November / December 2021

Fore The Good

It is hard to imagine that we have made it to the end of 2021! These have been the most challenging of times for all of us, and not just in our diocese, but in solidarity with the whole world. This sense of “being in it together” keeps us united spiritually with all those suffering in our world. We are never alone and most especially as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Emmanuel (God is with us!”).

I want to first thank all who participated in our diocesan-wide survey of parishioners. The results of this survey (the Disciple Maker Index) will give our individual parishes and the diocese as a whole a sense of where we are spiritually at this moment in history and assist in moving forward in faith together. I am very grateful for the grant from the Catholic Leadership Institute, who will continue to journey with us in the process of studying the findings.

One reason for the study is to assist us as a diocese in our strategic planning for the future. A group of com-mitted laity and priests have been meeting regularly to continue a process that Bishop Guillory began nearly 20 years ago. My predecessor wrote that there are several key indicators to consider for the strategic planning of our parishes: “shifting population patterns and declining economy, aging buildings, fewer volunteers to assist with the ministry, and declining ministerial resources” (4/12/02). Emphasizing that as good stewards we need to build up viable parishes to carry out the mission of Jesus, we need to be challenged to discuss: “the distribution of priests, Mass schedules, development of collaborative ministries with neighboring parishes, [and] sharing of program staff” (5/10/02). Bishop Guillory wrote on that same date that this might mean “linking parishes, clustering communities, merging churches, or transforming some into missions.” These are very real and concrete steps that may need to be taken. We are Roman Catholics, and we belong to the Universal Church which is manifested as being a member of this Local Church, the Diocese of Beaumont. A few years later, in 2005, Bishop Guillory came back to this topic writing: “[A] ‘partnership mentality’ must be promoted. I expect each pastor, staff, pastoral and finance council to consider the gifts that their individual parish can offer to surrounding parishes. The goal of this ‘partnership mentality’ will be the collaborative use of resources and personnel, the combining of gifts and creativity, and the building up of parish life so that all people will benefit from the fullest expression of Church life and ministry” (1/28/05).

As you might imagine, our needs have only increased from 20 years ago, and in some ways our resources have diminished. As we study the vitality of each of our 48 communities, we must ask the difficult questions regarding viability and stewardship of financial and human resources. We will formulate a pastoral plan and then bring it to the faithful of the diocese. We will strive for candid, honest and transparent conversations around some of the most difficult questions a parish or mission can ask: Can we sustain this community at our present level of participation and giving? Does our parish need to be twinned with another community and share resources? Are the number of Masses necessary to minister to the actual attendees? Are we being the best stewards of our human and financial resources? What about your parish? Would you be willing to go from 3 to 2 Sunday Masses to better accommodate your population and adjust your Mass schedule? To share ministries to create more vibrant youth groups or bereavement ministries or outreach programs? What is the best use of our resources? If you have any particular or constructive ideas, please feel free to share your prayerful thoughts at [email protected]. We are all in this together and need to see the goodness and strengths of our diocese and possibilities for growth as we also acknowledge the changing demographics of our region.

I do not have all the answers, but I do know we have been asking the same questions for almost 20 years. Please pray for wisdom and prayerful discernment for me as our shepherd and chief steward of the Church in Southeast Texas. This is certainly not meant to be a doom and gloom article, in fact, I believe that we will become more vibrant as a faith community as we work together to deepen our spiritual impact on our local communities, enhance our worship, strengthen our ministries through greater collaboration and help our priests, pastoral ministers and volunteers by reducing redundancies in the same locale. I am not so naïve as to think that these discussions, and ultimately decisions, will all be met with ease, but this is about building up the Kingdom together, and by God’s grace that is what we will do! My prayers are with all of our faithful for a Blessed Thanksgiving, a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all!

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Bishop David L. Toups