A Diocese on mission
Will you join me in being a Church on mission? Last March, I shared in my Great Lakes Bay Catholic column that we cannot continue to do what we have always done to meet the current challenges and realities faced by our Diocese and the Church today. The steady decline of people living and practicing their faith dramatically affects not only the Diocese of Saginaw, but also our local Catholic communities across the Diocese.
Will you join me in being a Church on mission? Last March, I shared in my Great Lakes Bay Catholic column that we cannot continue to do what we have always done to meet the current challenges and realities faced by our Diocese and the Church today. The steady decline of people living and practicing their faith dramatically affects not only the Diocese of Saginaw, but also our local Catholic communities across the Diocese.
“We are dealing with the first culture in history that was once deeply Christian but that by a slow and thorough process has been consciously ridding itself of its Christian basis. We are therefore not attempting to make converts from pagans; we are attempting to bring back apostates to the Church, a different and more difficult challenge.”1
Since this is the case, what is Jesus asking of us? To become a Church with the same apostolic zeal, and to be of “one heart and mind” as the disciples of the first century! Like the first disciples, we, too, were born for this moment. It is no accident, no coincidence, that each of us was born for this time in the Church and sent on mission with the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.
I have begun sharing an exciting vision for the Diocese of Saginaw revealed to my Mission Leadership Team and me through much prayer and careful discernment. Since this is the work of the Holy Spirit, we continue to meet weekly to bring clarity around the mission Jesus has given us. Six questions have been essential to the discernment process and have helped us get to where we are today.
- Why do we exist?
- How do we behave?
- What do we do?
- How will we succeed?
- What is most important right now?
- Who does what?
For an explanation regarding these questions, I would encourage you to return to my column titled “One heart and mind: Journeying together as a family on mission”. Now in this article, I would like to bring into clearer focus the answer to question four: How will we succeed?
We believe that the Lord has clarified for us three pillars as the core of his plan and vision for the Diocese of Saginaw. While numbered for clarity, these pillars have equal priority and importance.
- To love and support a unified presbyterate on mission
- Build disciples to be sent on mission
- Go after the lost sheep
What determines success?
Because Jesus has sent us on mission together, diocesan unity around these three pillars is crucial. Though each pillar will have its own reality of success, overall success envisions journeying towards one heart and mind (Acts 4:32), all of us working together, around these three pillars. In other words, united with Jesus, together we seek to create an environment whereby these pillars come alive in the Diocese of Saginaw.
To love and support a unified presbyterate on mission
The first pillar speaks of our desire to support one of our greatest assets – our priests (the presbyterate). The sacramental life of the Church could not happen without them. Knowing the challenges our priests face day in and day out, this pillar cares for their health and holiness, leading to greater presbyteral unity.
Another component of this pillar concerns creating a culture for priestly vocations, both at the diocesan and parish level. We all are aware of the challenges faced in our diocese regarding the shortage of priestly and religious vocations. Vocation work is the ministry of all the baptized. When properly engaged, families and local parish communities are the seedbeds for priestly and religious vocations.
The last component of this pillar pertains to the relationship between our Chancery family and the presbyterate. It provides for a shift in how the Chancery (diocesan offices) carries out its ministry. The goal is to change from an events model to a service model providing additional pastoral care resources, seeking meaningful relationships at all levels in the parishes and creating offices that align with our strategic vision for the diocese.
To build disciples to be sent on mission
One of the greatest challenges the Church faces today is her members fully embracing their call to evangelize. The second pillar provides the opportunity for the people in the pews to be formed as evangelists in their own communities who fully embrace their baptismal call to “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations.” (Matt. 28:19) It also seeks to set the whole diocese on fire for the mission of Jesus Christ, while creating a missionary culture and atmosphere within our parishes, following the example of the early Church.
Go and retrieve the lost sheep
Finally, with serious decline in Mass attendance in our diocese over the last 11 years (-13,363 people based on our annual October Mass counts), the third pillar seeks to address this current reality in the Diocese of Saginaw. We all know people who have left the Church, who are lukewarm in their faith or who have temporarily drifted away from the practice of their faith. The four components of this pillar will be missional focused, creating an environment where parishioners receive training to “leave the 99 and go after the one lost sheep.” (Lk. 15:4) This means that, through the support of the Diocese, parishes will develop pathways to discipleship resulting in opportunities for initial and on-going personal encounters with Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Realizing many people have experienced struggles in their lives that have given them reason for leaving the Church, this pillar will provide for active parish-based ministries across the Diocese to support and bring about healing for these individuals.
The work of these three pillars is a work in progress. As the Mission Leadership Team continues its work clarifying the heart of these pillars, we will continue to share more information and the implementation plan.
In the meantime, I am inviting every Catholic in the Diocese to join me on this exciting mission “to proclaim the living gospel so that Christ Jesus may lead people to salvation through his healing, love and mercy.”2 Our collective future relies upon everyone – priests, deacons, religious, laypeople, parishes, schools, Catholic institutions – uniting around this common mission.
Join me on mission to transform the Diocese. God is calling each of us into mission with unshakeable hope and confidence in him. May the words of St. Joan of Arc inspire us all. “I am not afraid, because God is with me. I was born for this.” And so, too, were you!
1 Christendom to Apostolic Mission: Pastoral Strategies for an Apostolic Age
2 Mission Statement of this plan
To learn more about A Diocese on Mission, please visit saginaw.org/diocese-mission.
The Most Rev. Robert D. Gruss is the seventh bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Saginaw.
