School has begun at SSP! It was great to see so many people joining us for the Backpack Blessing. May we learn more and more how to welcome people and how to help them by our worship together!

I have a few more questions to answer below; as best as I can tell, these are the last of the questions which we received back in June after the “All Things New” announcement. Next week we’ll give everyone a chance to ask more questions at all of our Masses.

Once the IHM murals are done, where will they go?

We are using two of the murals to decorate the hall of the IHM school near the chapel there, and four of the murals to decorate the Father Keaney Center at IHM. Thank you to everyone who helped make them beautiful!

Will you have a meeting of all the chairmen of the different parish organizations in all the churches?

We aren’t planning such a meeting at this time. Please feel free to contact your counterparts at the other churches and talk about ways to collaborate and come together! Little by little as the year goes by parish staff and I hope to bring leaders of similar organizations together, but the press of getting the combined parish up and running will make that a slow process.

What happens with parish registration? Are SJB and IHM parishioners automatically transferred to St. Stephen’s?

Yes. Eventually the Archdiocese will help us merge the list of registered parishioners from SSP, SJB, and IHM into one list. If you’d like to register sooner than that, talk to Bridget Judge, our Administrative Assistant.

Will all three churches be involved in the Parish Missionary Disciples?

I’d love to see people from all three churches joining the Parish Missionary Disciples group. It’s a great place to learn more about how to help people meet Jesus and to join with fellow parishioners in working to grow our parish.

Will the SJB All Souls Book stay at SJB?

For the moment, our plan is to keep each church’s sacred art and furnishings at that church. Someone suggested that we incorporate images of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, of Saint John the Baptist, and of Saint Stephen Protomartyr into the sacred art of each church. I plan to talk that over with our Transition Team and see what they think.

Speaking of which, did you know that we have a Transition Team? Our Transition Team is made up of a variety of parishioners from the SJB, IHM, and SSP churches. I consult with the Transition Team to learn how this transition is going, to notice victories and problems, and to learn what might make things go better. Feel free to give them your questions and suggestions!

Please say a prayer for our hardworking parish staff and volunteers who have been doing so much to make these first weeks a good experience for everyone in our united SSP parish. God bless you!