A culture for communion

I’M happy to be hearing a lot lately about culture. That’s

because our bishops have declared 2017 as the Year of the Parish. They

want to highlight the ideal that the parish is a communion of

communities, and culture plays a prominent role in pursuing that

pastoral thrust—a culture for communion, that is.

            I think I am getting the drift of the bishops’ concern

regarding our parishes. They want the parishes to be more active and

more inclusive, covering and serving not only as many individual

parishioners as possible but also the different groups and communities

that are in their territorial jurisdiction.

            I think it’s general knowledge that many of these groups

and communities do not feel quite at home in the parishes where they

are. It’s either they do not feel the relevance of the parishes to

their operations, or that the parishes themselves are not welcoming to

them.

            What is obvious in both cases is that there is lack of

understanding among the personalities involved regarding how a parish

should be, thus undermining the communion proper to it. As defined in

our Catechism, “A parish is a definite community of the Christian

faithful established on a stable basis within a particular church…

            “The parish initiates the Christian people into the ordinary

expression of the liturgical life: it gathers them together in this

celebration; it teaches Christ's saving doctrine; it practices the

charity of the Lord in good works and brotherly love.” (2179)

             For it to be faithful to its nature and purpose, the parish should be

able to make all those in its territory feel at home with it. All the

parishioners, taken individually or in their different groupings,

should be able to regard their parish as the beginning of their being

faithful constituents of their diocese and then the universal Church.

             For this ideal to take place, an appropriate culture of communion,

animated by a proper spirit of communion, should be lived and

continually developed. I imagine that this culture of communion would

have the following characteristics (not exhaustive, of course):

-      It should be based on the spirit of Christ, which is that of charity;

-      As such, it should be open-minded, eager to reach out to

everybody, including those in the peripheries and those openly hostile

to it; it should practice utmost humility and mercy;

-      It should be respectful of the differences among people, in

terms of temperament, charism and vocation, and know how to promote

them;

-      With creativity and versatility, it should know how to put

together the different people and the different groupings and

communities into one organic whole with a common goal;

-      Of course, it should avoid any trace of divisiveness, like

gossiping and backbiting, making undue comparisons, etc.

-      Instead, it should be able to motivate everyone to work

together in solidarity for the common good of all; etc.

            In all these, the parish leaders should have a clear idea

of what is truly to be human and Christian. They should be the first

ones to live by it consistently. Since the culture for communion is

always a work in progress, they should also enliven their spirit of

communion always!

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