Preamble to the Strategic Plan 2024-2026 Fr. Daniel Griffith, Pastor and Rector
Fr. Daniel Griffith, Pastor and Rector
A Catholic parish is a communion of God’s holy people – missionary disciples – who are fed, formed, and sent into the world to be a herald and instrument of God’s saving love and truth. St. Teresa of Avila said centuries ago that we are to be the hands and feet of Jesus. The parish is the beating heart of the Catholic Church – this is where women and men and young Catholics come to meet the living God. The parish is the place where we encounter God’s holy Word, one another, where we are fed by the Eucharist, and where we are transformed by the sacramental grace we receive.
The parish is also the setting where God calls us to freely and generously share our gifts for the upbuilding of the Church and in service to those in need. The primary essence of the parish is to be a place of deep and meaningful encounter with the living God and with our brothers and sisters in Christ. All of the work we do at The Basilica, including the strategic focus areas below must be played through this key. Lastly, as missionary disciples, we must be willing to be sent – to go out into the world to set the world ablaze with the love of God.
Below, you will find eight key strategic focus areas which will guide the parish through the end of December 2026. These were developed after months of consultation with parishioners, friends, and staff. These consultations occurred through listening sessions, focus groups, working sessions with parish leaders, conversations with the parish council and finance council, and other forums which solicited feedback and input regarding the strengths and areas for improvement of the parish. In this time of rich synodality in the Catholic Church, I am proud to say that The Basilica has been living this reality for years – it is in our bones – it’s in our DNA.
These focus areas are built upon the last strategic plan which ended in 2023 and are informed by our parish mission. This is not an exhaustive list. Rather, the strategic focus areas below were the ones presented most often in my consultations as pastor. Additionally, in our parish leaders working session in March, I heard from many of our leaders that we must be bold, creative, and confident in approaching the future of The Basilica of Saint Mary – for it is God’s Spirit out front, leading us. The world has changed, and our community has changed since the pandemic – there are significant needs that parishioners have which we must meet in faith and love. This present reality requires of us that we not remain static but rather nimble and open to change, as the Spirit leads us into new ways of living our faith at The Basilica of Saint Mary and beyond.
Strategic Focus Areas
ENGAGEMENT:
Design programming, ministries, events, and volunteer opportunities so individuals and families of all generations and personality types can engage meaningfully in parish life.
RETENTION:
Retain talented, committed, and healthy staff, and retain, thank, empower talented volunteers.
SPREADING THE WORD:
Improve marketing and enhance communications with a focus on telling our stories, and engaging young Catholics, new members and people outside of the parish to foster growth and dynamism.
HEALING:
In this time of global polarization, brokenness, and uncertainty, focus on and enhance mental health and healing ministries to foster greater health, wholeness, and unity.
ASSESS AND REFORM:
Assess all parish ministries, activities, and events according to capacity, impact, and strategic mission fit – bless and release those that are not sustainable and not aligned with our parish mission and culture.
LEAN ON OUR STRENGTHS:
Continue to prioritize and build on parish strengths, and the ministries most valued by our parish community, including liturgy, sacred music and art, and Christian life and outreach programs.
BELONGING:
Strengthen our parish culture of inclusion and accompaniment where all parishioners and visitors are truly welcomed, supported, and empowered on their journey of faith.
SUSTAINABILITY:
Build a culture of financial sustainability and generous stewardship – creatively raise new income so The Basilica can continue to be a beacon to all in service of parishioners, visitors, and our Twin Cities community.
The Plan to Effectuate Strategic Focus Areas
A strategic plan has no value if there is not a solid plan to effectuate the goals and focus areas of the plan. To that end, several Ad Hoc committees will be formed with representation of parish leaders and staff members to effectuate each of the above focus areas. Some of these committees already exist. For example, the long-term financial task force will continue to oversee the focus area of financial sustainability and our efforts to creatively raise new income. In addition, the EDI committee is a natural place to continue the conversation about strengthening a culture of inclusion and accompaniment at The Basilica. Likewise, the mental health ministries and ministers, as well as those working in the area of restorative justice, are the natural link to the health and healing focus area. Other committees will need to be created – and as noted below, shepherding the parish in this task will be led by the Parish Council.
The process of addressing these focus areas and ensuring that there is proper communication about them will be led by the Parish Council, and this will be its primary task in the coming year. My intent in introducing this new strategic plan is to devise a process that is effective but not onerous. Parish leaders and staff are quite busy with daily tasks and their present workload. The work of the Ad Hoc committees will need to be right sized and efficient regarding the use of time and responsibilities.
The work of physically and aesthetically restoring The Basilica building, some of which will take place during this time period, was intentionally omitted from the parish strategic plan. This omission does not reflect the lack of importance of the restoration but rather communicates that this undertaking, given its scope, requires its own process. Our restoration project and our parish strategic plan will take place side by side as both processes are oriented to the renewal of The Basilica. Please keep this new strategic plan in your prayers and please contact me or Isabel Peters, my executive assistant, with any questions you may have.
May God continue to richly bless The Basilica of Saint Mary and may Saint Mary, our patroness and protector, continue to intercede on behalf our parish community and our mission to make God’s love and truth known to all.