Why this, why now?

After nearly 23 years here on the staff at St. Bridget parish, I've found that an increasing amount of my time is spent communicating.

First of all, when you've been around that long you're witness to a wonderful amount of human history. From knowing what the artist's intent was when he designed the abstract stained glass over the west rise of the church... to remembering the youngest daughter's name at her mom's funeral, even though she lives in Ohio, because she was in your Confirmation class 20 years ago... to knowing where the shut-off valve is on the cold water in the crawl space underneath the church addition, when the plumber starts hollering... you just know things. That's helpful, and it can serve to link us up with ourselves, as a community should be linked.

But there's more. I'm here at our parish full-time; more than that, actually, as people know. I love this place -- I love this community. I know that people have placed a lot of trust in me. (That's really humbling, you know.) So there's this desire to be present to people: in prayer or at liturgy; at school or parish events; at personal, intimate times; at gatherings, meetings, classes... whether to lead, cheerlead, or be simply present. And that too, means that I see a picture of a greater whole, that I'm constantly called to describe, represent, or even simply enjoy.

And there's still more. It's more because as much as I love this community, I've become ever more aware that we can be so much more. We have much to celebrate, and we celebrate well. Yet we have soft spots -- even blind spots -- where we could do so much better. We have great strengths and have done truly wonderful things -- but we also have greater strengths that are only barely tapped. And all of that needs a voice.

And there's still more! For like any other parish, as a community we are very narrow in our vision. There are neighboring parishes with whom we have little in common... parishes far different, far more diverse: racially, economically, theologically, politically... there is a wide Archdiocese and an even wider national and international Church, with so much richness, with so many issues about which we seldom concern ourselves. There is much vision it has to offer us, and we have many resources from which we could share.

So it's time, for this. For a long time -- 18 years or more? -- I've been writing a weekly bulletin column called "Brief Notes." For better or worse, there's so much more to say, and there's so much less time left to say it than there once was. So, we'll try this vehicle, and see what happens.

September 5th, 2006