This Monday our team got together to check in about our community-wide goal for the current year: to make the 10:00am Mass an excellent, dynamic worship experience. (We’ve detailed this goal, which we call “the lab” in previous posts here and here.) This goal is for our current fiscal year (July 1 2017-June 30, 2018) which means January 1, 2018 put us at the half-way mark! What better time to assess our progress in the last 6 months and spend some time planning and prioritizing for the next 6 months? So that’s exactly what we did. 

In the last 6 months we have enjoyed the incredible privilege of being coached and guided in this goal-planning process by Russ & Carol Sabia, members of our community who are also professional consultants in organizational health and clarity with Patrick Lencioni’s firm, The Table Group. With Russ & Carol’s guidance, we set out to identify accomplishments in the last 6 months by asking the question: what’s different now from 6 months ago, particularly when it comes to the 10am Mass? 
Here are some of the highlights:

LITURGY -- We’re always working to improve our messages and message series, but we’ve recently begun to focus and tailor our series in ways that our community specifically needs to grow (e.g. our current series, Upgrade, all about prayer). Music has been a core focus as well and in the last 6 months we’ve worked to improve both the quality and consistency of the music at the 10am Mass. We’ve also begun to use music not just as something that happens occasionally during the Mass, but as a tool that enhances the experience overall, to help focus our attention and draw us in (e.g. we’ve experimented with having soft music underneath the Gospel and during the Eucharistic Prayer to draw people into the meaning and importance of those parts of the Mass). This fall we’ve also worked to make Kids’ Church and Tiny Disciples more engaging and relevant for our younger members and seen more children participating with greater enthusiasm.

ENGAGEMENT/COMMUNICATION -- We decided to explore staying in the hall as a longer-term possibility (see this post for more background). We have had (and continue to have) conversations with people in small groups and one-on-one to discuss this possibility. We’ve worked to communicate our vision and engage people in conversation, not shying away from disagreement but seeking to listen and hear from people who have different ideas and perspectives. We’re deeply grateful for people’s engagement in this process as it’s crucial in helping us make decisions and move forward. We’ve also started this blog as a way to communicate more and improve clarity of communication among our team, volunteers, community, and beyond.

HOSPITALITY -- We’ve made some big steps with hospitality in the last 6 months. We defined a vision for hospitality: everyone who arrives on our campus feels welcome and loved--by us and by God--from the moment they arrive to the moment they leave. And in a meeting in October, we had the chance to share that vision and brainstorm ideas with people who have served or are interested in serving in hospitality in our community. Since that meeting, we’ve had many one-on-one meetings with people who feel called to be a part of implementing this vision for hospitality at the 10am Mass. It’s been so exciting to engage with people in our community who have a real gift for hospitality and also a deep sense of ownership for making this vision come to life in our church. In 2018, we’ll be launching our hospitality team at the 10am Mass. Stay tuned. 

TECHNOLOGY -- We’ve made some key purchases when it comes to our technology--some visible and some behind-the-scenes. The most visible (or audible!) change has been the purchase of a new headset microphone for the presider (Fr. Thom) as well as a new wireless (handheld) microphone, both of which tie into the same sound system as the music. The sound quality of these mics is far superior to our previous wireless mics for the hall which could only be used through the outdated built-in sound system in the hall. We also purchased some tech and sound equipment for both churches so that the churches own all the equipment used by the worship team. This is a healthier and more sustainable position for our churches to be in.

Those are some of the specific highlights from the past 6 months related to our goal. But when we think about what’s different now from 6 months ago, particularly when it comes to the 10am Mass, one big aspect of it is hard to describe. The best way we could describe it was this: the 10am Mass has a much different energy than it did 6 months ago. God’s Spirit is active and moving before, during, and after Mass in a new way. There’s a sense of excitement and anticipation. A few Sundays we’ve run out of seats (a good problem to have).

Certainly we’ve got a long way to go in realizing our vision. And most days we’re more focused on closing that gap and thinking about what’s next. But taking the time to pause to recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of our team and our community related to this one goal was an encouraging and energizing experience. We hope sharing it here encourages and energizes you in our work together!

As a church, we are in the communications business. We are charged with communicating the most important message ever--the gospel of Jesus Christ. On any given weekend, we communicate in many ways: the homily (which we call the message), the announcements, Kids’ Church, the bulletin, the Web site, the environment of our spaces, interactions with volunteers and staff, and so much more. We want all these communication elements to work together to communicate the good news of God’s love for all people.

