Dynamic Parish is a parish based initiative focused on spiritual growth, welcoming and outreach, and individual and family faith renewal spearheaded by Dynamic Catholic. Of the approximately 15,000 U.S. Catholic parishes, St. Luke has been selected to be part of its pilot initiative. Over the next 5 years, and with an investment of resources and training worth approximately $1 million, Dynamic Catholic will provide a rich series of events - retreats, speaker series, etc. and faith enrichment programs uniquely geared to our parish.
Why was STL chosen?
Dynamic Catholic chose our Archdiocese (one of four across the country [Northeast, Midwest, South, and West] because our Archbishop, working with others, believed that the Dynamic Parish initiative would benefit churces in our area. After discerning which pastors would be in a position to lead their parishes through the processand which parishes would be ready for the Dynamic Catholic initiative, the DC team set out to interview those priests and see the parishes in day-to-day life. The conversation was a fruitful one, and only a few weeks ago, we received the call that St. Luke would be among the parishes honored to move in this new, amazing direction!
What is Dynamic Catholic, anyway?
Dynamic Catholic was founded in 2008 by Matthew Kelly, an internationally acclaimed business consultant, speaker, and author who looked at the world and realized that people were losing a clear understanding of WHY Catholicism in its rich relationship with Christ and its beautiful tradition of faith has a genius for producing men and women who are the best version of themselves. He developed a team, invested millions of dollars, and thousands of hours into researching what makes some parishes thrive and which instill lasting Catholic fiath in their parishioners, regardless of age. What came of that investment became Dynamic Catholic. In addition to wonderful sacramental formation programs and events (like retreats, speaker series, pilgrimages, and more,) the initiative also provides our pastor with a dedicated consultant who has access to all the best practices in place at oter parishes that are growing and deepening their Catholic faith at all levels. All of this is provided in full by Dynamic Catholic and will not cost the parish a single penny over the next five years, so tat St. Luke can focus on what really matters: JESUS and the people of our parish.
What will this mean for me and my family?
Over the next five years, you will be provided with some of the best Catholic events, resources, and faith opportunities ANYWHERE! There are beautiful materials and resources for every member of your family to deepen his or her love of Jesus in the Holy, to grow his or her understanding of daily prayer and holy Scripture, confidence in God's providence, and developing the ability to know WHY the Catholic faith will empower him or her to be the best person he or she can be. There something for everyone - no matter what stage of life they're in or where they are in their faith journey.
That sounds great, but there's a lot about my parish I already love... Will this new initiative break what we already have?
Not at all! Three are so many wonderful things about St. Luke - and this new initiative will do two things: (1) it will help STRENGTHEN and REENERGIZE the things that make St. Luke such a great parish, and (2) it will help us redirect things about our parish that need a little growth and support.
Dynamic Parish will have something fo revery ministry, family, and parishioner over the next five years. They even have materials and resources in Spanish, as well. We believe what God will do in the life of this parish and in the lives of our parishioners over the next five years will be extraordinary. We want to mark the beginning of this new chapter in our parish's story with a celebration of everything that's wonderful about St. Luke. We hope you'll join us.
OKAY, I'M EXCITED! How can I help?
We welcome your creativity, energy, love, and faithfulness! Bring us your gifts and talents, and with God's help we can build a DYNAMIC PARISH!