Lay Leaders & Parishes
Posted by Lisa Hendey in Faith on Wednesday, November 04, 2009 10:00 AM
Yesterday afternoon, I was having an interesting conversation with my sister, who has recently joined a leadership board within her parish. Along with serving in this role, my sister and her husband are also part of a team of married parishioners who meet individually with engaged couples as a part of their premarital preparation. I’m so proud of my sister and her commitment to her parish—as a busy attorney and devoted wife and mom, the fact that she can muster the energy to support her pastor in this way is amazing. Of course all of her volunteer work is done at his request and under his solid leadership. I would imagine that being a part of these teams helps my sister and her family feel even more bonded to their parish community.
Yesterday, an article entitled “They’ve Seen the Future and It is Lay” caught my attention. This Boston Globe piece outlines the ongoing saga at St. Frances X. Cabrini in Scituate where parishioners have literally “taken over” the parish - holding a round the clock vigil to avoid the parish being sold by the Archdiocese. The article goes on to elaborate on the roles being played by the laity within this particular church.
My parish is truly blessed - we have four priests and a seminarian intern in residence, as well as a permanent deacon. A large professional staff accommodates our needs, supervises the religious education of our children, and oversees our many ministries. We have many volunteers who also contribute to the vibrant activity level of the parish, but we’re blessed to have such an abundance of staff. I know many of the duties being handled by staff at my church are likely carried out by dedicated lay volunteers in other parishes.
Reading this article and pondering the place of the laity in our parishes has me wondering about the Church homes of our Faith & Family community. Do you have a large or small parish? Is your parish reliant upon lay volunteers? Are there any parishes in your diocese who are sharing priests or who have lay administrators on board? What impact has this had upon parish life in those communities?
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