Case Study - How to Find Community in the Local Church
Putting the understanding of Church as family into practice
Welcome to Holy Week and happy Maundy Thursday! One of my favourite Liturgical traditions, the washing of feet in memory of Christ washing the feet of the Apostles, occurs on this day and so I hope you have the opportunity to participate in the Mass.
This week, we’re continuing our discussion on the Church as a family by having a look at the practicals of our “ecclesiology” or theology of the Church. Over the past two articles we explored the idea of the Church as our context for transformation and the Church as a family - this week we’ll look at how Ryan McGrath, a member of my community here in Halifax, Nova Scotia, got involved and started participating in the life of our local Church.
This past summer, I moved from Ontario to Nova Scotia to discern a potential call to the priesthood. I have felt God calling me to discern the priesthood for a while now but I did not feel called to stay in my home Diocese.
God placed a desire on my heart to move to Nova Scotia and discern with Him there. I contacted the Vocations Director, and after several phone calls and a meeting with the Archbishop, it was decided that I would move and transfer schools to Saint Mary’s University in Halifax to finish my undergraduate degree. It was here that I would discern both my vocation and whether or not this Diocese was the one God was calling me to.
It was a lot moving halfway across the country to a province where I didn't know anybody, but God blessed my path. I moved into a Catholic men’s household run by the Vocations Office, the Saint Jerome House. In this intentional community, young men live together to participate in formation and to discern together where God is calling them.
We have several commitments we keep together as a household, including daily communal prayer, dinner with each other as often as our schedules allow, and a weekly evening set aside for house time. This structure was perfect for me because immediately, I was able to start getting to know people and form friendships in the Church community.
Once school started, I realized God had even more plans for my integration into the community. At Saint Mary's University, the local campus ministry (Holy Cross Chaplaincy), focusses on building community among Christian students on campus. They have a Chapel for daily prayer and Mass, and a lounge for hanging out in between classes. Through the Chaplaincy, I was able to get to know more people in the community and participate in a rhythm of prayer with them.
The more I got to know people, the more I was invited to attend events and take part in various ministries. I saw this as God helping me to become a member of the community, so whenever people asked me to do something, from attending kitchen parties, going to a friend's place for dinner, or helping lead youth ministry, I would say yes.
These were all blessings that God was putting in my life, but he gave me the free will to choose whether or not to accept them. Through these activities, I very quickly developed wonderful friendships grounded in faith and I’ve felt like a true member of the local Church by being part of them. I have not been in Halifax for a full year yet, but I no longer feel like the new guy.
Because God made a way for it, this is now a community that I am a part of. I’m now so involved that when I'm asked to do something good, I must discern if God wants me to take on more or not, so as to not drain myself. Though I’m still discerning my vocation, God has willed that, for now, I stay in Halifax, and He has blessed me by providing me with many opportunities to become a member of this community which has welcomed me with open arms.
Here are a few things I’ve learned from this journey:
Whenever I was invited to join a ministry, I had to remember that in addition to doing the work to spiritually nourish people, it was also important to invest in relationships with the people I volunteered with
I had to actively search for community, people that I intentionally wanted to do life with (which includes being willing to share vulnerably with one another)
Socializing with people weekly after Mass (going for coffee, brunch etc…) really helped make my Church feel like home
by Ryan McGrath
If you’re feeling convicted now of the importance of experiencing the Church as family, we want to invite you into a simple next step.
The practice for this series is to start a weekly rhythm of communal prayer, outside of the context of Sunday Mass.
Here’s a quick guide to getting started by my friend Julia Yurchesyn.
When I started my own personal faith journey, I thought ‘real’ prayer was when I was all alone, sitting down in a quiet room with my Bible and a journal. The only experience I had with communal prayer was when I was praying with my family, or on Sundays when we went to Mass, and the words we prayed by rote felt empty to me. Praying by myself, just me and God, felt authentic and ‘better’ than saying prescribed words that seemed empty and worn-out.
Looking back now, I realize that I just didn’t know how to pray communally.
When I moved into a Catholic women’s household, communal prayer with Liturgy of the Hours was one of the foundational pillars of community life that I had to learn to honour. It took a while for me to understand its importance and to see the fruit of it, but now it has become one of the greatest blessings of my life.
Building a communal prayer life has helped me to grow in love, and has also informed and enhanced my own individual prayer life. Instead of looking at my own plans and needs, I start the day praying with my sisters in Christ. The decision we make every morning to get up and pray together becomes an act of love that we give to each other. It’s through communal prayer that I’m reminded how I am called to look beyond myself: “For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.” (Matt 18:20)
But many (most?) Catholics don’t live in community households — in that case, how do we build a communal prayer life?
To build a rhythm of communal prayer, you need to find people who also have a desire to pray in community. Realistically, look at the people you see on a regular basis and who are also intentionally living out their faith. Even if they are not actively looking to build a habit of communal prayer, there is a good chance that they would want to if you extend an invitation.
Then, based on everyone’s general availability, decide on when/how often you will meet to pray. Meeting every morning may not be possible, but what about evenings? Or meeting once a week? If you belong to a small group, communal prayer could be a practice that you integrate when you already meet.
It can be easy to get excited about the possibilities of communal prayer, and to set a high bar that isn’t realistic to everyone’s state in life. In my experience, building consistency is the most important element of communal prayer. It’s an act of love when you show up to pray, even when you don’t feel like it — that decision becomes a gift given to others, and the graces from that truly overflow.
So, make consistency the goal. After all, the Kingdom of God is like a mustard seed (Matt 13:31). The muscle-memory will come, and after some time communal prayer will become an integral part of your own spiritual journey.
Here are some ideas you could try with your community:
Meet for Praise and Worship if you or someone you know is musically inclined
Gather on Sundays to pray Evening Prayer (Vespers) - the Second Vatican Council had hopes that this would become a regular practice in Parishes; perhaps your community can be the ones to get it off the ground!
Start a rosary group
I hope that one of these is helpful as you begin your journey into living the life of the Church as a family!
by Julia Yurchesyn
That’s all for this week and, as far as articles go, this brings the conclusion of our series! We’ll be back again in two weeks with a podcast discussion (you’ll be able to listen or watch) between myself and Bishop Scott McCaig of the Military Ordinariate of Canada, discussing how we can more deeply experience the life of the Church.
Thank you so much for joining us and we’ll be back with more soon!
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