Today we want to dig into one area of communication which we do differently from other churches: the announcements. Aside from what is communicated during the celebration of Mass itself, we communicate at the beginning of Mass (something we call “the welcome & announcements”) and at the end of Mass (we call this “the news”). Why do we do announcements this way? And what is “the news” all about?

Welcome & announcements
At the 10:00, 11:30, and 5:30 Masses, before we begin worship, a member of the team welcomes everyone and shares what’s going on and what’s coming up in our community. There are many potential things to share and announce, but we limit these announcements to information that is relevant to many and open to all. Beyond the content of what is actually announced, our overall message in the welcome & announcements is that we’re glad you’re here, we’re excited to be here, and there are exciting things happening here! Ideally the welcome & announcements starts Mass off with excitement and enthusiasm. Mass is a celebration and the gospel is good news--every part of our worship experience should reflect that.

News
The news is what’s communicated at the end of Mass, after the Prayer after Communion, at the 10:00, 11:30, and 5:30 Masses. This includes a welcome to people who don’t normally come to church, the message summary and challenge, and some conversation with Fr. Thom. The news has a few purposes and goals:

1. Our priority as a church is to reach those who have been disconnected from church, and research shows that the number one reason unchurched people don’t come to church is that they don’t feel welcome. So the special welcome to them in the news is a chance to put them at ease, to speak to what their experience might be like, and to tell them that no matter what, our whole community is glad they’re here. And it seems to work. We have newcomers approach us after Mass to say, “Thank you so much for saying that. It really makes me feel that I am welcome and I belong.”
2. The message (the homily) is the primary communication method of the whole worship experience. Given that, we take some time to recap the message and challenge for the week so that people are sent out on mission. The message recap also allows people to hear the message in a voice other than Fr. Thom’s. Oftentimes an idea or concept sinks in better when you’ve heard it from more than one person and in different words.
3. Another goal of the news is to give some visibility to staff. In Catholic culture, there is often the idea that the pastor does it all. Fr. Thom does a lot, to be sure, but the parish is not the pastor alone and seeing other staff regularly (and knowing their name and role) helps to reinforce that there is depth of leadership in our church and that ultimately all of our work is a team effort.
4. The back-and-forth conversation at the end of the news is meant to lend some humanness to the liturgy. People are more likely to put the message into action if they feel it’s approachable and modeled in a way that makes it accessible.

That’s our current thinking about announcements at Mass. We've learned a lot and been inspired by looking at how healthy, growing churches communicate. With that being said, it’s definitely a work in progress! We rehearse the welcome and news every Thursday with an eye toward accomplishing the goals above and improving our communications skills. We know we’ve got room to grow and it’s great to gather weekly to work on it together. What’s coming up? We’ve experimented with an announcements video in the past and plan to take a next step with that in the new year--stay tuned!

Last week we introduced the idea of the lab and we’re excited to dig in and get to work! This goal represents a big shift in some ways that will be immediately visible and other ways that will involve a lot of behind-the-scenes work. One example of some behind-the-scenes work going on related to the lab: this Wednesday we had a meeting with people in our community to share our vision for hospitality and to brainstorm and explore how we can make each person who arrives on our campus feel welcome and loved--by us and by God--from the moment they arrive to the moment they leave.

One of the more visible shifts related to our work on the lab is that the 10:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. Masses at St. Joseph are still taking place in the hall at St. Joseph. For the past couple of years, we’ve had worship in the hall over the summer months because the hall has air conditioning.  This has made it a far more comfortable environment to worship in when it’s hot and humid outside. While it’s no longer hot and humid, people have been asking why we haven’t moved back into the sanctuary (the church) yet. Good question! We haven’t moved back to the sanctuary because we have been exploring the possibility of staying in the hall moving forward for a number of reasons:

1. The sound in the hall is far clearer and less distracting than the sanctuary. The acoustics of the sanctuary are beautiful, but that space was not designed for amplified sound. When the speakers, monitors, and instruments of a band combine with the reverb and sound reflections of the sanctuary, it creates a sound that is very loud and muddy. Loudness, especially loudness without clarity, can be a significant distraction to worship.

2. The sightlines of the hall are far clearer than the sanctuary. While the design of the sanctuary is aesthetically more pleasing than the hall in its current state, the sanctuary has significant sightline limitations. There isn’t a place to set up a screen for a projector. That limits us to projecting on back walls, which are in significant need of repainting (and which further obscures the projected image). Even if we installed a screen, significant portions of the seating are obstructed by columns. These sightlines create an environment that keeps a lot of people from fully participating in the Mass. Space limitations limit the band (the worship team) to setting up off to the side where they are visually obstructed from the congregation.

