Ordinarily, the Mission Statements of parishes are the result of prolonged reflections by a parish committee and their efforts rewriting it. Frequently, their final Mission Statement is lengthy and flowery, often one page long, even longer. Consequently, meaningful and well written as a parish Mission Statement might be, no one in the parish ever remembers it.

The Mission Statement of a parish articulates a vision that unifies, inspires, and challenges the parishioners and the Pastor alike. It needs to be concise, easy to remember, and relevant to daily living.

In our parish, some of us decided in ten minutes that our Mission Statement was going to be "Seeking God's Will." We believe that this Mission Statement embraces all of our parishioners, and also the Pastor. Our children preparing to receive their First Communion are learning that "Seeking God's Will" is one of their responsibilities, our parish elders know that by their words and actions they are mediating their hard earned wisdom to our children and youth, while the elders themselves also pray and support each other in their "Seeking God's Will." When we gather for our Sunday Liturgies, we are aware that we are God's People, united in worship and recommitting ourselves to our respective and common "Seeking God's Will." In our efforts to let our lives be imbued by moral integrity, we keep learning that the ultimate standard is "Seeking God's Will."

"Seeking God's Will" is relevant when dealing with inexhaustible human experiences, like love and betrayal, births and deaths, baptisms and weddings, the college years and fears associated with aging, world hunger and war and peace, consumerism and unbridled exploitation of the environment. I believe that our parish Mission Statement appeals to self-motivated persons who have already discovered that personal and communal holiness, as we deal with our daily experiences, is not attained once and for all, but that it is a life long process frequently requiring much sacrifice, and always our praying for each other.

As the Pastor, I am confident that all of our parishioners will keep realizing more and more that we all experience challenges, sometimes hardship and confusion, sometimes peace and reassurance as we are all "Seeking God's Will." No one is superior to another, no one is holier than another. All of us are "Seeking God's Will" each in our own way and according to our respective levels of personal and spiritual growth. Each of us is in a God inspired and sustained holy quest. And having acknowledged that our mission, as a parish, is "Seeking God's Will," we welcome everyone, of good will, who is willing to join us in our common quest.