Homily, May 7, 2023
From The Pastor
I am hoping you have received in the mail this week my annual letter in support of the Catholic Services Appeal. We are all aware that this annual appeal sustains and supports the Archdiocese of Detroit in the work of living and promoting the gospel. As a parish, St. Vincent Ferrer has a strong record of generosity in support of the larger Church and our local community.
This year’s appeal, “Go and Announce the Gospel of the Lord,” continues to support the initiatives of Evangelization. This is a critical endeavor in a time of waning Church attendance and social behaviors that lean away from Christian values. Although the greatest threat of the pandemic appears to have past, many negative consequences remain.
For several years, parishes have been asked to take annual counts of Mass attendance at various times of year. In 2019, our weekly Sunday attendance was 780. In 2022, our average weekly attendance was 220. We currently remain at this level of Mass participation. With this sharp decline, we have seen a similar decline in the offertory collections. This is not just our parish. Statistics show that the parishes in our family, and across the Archdiocese, have similar declines in both attendees and offertory giving. These kinds of numbers speak for themselves.
As I note in my appeal letter, our Charter School numbers are another consequence of the pandemic. Student counts have fallen resulting in rent income decreasing by $120,000 per year. Our offertory collections have declined more than $30,000 per year. This has been a five-year trend only exacerbated by the pandemic. I am more than open to hearing your wisdom to motivate and inspire those who have surrendered their regular church attendance.
Our CSA goal this year is $41,753. This is a $6,325 decrease from last year’s goal. In the last four years our CSA goal has declined by over $41,000. This reason is due to the drop in our annual offertory collections. We are currently $150,000 shy of our budget projections. We continue to be very attentive to our spending against this decline. We are all aware of increased costs across the board. We cannot ignore increases in utilities, insurance, general office expenses, and fair salary increases. We have a minimum staff who are fully engaged in managing the demands of an active parish. We can only push the budget so far in the red before the numbers just do not match the reality.
If possible, please repeat or increase your gift to the CSA. If you make a pledge, we will be most grateful if you can fulfill this commitment. We will also add a ‘Budget Deficit’ envelope to our offertory packet. If you can increase your weekly offertory, please do so. If you can make an occasional gift through the Budget Deficit envelope, it would be a significant help.
Last year, we exceeded our CSA by more than $5,000. A similar or greater return to the parish would help to ease the current tension. I commend you for your commitment and generosity to the parish and to the work of the larger Church. We are not alone. Many, if not most parishes, face these same circumstances, some worse than others. I thank you for receiving this message and I have every hope in your generous response. I will also increase my gift to the CSA. As we look forward, I will keep you informed if other pertinent information comes forth. If necessary, we will consider other avenues of fundraising sensitive to our needs.
Jesus and the early disciples were not free from hard times. The scene of today’s gospel is at the Last Supper. Jesus is in anticipation of his death. His own faith is charged with deep trust in the Father’s love and support. Despite great challenges, Jesus is secure going forward. His deep concern is for the disciples who will suffer the trauma of his death and the loss of his physical presence. Jesus knows their faith will be greatly tested. He works to assure them of his constant presence.
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Have faith in God and faith in me.” As Jesus is secure in the love of his father, he calls the disciples to do the same. Mindful of the human insecurity and fear of the disciples in a dramatically changing time, Jesus models for them the trust he has in the Father even as he faces death. Note the primary desire of Jesus is to do the Father’s will. Jesus is not on his own. He is only doing what he knows and sees of his Father’s will.
We are not alone. Jesus is with us and is fully aware of our circumstance as a parish, diocese, country, world, and universe. “The Father who dwells in me is doing his works.” I find this consoling and comforting even in the uncertain times we find ourselves. God knows all and has a will for our parish. It is not ours to be afraid or anxious. The challenge is to realize God’s will for our community and do all we can to fulfill it. Be at peace. Do your best. Fear is useless, what is needed is trust. God bless each of you.
Father John Esper
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