children with disabilities are entitled to therapies through early intervention programs (from birth through their third birthday) and through the public school system (from age 3 to 22). Those who attend public schools will have tailored support detailed in an individualized education plan, called an I.E.P. The plan may also be helpful in making accommodations for children to receive the sacraments.

In such a case where there is a developmental disability, such as autism, the pastor or deacon or other appropriate member of the parish team should meet with the child and see what he actually understands about reconciliation or communion and how he can engage with the sacrament.

The biggest distinction between physical and developmental disabilities is that the latter are more often misunderstood or even missed. The similarities are even more important than distinctions. The parish must see each individual as unique instead of dividing people into classes or classifications.

A WELCOMING SPIRIT Sometimes a change in practice can lead a community to a change of attitude. At other times, the change of attitude precedes the change in practice. The United States has a long history of housing “undesirables” outside the home and local community. But it has gradually become clear that separate means unequal, that is, less than equal, which is detrimental not only for the individuals who are separated but for the larger community, too.

My own children benefit from sharing classes and parish activities with other children who are different from them. They instantly recognize difference, and they have learned that I welcome a discussion about it. Such conversations allow them to be comfortable with their own uniqueness and with what is different about others.

Any discussion of individuals with “disabilities” contains irony, but that is especially true for Christians, who embrace a host of unexpected exceptions to the norm: a king born in a manger, redemption won on a cross, life found in a tomb. For Christians, no barrier in attitude or thought or practice should prevent us from extending a hearty welcome to all parish children and inviting them to the sacraments. All of us are “individuals with disabilities.” All of us need the healing power that comes from “the water flowing out from beneath the threshold of the temple.” And none of us will achieve self-actualization outside union with Christ. ■

Peter J. Smith, M.D., is Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Chicago in Illinois.

This article appeared in the May 24, 2010, issue of America Magazine and is reprinted with the permission of America Press, Inc., 2020. All rights reserved. For subscription information, call 1-800-627-9533 or visit www. americamagazine.org.