Renew My Church

We write to you today as pastors of Queen of All Saints Parish and Saint Mary of the Woods Parish in fellowship among neighbors united in our roles as disciples of Christ.

In 2016, the Archdiocese of Chicago introduced the “Renew My Church” parish revitalization process. The diocese describes the process in the following way:
 
Queen of All Saints and Saint Mary of the Woods comprise a single planning “grouping” in Renew My Church. Together, we are scheduled to begin and complete our evaluation and planning process in early 2022, at the tail end of the overall Archdiocesan effort.

All parishes in the Archdiocese are required to take part in the Renew My Church process. By now you are likely to have heard of other parishes that are either in the process of, or have already completed, this honest and necessary evaluation process. Renew My Church has both a practical side that reflects upon the viability of a parish, and an evangelization side that reflects upon the vitality of the parish. Let us quickly and directly address the practical side which we are sure is foremost on your minds, specifically, the impact this will have on how our two parishes will be structured, and how our facilities will operate as we move forward.

The current Archdiocese guidelines for parish structural viability call for a minimum pre-COVID weekly Mass attendance of 800 people and annual collections of $750,000.  Each of our parishes meet these measures.  We can take justifiable pride in how our communities have persevered in the practice of our faith as strong examples of how parishes can survive and even thrive during challenges like these past two years.

We have seen the difficult and sometimes painful decisions required of parishes deemed non-viable, including closures, mergers, and other changes. In those cases, these actions are necessary before our parishes can move forward with the important task of building our Church of the future.  In our case, the fact that we each meet the current tests of viability, we can focus our planning efforts on vitality, both within each parish as well as through collaboration between our two parishes, to continue the work we have already begun.  

To date, our two parishes already share in the following programs:

• Adult religious formation, including the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA)
• Sacramental preparation, including a joint Confirmation retreat scheduled for February
• Special Religious Education (SPRED)
• Social Justice Ministry, including domestic violence and the eradication of ethnic and racial barriers
• Elizabeth Ministry, including women’s spirituality, family life and motherhood
• Adult spiritual formation, including Women’s Spiritual Spa Days
• The return of Vacation Bible Camp this summer, open to both parishes as well as other parishes.

As pastors, beginning this month we will form small teams to explore additional opportunities for our two parishes. This process of discernment will result in recommendations, that will then be discussed at open town hall meetings, the outcome of which will presented to Cardinal Cupich, whose formal decision is to be delivered in May of 2022, and will take effect beginning July 1, 2022.

The communities of Sauganash, Edgebrook, Wildwood, Lincolnwood, and surrounding areas have a long tradition of both religious and civic affiliations. This is a singularly strong foundation upon which our two parishes can build a faith community for the future.  We approach the future with the confidence that our combined talents will make our strengths even stronger and our faith even deeper.

Let us hold each other and our neighboring parish and school communities in prayer as we enter this time of rededication to our faith in Jesus Christ and planning for the future. Renewal begins within our own hearts. As we open our hearts to the renewal process, each week throughout the upcoming months we will join with thousands of others across the Archdiocese in praying the following special prayer.
 

Father Rich Jakubik, pastor                        Father Simon Braganza, pastor
St. Mary of the Woods                                  Queen of All Saints