MISSION STATEMENT
INTRODUCTION
The title of my homily for this 22 Monday in Ordinary Time is, “Mission Statement.”
That thought hit me when I read today’s gospel - when and
where Jesus comes into the synagogue in Nazareth - unrolls the sacred scroll -
and reads the words of Isaiah. [Cf. Luke 4: 16-30.]
That moment has been described as his inaugural address.
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.”
I’ve never heard it described as his or Isaiah’s mission
statement - although it’s a very good one.
MISSION
STATEMENTS
I tried to find a date and who is responsible for the
modern phenomena of trying to get companies and organizations to meet and
hammer out a mission statement.
Couldn’t find that information to my satisfaction - but I’ll
keep trying.
I’m sure - before the so called “Coming up with a Mission
Statement” - practice evolved, leaders, organizations, new governments, down through the years
tried in speeches to announce to their members what their plan or hope is for the future.
I’ve heard mostly negative comments about mission
statements. They are too generic. They are not specific. Members - as well as those
walking into a company or school or church or organization - don’t seem to know
or notice a mission statement near the entrance. Mission statements don’t seem
to move folks to put the mission statement
into practice.
Estée Lauder has this in their mission statement: “bringing the
best to everyone we touch.”
Nice - and I assume Jesus did the same.
THEME FOR THE
YEAR
I would think a theme for the year has more impact. Like
this year our theme at St. Mary’s is “All Are Welcome.”
Now that could be polled at the end of a year or during a
year - to see if it’s happening or happened.
I know - after hearing about that theme - I’ve said, “Welcome” to a lot more people in the last few months
than before. I had two baptisms
yesterday at St. Mary’s and strangers came in off the street before and after
the baptisms to visit our church. I know I said, “Welcome” and then asked, “Are
you from here?” I say that second part, “Are
you from here?” because I’ve missed on that a bit - only to find out the
stranger has been here for the past 45 years.
I remember saying “Welcome” to someone and they said, “Thank
you. That’s the first time anyone said that to me in the past 9 years.”
I know I said welcome to the next couple I met right after that and they
said, “Thank you!” and then they said they just moved to Annapolis and are checking
out churches.
I know some people walked out of Mass a few years ago
when a priest here made comments about gay people from the pulpit.
It seems to me that Pope Francis, Jesus and the Catholic
Bishops of the United States are challenging Catholics to be more welcoming
than the past with all people.
Okay, pet Pitbull’s and Rottweilers are not welcome at our church - at least from me. However, pet Pitbull and Rottweiler type people are. And I would assume that people with
Rottweilers, Pitbull’s, pugs and poodles are welcome if we ever have animal
blessings on the feast of St. Francis.
So to me themes for the year have more power, influence,
impact than mission statements.
OUR MISSION
STATEMENT
Does our mission statement for St. Mary’s Parish have any
influence on our practices - and how we serve people.
On the front cover of our bulletin - on the bottom - here
it is: “St. Mary’s Parish, a sacramental Roman Catholic community united in
Jesus Christ our Redeemer, proclaims God’s love: serves the needs of others;
educates in the faith; and joyfully celebrates God’s presence and promises as
we seek the Kingdom of Heaven.”
I’m sure some of those 40 words were tossed around,
wrestled with, and hammered out.
On our website, with our schools in mind, we read, “St. Mary’s Parish, a Catholic congregation
served by the Redemptorist Order, includes St. Mary’s Church and St. John
Neumann Mission Church. St. Mary's Elementary and High School located in
downtown Annapolis, Maryland, serve students in grades Kindergarten through 12.
Anchored in faith, rooted in tradition, and committed to excellence, our
programs build lifelong learners who are servant leaders.”
My wondering is: How much impact do these mission
statements have?
I would think discussion - bringing them up at times -
could be helpful - if someone felt something or someone was being neglected.
CONCLUSION
Looking at today’s gospel - and its quote from
Isaiah 61: 1-2, I would think a key to a
good mission statement and theme for a year, would be that it has some upset -
some very clear challenge - in it. That is, Jesus in it, the cross in it, as
well as resurrection and new life in it.
At the end of today’s gospel - it says that the folks in
Nazareth, Jesus’ home town, “rose up, drove him out of the
town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town had been built,
to hurl him down headlong.”
I was wondering if I have ever said something that would get people want to toss me out of this parish.
