On Nov. 29, 2009, the first Mass was celebrated at St. John of the Cross Parish in Euclid.
Although the parish was newly minted, worship had been taking place at the site since 1952, when St. Felicitas Parish was established. However, during the diocesan reconfiguration process, the decision was made to merge nearby St. Paul Parish, which was located on Chardon Road in Euclid, and St. Felicitas.
The merged parish celebrated the end of its first decade with a Mass celebrated by Bishop Nelson Perez and a parish dinner on Nov. 16.
“Congratulations on your first 10-year anniversary,” the bishop told those gathered for the liturgy.
He reflected on how the parish evolved, comparing it to a birth.
“It’s not our choice. When it’s time, it’s time,” Bishop Perez said. “Your two parishes came together 10 years ago and you’ve been very successful.” The bishop acknowledged Father John Betters, the pastor, who also leads St. John’s sister parish, SS. Robert and William, located about 2 miles away.
“You have a beautiful music ministry,” the bishop said.
He noted how only about 2% of the Holy Land – where the Catholic faith originated – is Christian today. However, Christianity is growing in Africa. “The Church is like a dynamic family – it’s always changing. And through it all, the Spirit guides and it guides you.”
As he often does when visiting a parish, Bishop Perez offered some thoughts from Pope Francis on what a parish is. “I’m sharing these thoughts as a birthday card for you,” he quipped.
According to the Holy Father, a parish has great flexibility and can assume various parameters if it proves itself capable of self-renewal and adaptation. He said a parish is the presence of the Church in the midst of the homes of its sons and daughters.
The bishop also reminded the congregation that there are two kinds of churches – the one with a capital “C” that is the mystical body of Christ and the one with a lower case “c” that is the people who come and go – including popes, priests and parishioners.
“We are the Church – yes and no,” he bishop said, reinforcing the previous statement. “If we are the Church, then when the last of us dies, the Church also will die.” But, since we are also the church, the faith -- which is a gift -- is shared and passed on to the next generation.
He also explained that parishes provide charitable outreach and they are places of worship and evangelization. A church is a sanctuary where the thirsty come to drink in the midst of their journeys, the bishop said, paraphrasing the pope.
“It is good to reflect on where you are now and where you want to be in 10 years,” Bishop Perez told the St. John of the Cross community.
He also talked about their role as both missionaries and disciples, pointing out that those roles used to be considered mutually exclusive. However, Pope Francis has meshed the two. A disciple follows his or her teacher and we are followers of Christ – our teacher, the bishop said.
Missionaries used to be people who went to other countries then came back and talked about their work, he noted. “We never used to refer to parishioners as missionaries. But the pope marries these two concepts – missionaries and disciples – and says that you can’t be one and not the other. We’re all called to be missionary disciples – to be turned outward, to be on mission, to look out or the Church will cease to exist,” Bishop Perez said. “We say we ‘go to church’ but we also need to go out.”
The bishop said after Communion, there isn’t much left in the Mass except some prayers and blessing. Then we are told “to go,” he said, “and bring people back to the altar so we can be sent again. A church – a parish – is called to envision itself as a place you come to and from which you’re sent,” Bishop Perez said.
He asked the congregation to continue praying for vocations and he commended parishioners for their work in supporting a parish in Nicaragua.
After Mass, the bishop blessed the parish’s new Tree of Life, which hangs on the wall in the gathering area. Leaves can be purchased as memorials and are inscribed with the names of those who have made contributions to the parish, Father Betters explained.
The bishop also joined parishioners for a celebratory dinner in the parish hall.