This may be the very definition of “pro-active.”

Faced with the inconvenient truth that their churches would probably be closing, two parishes in Massachusetts voted in 2006 to consolidate. They did this on their own, without any pressure from the diocese. And now they are getting ready to break ground for their new church.

As the Boston Globe reported:

Members are getting to know each other through periodic combined events. The parishes have held several joint Masses, (Fr. Lawrence) Brault said, and they will team later this month to stage a harvest festival.

Parishioners were asked to bring rocks from their own property, decorated to represent their families, to a ceremony to bless the land where the new church will sit. Those rocks will be poured into the foundation of the new building, (parishioner Daniel) Lambert said.

Lambert said the rocks illustrate a metaphor – that the people from both parishes will form the foundation of the new church.

But, Lambert said, more than anything, it is the parishioners’ faith that will bind them. He noted Catholicism has rituals and core beliefs that remain standard across different churches.

“That makes it easy to go from place to place and feel like you’re at home,” Lambert said. “My primary identity is not a particular parish. My primary identity is Catholic.”

It’s a great read. Check the Globe link for the rest.

Photo: Fr. Lawrence Brault, by Josh Reynolds/Boston Globe