In decades past, the way the Church operated on a local level was very predictable and stable. It was based upon the numbers of Catholics in a given area, and the transition from ‘Mission’ to ‘Parish’ followed a well-trodden path.

In a mission, as Sacred Heart was in the beginning, the pastoral initiative remained with the Bishop: he was the one who supplied priests, and made provision for the Sacraments; and  missions could spring up, or be closed down, with relatively little fuss. As communities continued to grow, consideration would be made first for clergy accommodation (Rectories), then education (Schools or Schoolrooms) and lastly, gathering space (Halls).

All this development took time. Here in Georgetown, for instance, it took 10 years to find a suitable location for a temporary church (which, in fact, is the building we still have today, though considerably extended), 65 years to build a Rectory, and 95 years to build a proper Hall. At the same time, further missions were established: Ridgefield (St. Mary’s) and Redding Ridge (St. Patrick’s) were started almost simultaneously – but followed very different pathways.

Today, by contrast, change happens at a faster pace – and the viability of a given community is based more upon how alive their Faith is, rather than the raw number of Catholics in a given location. We are much more mobile than in the 1870s – and perhaps we are spoilt for choice, too. As the Bishop is teaching in The Oneinitiative, smaller communities of Faith can be the engine rooms of transformational change – but the smaller they are, the more commitment is required for viability.

Here at the Oratory we are nowhere near finished – in fact, we are only just getting started. In the pipeline are a myriad of exciting projects, from polyphonic choirs to a revitalized grotto, some of which you may be aware of, most of which you are not (yet) but each requires a level of commitment that is greater than for a regular parish. The Bishop is asking us to work with him to find new and innovative ways of passing on the Faith – but that also requires us to break the mold of institutional thinking.

In this New Year of Grace, AD 2023, let us listen closely to what God is asking of us here in Fairfield County, to make the Face of Christ known to all the souls He desires for His own. With every blessing for a happy and holy 2023.

Ever your servant,

Fr. Michael Clark

Rector