Thankyou so much for this Hannah. Only this week, after prayer and discernment, following an informal chat over a cuppa with the Chair of our new Parish Council and a parishioner from one of the churches which has been merged into ours, the word 'complex' came to mind when trying to summarise our conversation and the spiritual and social paralysis in our big but dwindling parish. After reading your recent article on 'Is Synodality enough to stop the haemorrhaging from our parishes?' I discerned a possible call to form a 'dedicated intercessory prayer team' to support the 16 new parish council members corporately and individually in prayer for the needs of our complex parish. My initial idea was fairly flexible: 16 people praying for the 16 people on the new parish council; perhaps paired and introduced to each other, perhaps anonymous; perhaps at an agreed time each week (maybe a Holy Hour of Adoration) or perhaps from home as personal circumstances allow. As we talked, there emerged a sense of paralysis regarding: who would be invited to be part of this intercessory prayer team; how best to engage and prioritise those who not already involved in existing parish roles/ministries. Unwisely, I used the words 'mission' and 'ministry' in the sense of inviting the Holy Spirit to support this new intercessory prayer team in supporting the parish council and its 'mission' to engage and grow our parish community so that the love of Christ and His Kerygma can be proclaimed and lived out sacramentally and practically. This seemed to cause further paralysis and a whole host of other reasons why such a prayer team might be deemed as: a) irrelevant, when compared to the need to bring people together for social events so they can get to know each other after fragmentation since the pandemic b) controversial, as it would not be seen as 'making a real difference' in concrete terms compared to more visible charitable works supported by our parish. Furthermore, the idea of a Holy Hour of Adoration would be seen by many on the parish council as time which could be better spent on works of practical charity. Our conversation ended warmly, and fruits did emerge, but sadly it seemed that the idea of forming an intercessory prayer team was interpreted as creating another yet potential problem to be solved. Interestingly, the occasion did facilitate productive exchanges on more urgent matters to do with Safeguarding Training and Awareness. For now, I continue to discern and pray for our new parish council, even as an intercessory prayer team of one for the time being. There are several others I am in contact with in my parish who may join me informally, if that is where the Holy Spirit leads. It sometimes seems that in our present culture, 'Safeguarding' (without denying its emergent aims) is perhaps causing paralysis and killing any sense of 'Faithguarding' in our parishes, much as overuse of weedkiller depletes nutrients from soil and prevents seeds from germinating (Faithgrowing). I continue to ponder and thank you for the work you are doing and the insights and green shoots you share through this Substack. May Our Lord bless you in your work.
Thankyou so much for this Hannah. Only this week, after prayer and discernment, following an informal chat over a cuppa with the Chair of our new Parish Council and a parishioner from one of the churches which has been merged into ours, the word 'complex' came to mind when trying to summarise our conversation and the spiritual and social paralysis in our big but dwindling parish. After reading your recent article on 'Is Synodality enough to stop the haemorrhaging from our parishes?' I discerned a possible call to form a 'dedicated intercessory prayer team' to support the 16 new parish council members corporately and individually in prayer for the needs of our complex parish. My initial idea was fairly flexible: 16 people praying for the 16 people on the new parish council; perhaps paired and introduced to each other, perhaps anonymous; perhaps at an agreed time each week (maybe a Holy Hour of Adoration) or perhaps from home as personal circumstances allow. As we talked, there emerged a sense of paralysis regarding: who would be invited to be part of this intercessory prayer team; how best to engage and prioritise those who not already involved in existing parish roles/ministries. Unwisely, I used the words 'mission' and 'ministry' in the sense of inviting the Holy Spirit to support this new intercessory prayer team in supporting the parish council and its 'mission' to engage and grow our parish community so that the love of Christ and His Kerygma can be proclaimed and lived out sacramentally and practically. This seemed to cause further paralysis and a whole host of other reasons why such a prayer team might be deemed as: a) irrelevant, when compared to the need to bring people together for social events so they can get to know each other after fragmentation since the pandemic b) controversial, as it would not be seen as 'making a real difference' in concrete terms compared to more visible charitable works supported by our parish. Furthermore, the idea of a Holy Hour of Adoration would be seen by many on the parish council as time which could be better spent on works of practical charity. Our conversation ended warmly, and fruits did emerge, but sadly it seemed that the idea of forming an intercessory prayer team was interpreted as creating another yet potential problem to be solved. Interestingly, the occasion did facilitate productive exchanges on more urgent matters to do with Safeguarding Training and Awareness. For now, I continue to discern and pray for our new parish council, even as an intercessory prayer team of one for the time being. There are several others I am in contact with in my parish who may join me informally, if that is where the Holy Spirit leads. It sometimes seems that in our present culture, 'Safeguarding' (without denying its emergent aims) is perhaps causing paralysis and killing any sense of 'Faithguarding' in our parishes, much as overuse of weedkiller depletes nutrients from soil and prevents seeds from germinating (Faithgrowing). I continue to ponder and thank you for the work you are doing and the insights and green shoots you share through this Substack. May Our Lord bless you in your work.