Three rules for increasing participation
Photo from Photos.comNo matter what kind of parish you have, you too have the imperative to widen out from the usual volunteers to an effective and numerous wider we. Whatever path you take, you will never reach 100 percent participation. The point is, though, we ca—and we all should—do better!
True, inertia is comfortable and predictable. You can just drift along with the nice, usual and dependable volunteers. You know them, you can count on them. But what about the others? They have souls that need to grow in community. They too have graces, talents, and treasure that can benefit you and your parish. Here are three rules to guide you in involving them.
1. Don't ask too much of too many too soon. Time is often in short supply in Catholic homes today. Be brief and specific. Once involved, newcomers to your inner parish dialogue may be amenable to longer spans of involvement, but start brief and small. Never demand a super-long or wide commitment.
2. There are no utopias. Dream tall, write a quick mission statement, but bring your ideals into manageable goals (3 years) and objectives (1 year). Remember, a good goal is a dream with lifelines and deadlines. Proceed incrementally, step by step, to involve more and more of your parishioners in doing your plans. Applaud each success, however minimal.
3. Be consequential. Results don't have to be immediate, but unless something visible eventually occurs because they participated, your efforts to enable a wider we are doomed. We are a “show me” people. We will not meet just to meet. We will continue meeting only as long as there is meat on the conference table.
*This article is excerpted from the September 2001 issue of Today’s Parish.
Rev. Robert Howes is a priest of the diocese of Worcester, Massachusetts, and a professional pastoral planner.
