This week I’ll continue to share from some of the Church bulletins that I picked up during my vacation in Ireland.
 
Last week I heard news that Mass was celebrated for the last time in my Dad’s childhood Church, St. Rose of Lima in West Philadelphia.  The church had opened in the same year of my Father’s birth, 1921 and ironically the last Mass was celebrated on the anniversary of my Dad’s birthday, July 25 ^th.  Throughout the Northeast, a part of our country that had a huge Catholic population when I was growing up, Churches are emptying out and closing.  But it is not just happening in a certain part of the United States, the Church is in decline in parts of the world where it once flourished, like Ireland. 
 
I found the following letter from Bishop Francis Duffy while attending Mass in Cathedral of St. Mel, Longford, Ireland.  The fact that the celebrant of the Mass that day was originally from Africa spoke to the need to plan for a very different future for the Church:
 
Shaping the Future with Hope
 
Pastoral Letter about our Diocesan Assembly -- 9th & 10th  MAY 2020
 
Two years ago I wrote a pastoral letter entitled "Sustaining our Faith Community in the Diocese of Ardagh and Clonmacnois". It alerted people to the profound changes that are coming to our parishes and to the practice of faith.
 
In that letter I wrote "...consideration needs to be given to developing and enabling parish faith development and pastoral care to continue and to flourish with fewer priests and with greater involvement of parishioners". This is about reimagining how we worship and pass on our Christian faith. Part of that reimagining will take place in the preparation for and as a result of a Diocesan Assembly. It will be held on the 9th and 10th May 2020 . Its theme is 'Shaping the future with hope'.
 
A DIOCESAN ASSEMBLY IS A YEARLONG PROCESS IN THREE STAGES :
 
Stage one is about listening. It involves the selection of delegates from each parish. The delegates will be identified this summer and will have three training sessions in advance of the Assembly to familiarize themselves with the process and the themes. They will help in the establishment of focus groups to listen to parishioners and other groups throughout the diocese. Each focus group will have a trained facilitator. I'm sure that people will have lots to say, what is said is important. From that experience of listening will emerge key themes.
   
And the following notice was in the bulletin of the Parish of Ballymena, Great Britain.  It could
well be in our bulletin and you might think about joining our own friendly Thrift Shop team: 
 
St Vincent de Paul is urgently appealing for volunteers to join the friendly team in Vincent's Shop. Vincent 's plays a vital part in raising funds to assist the ever-increasing vulnerable people in society. You can make a difference by giving a few hours of your time each week.
   
Sunday School for Disciples meets most Sundays at 10am.  All are welcome to join us.  Currently, we are talking about the acts of sexual abuse and the coverups that have deeply wounded the whole people of God. Healing is an ongoing process that takes place over time and in several stages. The treatment is truth, compassion, transparency, and prayer. Each of us must play a part in the process of healing and transformation of the Church.

Fr. Jerry Ragan