Pursuing Renewal with St. Francis Xavier

I’ve always been a bit of a dreamer. Since I was young, I’ve been fascinated by books like “Set All Afire” by Louis de Wohl.  If you haven’t read it, this novel, which tells the story of St. Francis Xavier’s missionary journeys, is a page-turner and will set your heart on fire, too. St. Francis traversed much of Asia, through storms at sea, jungles on foot, risking life and limb to spread the Gospel of Christ. And he succeeded. Sometimes it's hard to connect the dots, but the Renewal Plans being created by your parishes are contributing to this very same mission of saving souls. 

Keep an eye out as the Parish Renewal Team in most parishes is sharing a draft of their Renewal Plan with you at any time.  You won’t be asked to sail the ocean or dodge poisonous snakes (so far as I know). Still, the plan will be filled with action items to help your parish create more missionary disciples, strengthen family life and foster an urgent sense of mission by becoming a Church of encounter and witness.  Just like in Asia in the time of St. Francis Xavier, so many souls in our families and communities are aching for the healing love of Christ, and our Lord is asking us to help Him reach them. If we pursue our Renewal Plans with vigour, they will bear fruit and change lives, and we will know the joy of helping this to happen.

As you review the draft Renewal Plan for your parish, think and pray about the action items you see and give feedback to your Renewal Team. Do they meet the needs of the parish? Do they go far enough? A key to a good plan is to have action items that you can count on to have an impact. One way to evaluate an action item is to ask, "What concrete result will this action achieve?” If you have no way of determining whether the action has been accomplished, that means it's too vague and risks not making a real impact. For example, if an action item states simply, “Be a parish that prays”, it is too vague. However, if it includes main steps similar to “Each lector commits to spend 30 minutes weekly in adoration before the Blessed Sacrament”, it has become specific, causing a concrete action and therefore result to occur.  Similarly, “Be a more welcoming parish” is too broad if left at that. However, if it is replaced by, or has as a main step “Establish a greeter/usher ministry”, it has become something actionable, concrete. You will know if you did it or not. If our parish plans are filled with action items that accomplish objectives and are measurable, we will see our parish take great strides. 

​The same goes for our own personal renewal. Big change starts with small, concrete steps—like committing to a daily prayer time or inviting someone back to church. Vague goals won’t get us far, but specific actions done with love transform our lives!
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When St. Francis Xavier arrived in India, he did so with a specific actionable plan.  First in Goa, and then beyond. And if we were to put it in one of our Renewal Plans, it would look like this:

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Action Item: Evangelize Goa

Main Steps:

1. Walk through the streets ringing a bell to attract the children’s attention;
2. Teach the children catechism;
3. The children will bring their parents, catechize them and baptize the entire families;
4. Train local catechists and encourage local vocations; and
5. Move to the next village.

Responsible Person:  Francis Xavier

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​​As our parishes finalize their Renewal Plans, let us ask the good Lord to give each of us the same love for souls as St. Francis Xavier!

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Written by Ryan Schmidt, Director of Pastoral Renewal, Diocese of Calgary.
Painting: André Reinoso, St Francis Preaching in Goa, 1619, oil on canvas, 96 × 162 cm, Museu de São Roque/Santa Casa da Misericórdia, Lisbon.