3rd Sunday of Ordinary Time (Church...Changing, Evolving)

In our second reading, the Apostle Paul was writing to a new fledgling church community, the Christians of Corinth. Like most all the communities he established, they began by meeting in the homes of their members. There were no buildings reserved for such purposes. In fact, as Christianity began to spread throughout the Roman Empire, it was generally not held in favor by the Roman authorities—and in some periods, was even declared illegal, meaning the Christian communities had to meet in secret, such as in the catacombs.

          It was in the year 313, that the Edict of Milan legalized Christianity across the whole Roman Empire. Soon after, the Christian communities began to receive buildings and parcels of land where they could finally worship openly. The most common buildings they used for their worship, their new churches, were Roman basilicas, sort of a municipal, all-purpose building. And in many ways, these buildings became the blueprint for church buildings through the centuries.

This change is similar to how, as the Israelites of the Old Testament wandered through the wilderness, after having been freed from Pharaoh’s captivity. They made a temporary Tabernacle, a place reserved for God's presence, and it was designed to be picked up and moved as they journeyed towards the Promised Land. It existed like that for perhaps at least 300 years, until Solomon, son of King David, built the Temple that would be the new and permanent home for their God.

I also consider how missionaries brought the Catholic faith to the Pacific Northwest in the early 1800s, and eventually, in 1883, when Mass was celebrated for the first time in what we today call Issaquah. It would be about ten years later that an actual church was built. That’s how it continued until 1910, when Bishop O’Dea formally established St. Joseph Mission, to be served by the priests and religious of St. Anthony Parish in Renton.

It remained as such until after World War II, when as the Eastside began to rapidly develop and grow, Bishop Gerald Shaugnessy re-aligned St. Joseph Mission to receive pastoral care from the priests and religious of Sacred Heart Parish in Bellevue. Through all those years, St. Joseph Mission had remained located, just down the hill, not far from Flintoft’s Funeral Home on Sunset Way.

Then in 1962, Bishop Thomas Connolly elevated St. Joseph Mission to the status of parish. Finally, St. Joseph Parish had its first pastor, Fr. George McLean. By this time, our small church building had become dilapidated. Search for a new site began, and soon after, the parcel of land we’re on now was purchased. A new church building was built, and Mass was first celebrated in it on March 7, 1965.

          These are just a few highlights. There’s so much more in the movement of the people of God, and of the Catholics of Issaquah, but here we are, almost 58 years from that first Mass in this building. So much has happened, even as we remain in this building.

But as we know, change never ceases. The people of God are ever moving and evolving. As many of you know, having outgrown this site, we’ve been talking for years about how to develop or even move as a parish. It’s a conundrum we’ve yet to solve.

Likewise, the Archdiocese itself, for several years has been reflecting on how to adapt to our current realities—as the population has shifted from what it was in say, the 1950s, when so many of our churches were built. We have some areas that have too many churches, schools, etc. and other areas, where there’s not enough. But another of these realities is that there are increasingly fewer priests to serve the parishes, requiring creative solutions to meet the needs. And more than just a shortage of priests, a shortage of lay-people to lead and serve as staff for our parishes. There are no simple solutions to these realities.  

When Archbishop Etienne began serving here, I recall him speaking to this issue, saying, “We’ve kicked the can down the road about as far as we can. We’ve got to figure this out”. And so, we are. Over the next few years, we of St. Joseph parish, along with every other parish in the archdiocese, are going to be part of a major restructuring, in response to the needs of our future. While the basic process is laid-out, the eventual outcomes are still to be determined. Along with the people of the archdiocese, we are going to be part of the process, learning how best to restructure, but also how to put the plans we establish into effect.

          After Mass we’ll show a short video, less than 10-minutes long, that explains more, what the learning-process and the proposed restructuring would look like. In our Monday newsletter (who receives it?), we will send you a link to this same video, along with a list of questions may likely arise. Please take a few minutes to see the video over the coming week. If indeed, questions arise, for now, refer to the list.

Again, many of these issues, including those relating to our parish have been before us for many years, because they are not easy to solve. But adjustments and solutions are needed and now is the time.

          There is much to be learned and determined, so much that lies ahead. As a people of God, always having been on the move and evolving, our task for now, as we begin, is to pray for the Holy Spirit to guide us in this, that it's not just us driving the efforts, but ultimately, God leading us. And furthermore, that whatever this restructuring eventually looks like, that it best serves the message and mission of Jesus, for the good of building God's Kingdom.