Parishioners of St Gregory’s in Queanbeyan, New South Wales, have been pounding the pavement to invite local residents to join them at Christmas Mass. Source: Catholic Voice.
Armed with 10,000 printed cards, the parish community hopes to reach those in need of peace and love this festive season.
Pastoral Council president Tony Carey said the letterbox drop was the latest in a raft of initiatives designed to support the wider community.
“We trying to reach out to people who may not be engaged with the Church for whatever reason,” he explained.
“We are doing that in a number of ways. We are trying to increase the number of visitations to people in nursing homes, or anyone who might be lonely at home. And I hope to see that we do that for everyone – Catholic or non-Catholic – just friendly faces and visits to people who are lonely.”
To launch the initiative, the council sourced maps of the parish on the internet and broke them into bite-sized pieces.
“We put the maps on a table in the church and just said at Mass that we needed help to distribute these cards. And we have had a really good response. Without all the unsung heroes who have volunteered their time, this wouldn’t work.” Mr Carey said.
“It is a pretty engaged parish. The city of Queanbeyan has always had a real sense of community, and it has got a real diverse range of people. I just hope this is an opportunity to bring a sense of peace to people, because we need peace right now.
“I think this is a chance to say there’s a meaning to Christmas, and that is the birth of a baby whose message is peace and love. And that’s the simplicity of our faith, isn’t it?”
FULL STORY
10,000 Christmas Mass invites go out to Queanbeyan residents (By Veronika Cox, Catholic Voice)
