PARISH PRACTICE
KEVIN McGINNELL
An end and a beginning
P
Pentecost is a time when to look back on what the sacramental programmes of the year have achieved, but it is also a moment to be led deeper into faith and celebrate the gift of the Spirit for mission and outreach
entecost is the time to muse over how things have gone in the parish during the year. We celebrated Confirmation a couple of weeks ago.
The group of teenagers had been quiet but very responsive, and the Mass with the bishop was marked by a gentle serenity. Compared to previous years, the post- Confirmation party was lively, with people in the parish centre still going strong at mid- night. This was followed by the first weekend of First Communion celebrations. We do that so that families with candidates for both sacraments can bring grandparents and other relatives together over the same weekend. Once the First Communions begin, you realise just how the time has moved since the parish newsletter invited people to enrol for the sacraments. Here we are again at the end of a process, and all that it has involved for so many people – the youngsters, families, catechists and the parish community. It gives us some serious material for reflection on what has been achieved and what we still have to do. Pentecost marks the end of the Easter season for another year. It is our parish feast day, and we try to mark it by a parish gathering, a barbecue and an afternoon for all – weather permitting. By then, we will have completed all our First Communions which take place at any Mass over three weekends – usually in groups of about six families at a time. It means that 30 to 40 new communicants will have joined us at the Table of the Lord. Their enthusiasm and open- eyed joy coming to Communion is something I always ask the parish to imitate. For many of us, our First Communion was some years, some decades ago; and the children’s approach helps us renew our reverence for such a gift. The First Communicants will have pride of place in the Corpus Christi procession that we are hosting for the town this year. Moving through the local streets around the church takes some organising with the traffic; but many of the local Muslim community have asked why we do not have more public
expressions of our faith to match theirs. That newness of response is still there with those who were baptised or received at Easter. Pentecost brings the end of the mys- tagogy period for them. Our new Catholics still vividly remember the Easter Vigil and have returned to the Cathedral for the Mystagogia Mass with our bishop. They too bring new life that the parish needs to appre- ciate and celebrate. The group will close with a pilgrimage to Littlemore where Newman was received into the Church. It is also the time to see how they want to begin to share in different ways in the life of the parish. Our Confirmation group is also making a
TO DO
Celebrate well the new life of those who celebrate the Easter sacraments Ensure that they are supported for the next stage of their faith journey
Thank all who have been involved and prepare for the coming year together
day pilgrimage; they are going to the cathedral and to the bishop’s house for a tour. Then we can begin to explore how in the coming months and years they may want to express their faith in practical ways for the community, as well as trying to see how they can continue as a socialising group of young Catholics. As I muse, it seems like Pentecost really is the end of the year – with everything drawing to a close, with great celebrations, a closing of the hatches for the summer. We tie in so much of parish life with our school calendar, weaving the liturgical year and academic year neatly together. While practical, it may not always be the best way, as some Australian friends pointed out. We speak of snow at Bethlehem on Christmas cards while they were having Christmas dinner on the beach; and Easter comes more in their autumn than at a time of new life as we experience in the spring. This reminded me of the words of T.S. Eliot:
What we call the beginning is often the end. And to make an end is to make a beginning.
The end is where we start from.
(“Little Gidding” V)
Yes, Pentecost marks a point in time where things are brought to a certain stage in parish life. The sacramental programmes celebrate what they have achieved, but that is not the end in terms of time or their finality. We need to make sure that this is a
moment on the journey of individual Catholics and families which leads them deeper in their faith and further in their commitment to the life of the Church. After all, Pentecost is precisely that –
cele brating the gift of the Spirit for mission. We have to discern with our new Catholics and our newly confirmed what they will take up – and how they will be supported in any new ministry or work. Some will join the readers’ rota, and there is nothing more heartwarming than when some of last year’s First Communion children share in the wel- come ministry. If we succeed here, Pentecost becomes the beginning of the next stage of their Christian journey. Being realistic, I know that some will fall away, they will not bother, they will give up – but it is crucial that those who want to continue and go further are given the guidance and encour- agement they need. This is also the time for evaluation and
review for all the key players in the various processes that have been at work over the last 12 months. Everyone needs a break, a time to recreate. Yet while the experience is still fresh in the mind and heart, it is good to bring together all who have contributed – catechists, sponsors, anyone who has accom- panied and supported families and individuals. First, it is important to take time to relax together when the work is done; and a meal and social evening together is a way of doing this as well as expressing gratitude from the parish for all that has been given in so many ways. There is a time too to take stock – to ask what went well, what needs changing and many other similar questions. The pro- grammes used, the style of presentation, the timing of events can all be looked at and opinions shared. A well-handled meeting can draw out all that is worthwhile and begin the planning for the future. It is a chance, too, for those who feel the need to lay down responsibilities and for new leaders to be recruited. Pentecost can indeed become the end where we make our beginning.
■Monsignor Kevin McGinnell VF is episcopal vicar for education and formation in the Diocese of Northampton and he is parish priest of Holy Ghost Parish in Luton.
22 May 2010 | THE TABLET | 17
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44