Hello.  I want to take a moment to sincerely thank all of you who shared your thoughts, your hopes, and your concerns through the feedback portion of the Journey in Faith process.

Over the past few months across the Archdiocese, we engaged in a synodal process — a process by which we "walked together".  The process emphasized prayer, listening, discernment, and participation to provide feedback and input for future decisions that impact how we move forward as a Catholic community within the Archdiocese.  

In July of this year, I announced our Journey in Faith initiative.  

In August, over 800 people who are leading our 161 parish teams were given an opportunity to view the proposed pastorate models, provide feedback, and receive training on their role of facilitating parish feedback.

In September, I announced the specifics of the initiative. I gave detailed information on where we are as an Archdiocese and the proposed plan for moving forward.  This plan included multiple pastorate models.  All the Faithful were asked to provide feedback on them.

34 Regional Meetings were held across the Archdiocese in the month of September.  Over 8000 individuals attended these meetings to learn more about the proposed plan.

In late September through November, we held more than 300 parish meetings, and welcomed over 16,500 total participants to these meetings.  Specific scribed feedback from each of these meetings was collected and submitted.

Over the course of the past three months, the Archdiocese received more than 5000 submissions of individual feedback, either through the feedback form or via direct mail.  (show chart)

The individual feedback form submissions came from people who have a variety of roles in the Archdiocese (show graph)

Every voice matters, and we have heard a wide range of perspectives. For every point of view expressed, there often was a contrary opinion. Let’s not see these opposing views as counterproductive, but rather an important part of the synodal approach as we seek to understand and collaborate with one another.

Through it all, your engagement shows the love and care you have for your faith, your parish, and your community. It is clear that we all share a vision of supporting vibrant, sustainable Catholic parishes for years to come. Your feedback is guiding us as we begin the next stage of the process, which is reviewing all the feedback, both from you and from the submissions we have collected from each parish session. 

That process will take several months.  The Core Team, of which I am a member, will put together a final draft.  Then, the Planning Commission, which includes both clergy and laity, will have an opportunity to provide feedback, and changes will be made as needed.   I also will share the final draft with the priests so they, too, can provide feedback.  Any needed adjustments will again be made.

When the pastorate plan is finalized this spring, I will share it with you. At that same time, I also will announce the pastors and parochial vicars assigned to each new pastorate.  

Beginning in July of 2026, your new pastorate will utilize an interim Mass schedule for six months while the parishes determine how best to work together and thrive as an engaged community of joyful missionary disciples, centered in our Eucharistic relationship with Jesus Christ and united through our legacy of faith. Our Journey in Faith process allows us to create a framework to move from maintenance mode to mission. 

I know this has been a difficult and emotional process for many of you, and that is understandable. It has been for me as well.  Change often stirs both hope and anxiety. I feel hope when I think about – and hear from some of you about – the potential of Journey in Faith to transform our Archdiocese into a more vibrant and sustainable faith community of missionary disciples. When I read the feedback of some of you who feel fear and anxiety about the proposed changes, it stirs my heart.  

That is why I ask for your continued prayers—for your parish, for your pastor, for one another, and for all who are entrusted with this process. Please pray for me, too, that I may be guided by the Holy Spirit in the decisions I need to make.

Thank you again for your faith, your patience, and your commitment to one another. May God bless you and your families during the holy seasons of Advent and Christmas, as we continue our Journey in Faith together.