ChristLife Unified the Parish Community Home | Our Impact | ChristLife Unified the Parish Community ChristLife Unified the Parish CommunityA Bilingual Case Study DANVILLE, VIRGINIASacred Heart Church5CYCLES OF CHRISTLIFE PROCESS275PEOPLE THROUGH CHRISTLIFEThe Question: How to Unite the Parish? Sacred Heart Church in Danville, Virginia is in the southern part of the state next to the border with North Carolina. Fifty percent of the parish population are families of Hispanic origin or who speak Spanish. ChristLife was implemented in the parish thanks to the vision of the pastor and the Pastoral Council. They sought to bring an initiative to the parish that could transparently unify the efforts of evangelization, and embrace the mission from an ad gentes perspective in a way that is intercultural, welcomes languages and cultures and reaches all those who were away from the parish or considered “non-active” Catholics. The Answer: Run ChristLife Bilingually They ran the entire ChristLife Process (Discovering Christ, Following Christ, and Sharing Christ) five times. Sometimes, they started Discovering Christ before Lent, continued with Following Christ after Easter and presented Sharing Christ at the beginning of summer. Other times, they started Discovering in the Fall, Following Christ after Christmas and Sharing Christ after Easter. ChristLife was given in a bilingual format each time, including when Sharing Christ was given via ZOOM due to the pandemic. They Tailored the Process Bringing the groups together bilingually was a critical aspect in preparing for ChristLife. Leadership provided training and communication with both groups. Every time a direction or teaching was given in English, it was then done in Spanish. They also took turns to pray in both English and Spanish. This created spaces of tolerance, patience, and respect in the community. The Approach Worked Each time ChristLife was offered, an average of 50 to 60 people attended, equally divided in both English and Spanish. Through a bilingual emcee, both English and Spanish-speaking groups met in a general session where they shared meals and worshiped together. After that, the groups divided up by language to watch the presentation on DVD. Then they returned to the main room to close the session together in prayer and song. A New Sense of Community ChristLife had a great impact on Sacred Heart Church. The community was unified, and people who had seen each other for years were finally able to greet each other and establish a friendship as a parish family. Bilingual liturgies began to be lived in a more intentional way. Participation in music also reflected the desire for integration. These fruits continue to this day, as leaders work in groups and ministries at the service of the parish. Leaders from ChristLife groups are active in various ministries, such as catechism and liturgical service, as well as assisting those who need to receive Communion in hospitals and prisons. The parish is grateful for ChristLife’s impact on our community. Case Study offered by Carlos Castañeda from Sacred Heart Church in Danville, VA. In It For The Long Haul “How do we reach the Christmas and Easter Catholics?” Msgr. Joseph Luca thought to himself. The answer came with ChristLife. Then the parish got creative! Keep ReadingA Vibrant New Community The pilot team took ChristLife for a “test drive” to critique it. They were transformed instead! The graces continued when they ran it for participants. Keep Reading
