This weekend we’ll observe the annual Bishop’s Appeal, an important source of funding for the diocese and for our parish. We’ll watch a video message from the Bishop at all Masses this weekend, and everyone will have the opportunity to complete a pledge card, which you can drop in the basket during the collection. All registered parishioners should have also received a pledge card in the mail, so to all of you who’ve already completed a pledge card, I thank you for supporting the good work of our diocese. I would ask that all parishioners complete a pledge card. Even if you are unable to financially support the Appeal this year, please turn in a card with a $0 amount to indicate that you are supporting the Appeal with your prayers. (This will also exempt you from any follow-up correspondence that we do!)
Our parish goal for this year is $170,582.65. This money goes to the diocese to fund their operating budget, including areas such as the Catholic Schools Office, Hispanic Ministry, Marriage & Family Ministry, Youth Ministry and the Tribunal, just to name a few. While you may not see the work that’s being done at the diocesan level, it benefits us all. Our parish counts on the diocese for support and guidance for our school, our business operations, catechesis, sacramental preparation, and much more. I can attest that the diocese does all this with a lean budget and staffing. For the past few years I’ve sat on the Diocesan Budget Review Committee, and as part of this committee, we talk with every diocesan officer who presents their budget for approval. I can affirm that there’s not any waste in these budgets, and that they take the stewardship of the Bishop’s Appeal funds very seriously. I’m very grateful to be part of a diocese with such transparency and accountability.
The additional good news for Christ the King is that any amount that we get over the goal is returned to us as operating income. This has been extremely helpful for us, particularly as we have been aggressively tackling deferred maintenance projects, such as roofs in the school and rectory and extensive electrical rewiring in the school. (This doesn’t include the vestibule expansion, as we do not use operating funds or Bishop Appeal over-goal funds for this project.) I’m very grateful to all of you whose generous past support of the Appeal has yielded such benefits for the parish.
If you haven’t yet turned in a pledge card, please take advantage of the opportunity to do so this weekend; or you can take a pledge card home and further discern your pledge. As a reminder, all school families who are receiving the active parishioner rate are required to support the Bishop’s Appeal as they are able.
Please continue to pray for our diocese and its employees as they labor to build the kingdom here in the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend.