On June 20th, approximately 130 members of Saint Anastasia became one of the first parishes in the Diocese of Brooklyn to hold a Parish Assembly. Gathering together to begin the process of moving our Church and parish forward into the next century, the participants took part in a roundtable presentation by the Parish Council regarding the mission and framework for addressing issues and goals for the future.

Utilizing both small group discussions and index card responses, people answered 7 questions (listed below) and sought to formulate some ideas about our lives as Catholics in the Brooklyn Diocese. The brief points below show some of the more common and recurrent themes that arose from the questions presented. They are now serving as guiding points for the formulation of a Mission Statement for Saint Anastasia’s Parish, and as a beginning to the ongoing process of growing and enhancing our experiences as a community of faith.

1. WHAT WOULD JESUS SAY IF HE WAS HERE?

• PRACTICE LOVE AND TOGETHERNESS
• PERFORM SERVICE FOR THE COMMUNITY
• TEACH OTHERS ABOUT CHRISTIAN VALUES
• REACH OUT TO THOSE THAT HAVE LEFT THE CHURCH

2. WHY DO YOU THINK THE UNIVERSAL CATHOLIC CHURCH EXISTS?

• TEACHING THE FAITH
• SPREADING THE WORD OF JESUS
• SUPPORTING OTHERS IN NEED
• IT DEFINES WHAT WE ARE (VALUES)
• PROVIDES A SENSE OF FAMILY AND TOGETHERNESS
• CREATES A COMMUNITY OF BELIEVERS

3. WHAT MAKES THIS PARISH UNIQUE AND SPECIAL?

• THE SCHOOL
• A REBIRTH OF YOUTH
• YOUNG ACTIVE PARENTS
• PROACTIVE MEMBERSHIP
• PARISH ACTIVITIES
• OUR CLERGY

4. WHAT DO I EXPECT OF THE PARISH?

• CLERGY THAT IS CARING AND AVAILABLE
• A GREAT CATHOLIC SCHOOL
• CARING AND WELCOMING COMMUNITY
• OPPORTUNITIES TO MEET OTHERS
• DISCLOSURE OF FINANCES FOR SCHOOL AND CHURCH
• OUTREACH PROGRAMS
• HELP IN ACHIEVING SPIRITUAL GROWTH

5. HOW SHOULD WE REACH OUT TO THE BROADER COMMUNITY OF THE PARISH?

• EVENTS AND OUTREACH PROGRAMS
• ACTIVITIES FOR THE ELDERLY
• MORE CONNECTION WITH LOCAL COMMUNITY AND PEOPLE OF OTHER FAITHS.
• PROMOTE THE BENEFITS OF THE SCHOOL AND PARISH

6. WHAT DO OUR DEMOGRAPHICS AND DATA SUGGEST WE DO FOR THE FUTURE?

• BUILD A STRONG CATHOLIC SCHOOL
• GET YOUTH INVOLVED IN PARISH ACTIVITIES
• ATTRACT THE BROADER COMMUNITY/ETHNIC GROUPS
• PARTICIPATE IN INTERFAITH MEETINGS
• DEVELOP AN EVANGELIZATION PROGRAM

7. WHICH OF THESE ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS DO WE NEED TO FOCUS ON?

• SERVICE
• TEACHING
• WORSHIP

The first Parish Assembly yielded these results in a productive 2½ -hour meeting. As stated above, these responses will serve as the guidelines for developing a Parish Mission Statement, requested of us by the Diocese of Brooklyn. The clergy and the members of the Parish Council want to thank all those who took the time to participate in our inaugural meeting and encourage EVERYONE to attend future Parish Assemblies to help guide the future of St. Anastasia’s as we move together into the 21st century.

In the coming weeks, the Parish Council will present to the parishioners a Mission Statement for St. Anastasia’s, and announce the formation of working focus groups to address the essential goals for the parish and develop the process to achieve them. We ask all in our faith community to reflect on their current involvement in parish life and give serious consideration to becoming a member of one of the focus groups.