3. The space in the hall is more flexible for families with children. In the church, if you need to step out with a young child, you have two options: go outside (where it may be raining or very cold) or go to the very front of the church (which can be uncomfortable for the parent and distracting for the congregation). In the hall, there is more space for families with kids to move around in the back of the worship space and it is much easier to exit the back of the hall where bathrooms are easily accessible. Worship in the hall also keeps parents closer to our kids’ worship experiences: Tiny Disciples and Kids’ Church, which take place in the lower hall.

All of that being said, we fully recognize that the hall is not an ideal worship space in its current state. Visually, the hall feels like a temporary space. Fellowship after Mass (coffee and donuts) is certainly possible but not ideal given space limitations and set up. 

Neither the church nor the hall is ideal for our vision of worship, but one possible way forward is to outfit and design the space in the hall to meet the needs outlined above while at the same time preserving the beauty of the sanctuary. The 7:30am Sunday Mass, daily Masses, weddings, and funerals continue to take place in the sanctuary. 

As we explore the possibility of staying in the hall moving forward, we’re focusing on two main tasks:

1. Looking for feedback and input from people in our community. We don’t have all the answers and we want to hear from you! Enter your contact info below to set up a time to chat with our team. We’d love your input and ideas.
2. Exploring what some immediate upgrades to the hall could accomplish: improving lighting, specifically around the altar and ambo; changing the visual look and feel of the space; attaching kneelers to the chairs; putting the altar and ambo on risers for better sightlines and visibility.

Our worship space matters deeply because it affects how we are able to enter into worship. Whatever space we use for worship, we want to remove obstacles and distractions that get in the way of people meeting God--of having an encounter with the one true, living God who brings healing, hope, and purpose into our lives, our community, and our world.

Last week on this blog we discussed our vision at New Roads. This week we want to discuss our strategy for the coming year. As you may recall, vision is about where we’re heading. Strategy is about how we get there. 

Our overall strategy at New Roads focuses on the Sunday worship experience. The Sunday experience is the number one opportunity for people in the community to connect with our church. The biggest and most important strategic decision we have made over the last few years has been to focus our staff, volunteers, and resources on the Sunday experience, from the perspective of unchurched people--that is, the thousands of people in our community who have drifted away from church or who have never really been a part of a church community. We stopped doing a lot of things we had been doing “because we’ve always done it” and we started focusing on Sunday worship. 

Focusing on the Sunday worship experience from the perspective of people who have been disconnected from church has been a big step forward. But we’ve realized recently that it’s not focused enough. We’ve been trying to change six Masses across two parishes all at the same time. So our new focus, our strategic goal for this year, is to focus on transforming one Mass into an experience of worship that is modern, relevant, and engaging--a worship experience that helps people meet God through full, conscious, and active participation in worship. 

Furthermore, our desire is to treat this one Mass as a “lab” or “workshop” where we can implement our vision of worship, but also experiment as we go. This will allow us to figure out what one worship experience will be like--what works and what doesn’t in attracting the unchurched and engaging current members more fully in worship. Once we’ve refined one worship experience and have a “proof-of-concept,” we can then expand what we’ve learned to other Masses.

In addition, we feel that focusing on one Mass will be the least disruptive and most honoring of the people in our community. In the past, we have made the mistake of rolling out changes and new initiatives before we had a clear idea of what it would take for those changes to be successful. That has led to several unintended and undesired results: frustration, lack of clarity and understanding, and burnout of staff and volunteers. Treating one Mass as a “lab” will also allow us to create a Mass where people can come and experience more concretely where we’re heading.

Making big changes to one Mass at a time seems to make sense for a number of reasons. The next question was: which Mass should we focus on? We think the 10:00 a.m. Mass at St. Joseph represents the best opportunity as it is a desirable Mass time for many and one that attracts many families with children. There are various objectives we’ll be working on related to this goal: upgrading our worship space and technology, enhancing kids’ worship experiences, expanding hospitality, and more. Stay tuned as we’ll be sharing more on this goal throughout the year, particularly here on our blog: this is Part I of a series of posts on “the lab” that will continue over the coming weeks and months.

It’s the church itself--the people of God--who are called to carry out the mission and vision of our church. And it’s important to say, that is the only way this will happen--through the service, generosity, hard work, and commitment of our whole community. At New Roads, we have so many smart, talented, committed, connected, and creative members whose input, ideas, and service are working together to make God’s vision for our church a reality. We want to partner with you in the work God is calling us to and we want to hear from you! Email info@newroadscatholic.org to set up a time to chat with us and to find out how you can partner with us in this effort.