More than 7 years ago when we started this movement, we called it the Amazing Parish program because we believed that was the key to bringing more people to Jesus in the world. And we still do. But the world has changed considerably since then, and if we were to...
Evangelizing Over the Holidays Thanksgiving and Christmas are a time when so many of us are with family members whom we don’t see often. This might be less prevalent in the Covid Era, but it will be true nonetheless. And even if you are a priest or work in a parish,...
Taking a Team Approach to Christmas As you prepare for Christmas liturgies at your parsh, it might be a good time to put your commitment to teamwork to the test. What I mean is that during particularly busy times, and Christmas is certainly one of them for people who...
The Culture of an Amazing Parish When people use the word ‘culture’ as it pertains to organizations, it can mean a lot of things. All too often, it is associated with cosmetic and surface-level artifacts like an organization’s furniture and office layout, or even...
A Case for Parish Consolidations In many dioceses throughout the United States, parishes are being consolidated or combined in groups of two, three and even four. The rationale for doing this seems to be the desire to improve efficiencies and to better leverage our...
Only the Pastor Can Take the First Step The journey toward becoming an amazing parish does not begin by reading a book or attending a conference or participating in a webinar. It does not happen with a group of people sitting around a table discussing the...
A Simple Christmas Idea With less than a week to go before so many new people come to your parish for their annual or semi-annual visit, it’s not too late to think about taking a slightly different approach to this year’s homily. Now, I certainly understand how busy...
The Courage of an American Pastor Being the pastor of a parish requires courage, but the nature of that courage is going to differ depending on where that parish is in the world. In many parts of the Middle East, Africa and Asia, courage is a stark matter of risking...
Paid Staff vs. Volunteers One of the most dangerous distinctions we make when it comes to people who work and serve in our parishes is seeing them as either employees or volunteers. From a technical standpoint, I certainly understand the necessity of this...
Let's Do Something A friend of mine, I’ll call him John because that’s his name, decided to leave the consulting firm where he and I worked years ago, and on the day before his departure, an executive of the firm did one of those wonderful “exit interviews” with him. ...