Bishop encourages giving to Partners in Charity

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

    The summer months are coming to an end and with them comes the conclusion of our annual Partners in Charity Appeal. Allow me to clarify the role of this appeal as a lifeline for the vital ministries provided by our diocese in light of your parish offertory and the capital campaign, Legacy of Hope which was launched earlier this year.
             As we all know, the weekly parish offertory is the foundation required for a parish to operate, from maintaining and insuring the physical plant, to funding the ministries which are key to a parish’s sacramental, educational and charitable life. Every Catholic household should feel compelled to support the parish offertory as a tangible expression of Catholic stewardship, giving back to God in a spirit of profound gratitude for all the graces which have been bestowed on us.
    Each Catholic parish is an integral part of a diocesan family which supports the parishes in their mission with pastoral, educational and charitable efforts that are needed and that are beyond the scope of individual parish means. Charitable agencies dealing with the homeless, addiction, young parents in crisis, priests’ retirement, seminarian education and formation, Catholic schools, youth and young adult ministries, and catechist training are but a few ministries needed to support our shared mission as a diocesan family. All these, and more, rely on the annual Partners in Charity Appeal which is foundational to our work as a diocesan church. Over the nearly seventy years through this appeal, more than half of our active parishioner households have helped us impact tens of thousands of lives in Central Massachusetts annually.
    Every few decades it becomes necessary to address significant financial challenges that demand a capital campaign. These challenges range from “brick and mortar” issues such as aging churches and parish buildings, to endowing key programs which have faced spiraling costs such as Priests’ Retirement and Catholic schools, to preparing for the future with evangelization and outreach efforts. The Legacy of Hope campaign was launched in our diocese to take place in “waves” in our parishes over the next few years to address those unique needs in order to prepare for the future. Forty percent of the proceeds from this campaign will stay in the parish to help strengthen its mission, and the balance will help the diocese endow areas which have posed significant stress on the annual operational budget that Partners in Charity funds.
            Today’s request is a simple one. If you have not yet made a pledge or gift to the annual Partners in Charity appeal, I ask that you consider prayerfully making a gift today. If you have responded, please accept my sincere thanks for responding to this appeal. As of today we are approaching 95% of our $5 million goal. Yet every gift is critical to reaching goal in order to assure that these ministries can respond to thousands of people who are seeking spiritual, educational or charitable help.
Will you respond? It is my fervent prayer that, if you are in a position to do so, you will be counted among the many thousands of fellow Catholics who have chosen once again to be Partners in Charity. Along with my thanks for considering this request, be assured of my prayers that God will provide for you in your own needs and challenges.

With every prayerful best wish, I remain

Sincerely yours in Christ,
 
 
Most Reverend Robert J. McManus
Bishop of Worcester