You’ve been seeing in the bulletin that we have two big grand opening events to celebrate the opening of the new vestibule: a Blessing and Dedication by Bishop Rhoades after the 12:15pm Mass on November 24th; and an Open House on December 8th from 1:30pm to 3:30pm.
Why two separate events? I’m glad you asked!
Sunday November 24th, 12:15pm: Blessing and Dedication
This will be a big day of celebration for our parish, a chance for all of us to gather and ask for God’s blessing upon this new facility, especially since its entire purpose is to help us build a community centered on Christ, while welcoming new people into that community.
Bishop Rhoades will join us for this special day, celebrating the 12:15pm Mass and then immediately proceeding into the vestibule to bless the facility, with a light reception to follow. (Then the Bishop will stick around and preside at the Confirmation Mass later that afternoon.) This is a chance for our parish family to celebrate together, especially because of all the sacrifices that all of us have made over this last year as this new vestibule was under construction. I’d love for as many of you as possible to attend — it would be great to fill the church for our Bishop!
Sunday December 8th, 1:30-3:30pm: Open House
The purpose of the December 8th Open House is a little different. Over this past year, it’s become clear that our little construction project has attracted a lot of attention here in town — not surprising when you consider that we’re located on such a busy street. Therefore this vestibule expansion gives us a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to invite the local community into our church, especially folks who’ve never been to Christ the King before. We’ll certainly invite our neighborhood, as well as groups that we’re affiliated with (the Congregation of Holy Cross, Catholic Charities, all of the subcontractors who worked on this project), but here’s where I’m counting on you.
Here’s the challenge: I’d like each and every parishioner at Christ the King to invite one person to the Open House. In particular, I’d like each of you to invite one person who has fallen away or grown lukewarm in their practice of the faith, or perhaps one person you know who has never practiced any faith. Just bring them in so they can see the church and have a cookie…that’s a pretty low-risk thing to ask! But I believe that the Holy Spirit will be at work, and that this could be a powerful occasion for this new construction to actually lead some folks to encounter Christ.
Even though the National Eucharistic Congress is over, we’re still in the midst of our three-year Eucharistic Revival. The focus of this year is missionary sending, sharing our Eucharistic faith with others. In that regard, the U.S. Bishops have an initiative called Walk with One, which challenges every practicing Catholic to invite one person back to the Faith.
(See https://www.eucharisticrevival.org/walk-with-one for details) Our Open House is a really easy way to start.
Start praying now about who Jesus might be asking you to reach out to. When He puts that name on your heart, keep praying for them daily. And then as a very first step, invite them to our Open House, and see where the Lord leads you from there. I’m so excited at the possibilities that this vestibule offers us for sharing our faith with others, and if our efforts can lead one soul to Christ, then the construction will have been absolutely worth it.
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