The Effectiveness of Small Communities

Over the years, the Catholic Church has seen its parish attendance decreased.  Some Catholic parishioners have been enticed to join other Christian denominations while others decide to attend Mass only on Christmas and Easter.  To revitalize the parish, some are now taking the advice of St. Pope John Paul II.  St. Pope John Paul II had always endorsed small communities during the 20 years that he was Pope.  According to Pope John Paul II, Apostolic Exhortation "Ecclesia in Africa" in 1995.

“The Church as Family cannot reach all her possibilities as Church unless she is divided into communities small enough to foster close human relationships. The characteristics of such communities are:

• they should be places engaged in evangelizing themselves, so that subsequently they can bring the Good News to others;
• they should be communities which pray and listen to God’s Word;
• they must encourage the members themselves to take on responsibility and to learn to live as Church;
• they reflect on different human problems in light of the Gospel;
• these communities are to be committed to living Christ’s love for everybody, a love which transcends the limits of the natural solidarity of clans, tribes or other interest groups.”

Some parishes are now doing just that. They are turning parishes into small communities similar to the Neocatechumenal Way.  According to the Catholic Herald:

Small communities are where the parish system really works. In a town with more than one parish, people will often choose a church based on time of Mass or the character of the parish. This has led to our churches becoming more eclectic. The whole concept of a parish then is often diminished in people’s consciousness and reinforces a consumer model of Church attendance.

People attend our little church because it is the local church rooted in the community. We have a strong identity as a parish church. Many non-Catholics seek support from St Joseph’s at certain times in their lives and this is because a community centred church becomes the natural place for people to gather to mark life events.

A small community also places far more emphasis upon the faithful taking their place as part of the body of Christ. Small parishes often have more people involved in the life of the worshiping community than in larger ones. People know, support and care for each other, but also recognise that if things are to get done then individuals need to step up to the mark.

Such communities therefore can become communities of nurture and growth. New people are noticed and welcomed. Parishioners who are ill and away from church are spotted and people grow in the life of the Church because they are involved and engaged. This cannot easily happen in a large parish where a significant proportion of people remain anonymous to the priest and other parishioners.

This community mentioned in the Catholic Herald is NOT the Neocatechumenal Way, but it is remarkably the same.  Catholic Churches across America are encouraging their parishioners to sign up for Small Christian groups, which usually consist of 12 people (See the weblink here).  Like the Neocatechumenal Way, these small groups meet in the homes, pray together, read the bible together, share their experiences, and even have "agapes"  It is these small communities that makes them stronger to participate in the larger parishes.  

Today, there are many members of the Neocatechumenal Way who actively participate in the larger parishes by being Eucharistic ministers, lectors, altar servers, and CCD instructors.  They do volunteer work in the parish, cleaning the church and maintaining the parish grounds.  Churches that formed small group communities have also seen this kind of active participation in their parish. People who formed small communities have come to know and care for each other. However, the most important thing is that these small communities help each other in their conversion to being true Christians and in knowing Jesus Christ.