Have you ever been to a Catholic Church, sat as part of a large congregation during mass and gone home again without having spoken to anyone? Or perhaps you moved into a parish and several months on you find that you have talents and wish to be of service but have never had the conversation that enables this to happen.

A truly Catholic community welcomes all people and this is the desire that we have for the Living Church.  The Living Church will be working alongside the Diocese to foster a culture of openness, transparency and accountability.  Within our parishes we will be providing training in the specific area of Ministry of Welcome and exploring with Parishes how they can include those who are marginalised or disengaged from their Parish Community.  We also want to support the connections of our Parish Community so that those who have migrated, are sick or housebound continue to grow in faith.  The challenge of creating an open, welcoming community is for each member of the Parish Community and we would encourage everyone to adopt the attitude they wish to see in the Church.

“Inclusion begins in our hearts.  It begins with a decision to love.  We can open our hearts to one another and recognise the strengths of every person.  When each person is allowed to share their gifts, our community is strengthened. 

We experience accompaniment in all sorts of ways.  Accompanying a person to attend an event or function is often a wonderful expression of inclusion. “

Dublin Jubilee – AD 2000 Office, It’s My Church Too!