Counting the Cost

              Have you ever heard one of those TV evangelists that speak of about the cost of Heaven?  They are on late at night on those channels way up on the dial, around the 200’s maybe.  They look into the camera with a serious expression and say things like, “If you do not know the cost then you will never know how to enter Heaven…” “You must die to self to merit the eternal reward.”  Things like that.  I would not use those words but sometimes we need to think of what we are willing to do for our faith.  I would not use the term ‘cost’ necessarily because it sounds like such a bad thing.  It also makes salvation sound like something you can buy.  Maybe if you get a ‘coupon’ it will not ‘cost’ as much.  It can give a really bad impression that we must buy our way into Heaven.  Salvation is a gift from God.  We can neither buy it nor do we deserve it for our actions. 

Our salvation comes only from God and any actions that we do here on earth can not merit Heaven.  Our actions and the things we do give us grace but they come from our love of God.  We pray because we love God and want to be in a committed relationship with Him.  We help those around us because it is the call that Jesus gives us in the Gospel.  As Paul writes, if we love God then we will do what He asks of us.  If we are to be His children then we are to be His people in the world to help build the Kingdom of God.

But we also know that there is a cost.  We can not just go about our day as if nothing is different for Christians.  There are people all through our world that give no thought to God, they give not one moments concern for what is God’s desire for His people.  You and I are called through our Baptism to be different and that can be difficult at times.  Our readings this weekend remind us of the call to holiness.  We hear of the Ninevites who change their ways when they hear that God disapproves of their lifestyles.  The Apostles drop everything when they are called by Jesus to follow Him.  In our readings we see men and women that are willing to do the difficult tasks that are necessary to be members of the Kingdom of God and be a part of salvation.  This call to change is not just something that we read about in the past.  The call of Jonah to change echoes through history and sounds in our ears today.  We are called to drop anything that will come between us and God and to follow where Jesus leads. 

There are many parts to our community.  We have changed many areas of our parish.  Small things like where to call and how to connect to the parish office has changed.  Larger things such as where we worship.  Even just a few weeks ago the changes in our mass schedule has been difficult for some.  The Kingdom of God is not just about heavenly stuff it is also about how we deal with each other and how we live in our world.  We should never forget that we are building something new in Our Lady of the Valley.  You have heard me say that what we were is not what we are now.  Everyone has had to make changes and everyone has lost something in those changes.  There is not one area or one group that can not point to something they lost when we became a single parish.  The struggle to build something new out of long loved and supported parishes is difficult.  Many things were laid down so that we as a community could continue to follow Christ where He was leading us.  Like the Apostles we may not know exactly where He is leading us but we can be sure that we know God is with us and we will not be lost.  We know that God’s Holy Spirit is with us because we can see the fruits of the Spirit alive and growing even as we struggle and grow. 

In the fall there was much discussion and reporting about a Parish Vision Statement.  This Vision Statement was the result of many hours of work and discussion between all the parts of the parish.  Coming from that Vision Statement were clear goals and steps that we as a parish community would be taking to continue our growth and building Our Lady of the Valley.  Each committee and group has taken a specific task as their goal for the year.  One of the most interesting and ambitious is the task of the Pastoral Council.  The Pastoral Council is doing a parish wide census.  This will be a census of all those people that are Roman Catholic and consider themselves members of our parish. 

This is not an easy task and was not taken on lightly.  A few years back members of the Stewardship Committee of St. Ann worked very hard to bring St. Ann census current.  That effort was well received.  The changes in our parish configuration have made many people change their worshiping habits.  The other parishes, St. Ignatius, St. Joachim, and St. Mary have not done work in this area in many years.  As children grow and move away, as people move and retire; membership changes but our census does not reflect that changing reality. 

Starting the weekend of February 4-5, we will begin a new parish census.  This census will take some time and effort to be done right and with helpful results.  Starting the 4-5th we will be filling out census cards in the pews.  We will take a few minutes at mass to fill out these cards and collect them.  We will be taking this time to give most of the people that go to church on a regular basis a chance to fill out their cards and be done with the process.  We know that a large percentage of our parishioners come to mass on the weekends and we can reach them at that time.  The goal is to get as many people done during the masses as possible.  This effort will help us limit those people that need to be contacted later through phone calls and letters.  The best effort during this first step will save the parish money and save those involved time and energy. 

Please take some time to think of your family and friends.  Think of all those people that you know that may be parishioners but may not come to church every weekend.  Think of your adult children or neighbors.  Encourage them all to come the first two weekends in February.  The cards will be available at the masses and can be filled out.  There will be people available after mass to answer any questions or to ensure that everything is filled our correctly.  Take this week and next to think of all those people that you know but may not be known to us that have chosen to go to other parishes because of changes.  Do they wish to be registered at Our Lady? 

It is important for us to have a good census so that we know who our members are and how to contact them.  Not a week goes by where we do not consult our census for phone numbers and addresses.  Almost on a daily basis we are called on to vouch for a person as a member of our parish community.  No one can know all the names and no one can pretend to know everyone that is part of our parish.  When people call to be married or to be a sponsor for Baptism or Confirmation we are asked if that person is a parishioner.  We have to know before we just say, yes.  A good census will help us know who our children are and be prepared for the number of children receiving sacraments each year.  In the past we just made a guess, sometimes we guessed right, other times we guessed poorly.  With a good census and a proper database we will be better prepared in many areas of ministry.  The reasons are many for a decent census. 

              In this day and age many people do not feel comfortable giving out information.  Some people feel it will be misused or not protected.  I can assure you that there is nothing that we will ask or that is on the card that goes any further than what is in the phone book or in public records.  We will not be asking for anything that could be misused.  Also, these records are kept locked down in a safe and are not open to general investigation. 

              There are some parts of building a community that may not be as interesting as other parts.  This census will help us to serve you and do all those things that you expect from us.  Visit the sick in hospitals and at home.  Support those as they grow and receive the sacraments.  Offer the programs and education to all members of our community.  Every task that we have will be helped by a complete census.  I know that there will be individuals that will be frustrated by filling out these cards.  I know that there will be individuals that will not trust us and worry about privacy.  I know that there will be those that are still angry over past hurts and will not participate in an effort to hinder the process.  I wish there was something I could say to change the minds of these individuals but I know there is nothing other than God that will change their hearts.  I offer only two small words of encouragement.  First, once you fill out the card completely, we will not be contacting you again in the future.  Once the new card is complete you will not be bothered in the future.  Second, a complete census will help Our Lady of the Valley parish grow and to do the work that we are to do by the call of the Gospel.