Becoming Visionary

Susan Windley-Daoust, Director of Missionary Discipleship | swindley@dowr.org

Fr. William Thompson, our Vicar General, mentioned the importance of vision in his article in this edition of The Courier. I wanted to expand a bit on the priority of vision as we pick up from the (ongoing) pandemic, cultural, demographic, and Church challenges.

Some Catholics will see the word “visionary” and think of people who have been graced to see apparitions of Mary, the Mother of God. Others will see the word and think of people who have “seen” a society of justice before everyone else, and have led the way (thinking of some of our civil rights movement heroes, like Martin Luther King, Jr. - and his “I have a dream” speech). Others will think of idealists that rise above the pragmatic day-to-day, looking ahead to a perfection that seems impossible. All understandings of the word visionary point to the same thing: people who can SEE something beyond, and in some ways within, the present.

We are all called to become visionaries in this present moment because as Christians, we can ask the Lord in prayer to receive the grace to see with his eyes. It is a grace because we’re not God, but we are temples of the Holy Spirit, and God wants our will to be in concert with his will. He doesn’t want to hide from us his will that we’re called to walk in! We are, in fact, called to live a visionary life.

When it comes to parishes, God has a plan for each particular parish. Parishes are the people living in a particular region (not just the Catholics, not just the registered parishioners, and not just the building - but instead, all the people in a region). And we know the missionary call - ”go and make disciples of all nations,” “be my witnesses,” be Christ’s hands and feet. But becoming visionary means being able to see what the outcome of the mission looks like! It’s a gift of inspiration and goal-setting. And you need to take time to become visionary. God has a vision of what your parish looks like. In prayer, ask him to share it with you.

Typically, because many cradle Catholics are comfortable, familiar, and largely satisfied with how a Church community serves them, it is hard for them to visualize the mission-focused parish. We tend to think comfortably - ”let’s do what we do, but a little better.” So for fun, I am going to shake things up and describe a sample VISION of a mission-focused parish.

Everyone in town knows of the parish’s kindness and generosity to all. People attending have a devotion to the Eucharist, a consistent and frequent sacramental life, and a dedicated and growing prayer life. They like to share the fruits of that sacramental life and prayer with people. The Mass is beautiful and people participate with devotion. Nearly everyone is involved in a small faith-sharing group (Bible studies, marriage enrichment, or many other options). Children are welcomed within families and in liturgy. Many work on evangelism outreaches in the community, meeting people where they are and offering invitations to discover Christ. The RCIA process is exciting and the whole town is invited. The parish is known as a place of healing, as members host 12-step groups, grief support, and more. Young adults get married in the Church, and a healthy number spend time discerning consecrated life. The parish has a vibrant social outreach to the community and the world, striving to be a Church of the poor for the poor. They know each other. They enjoy each other. They forgive each other. They help each other. They serve together. They grieve together. They strive to rise together.

Whew, you say. No one parish can do all that!

But this is the gift of vision. It gives you something concrete for which to aim. You start with a single step - but you need to know where you are walking. And there is Scripture: Nothing is impossible with God. Why wouldn’t we aim for all the truth, all the beauty, all the joy?

Pray to become visionary, for eyes to see. Be that persistent widow in the gospel, and ask, and listen, again and again and again. God wants that vision realized more than any of us do, and will clue us in! Of course vision realization doesn’t happen overnight, but...with God’s grace, we can, parish by parish, be that city on a hill. We are called to be the light to the world by Jesus himself. Let’s take the time and courage to ask God for his vision for southern Minnesota.