Search and Uncertainty

Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time

This afternoon I sit on my new microfiber couch and drink a cup of sweet rose herbal tea "brewing" over an important decision.  After ten years at St. Joseph, I will leave the parish soon.  I thought I would stay until the end of the year; however, with the sudden resignation of our pastor and the apartment move I think a new parish home is for the best.   I've volunteered serving communion and lectoring for so many years that burnout has settled in.  I feel relief at the idea of just showing up to mass, no longer worrying about pronunciations or standing in the correct position to distribute communion!

I am now on the search for a new parish. With this search comes much uncertainty.  Will I find a new church I like as much as my old parish?  Will I fit in?  What kind of active ministries are available?  Do I feel the Holy Spirit alive in the sanctuary walls?  Trust me, some churches feel comforting whereas others feel cold.  I don't know why this is.  Maybe I am the only one sensitive to notice the difference!

This morning I attended mass at St. Philip's  only a 15 min drive from my apartment.  I chose this parish as my first visit specifically because they offer a 7:30am mass.  I walked in to find the sanctuary in a circular pattern.  The chairs had no kneelers.  Yikes!  Where's the tabernacle? In chapel somewhere on the property?  I liked the icons on the walls and the layout of the altar.  I'm not used to a church designed this way, but the configuration felt warm and comfortable.  As I sat in my chair looking through my "Magnificat", a woman began to lead the Holy Rosary. I pulled out the small rosary that I bought in Florence, Italy years ago and  prayed along with the leader. 

Come to find out the Holy rosary is said 20 minutes prior to every mass and not just weekdays.  I like that!

I noticed familiar looking woman in a blue dress walk through the pew in front of me.  It turned out to be my realtor!!  She greeted me with a warm hug and a smile telling me how beautiful I looked in my pink sweater and skirt.  She said she and her husband normally attend mass much later.  It was so great to see a familiar face. She assured me that kneelers will be installed in the new sanctuary scheduled for construction later this year.  Great to know the parish is outgrowing its current facilities.  That's a good sign of a vibrant parish.

I guess I will allow the Holy Spirit to guide me to the right parish.  So far this one is a contender.

-J.