Establishing St. Andrew as your Home Parish

Welcome to St. Andrew. We are all embarked on a great journey - the journey of life. It is a great
comfort to know that others are on the same road as we are.

In joining a parish, we decide to travel the road with a particular community of people. In fact, the
word parish comes from the Greek word “paroikia” meaning “a pilgrim people,” or “people on a
journey.” We acknowledge that our journey is a journey of faith; a journey that we hope one day will
lead to the fullness of life in God’s kingdom. Living in a culture that no longer supports a religious
way of life, much less a Catholic way of life, the parish plays an integral role in helping to guide and
support us on our journey. The parish does this through its educational programs, Bible study, prayer
groups, spiritual development and its celebrations of Word and Sacraments. By these means, the
parish empowers and enables us to grow in wisdom and grace before God and our world.

In our study of the Bible we are reminded from the very beginning that the Mass played a central role
in the life of the early Christians. “They devoted themselves to the teaching of the Apostles, to
communal life, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” Acts 2:42.

The second Vatican Council reiterates this central role of the Mass in its decree on the ministry and
life of priests when it states, “The Eucharistic action is the very heartbeat of the congregation of the
faithful . . . no Christian community, however, can be built up unless it has its basis and center in the
celebration of the Eucharist.

We recognize that no community can exist as a separate entity from the members that compose it,
neither can the parish. When registering with a parish, a person is entering into a faith community,
and like any other relationship, if it is to be viable and healthy there must be a mutual commitment.
Today, we live in a very mobile society. More than any other period in history we live in a time of
shopping and surfing, the malls, the Internet, multi-channel TV, etc. The church is not immune from
this reality. Continually we meet people shopping for churches and parishes, people who for a variety
of reasons never think of establishing a home parish until they plan to get married or have a child
baptized, etc.

The Church, for its part, requires the pastor to have a founded hope that those seeking the
sacraments are practicing Catholics in good standing. The same is true when parents present their
children for the sacraments. The pastor is to have a founded hope that the children will be raised in
the Catholic faith. We therefore invite you to establish a home parish.

In order to establish St. Andrew as your home parish we offer the following criteria. These
criteria are in accordance with the guidelines set forth by the Archdiocese of Atlanta.

1. You must be registered in our Parish.

2. We recognize that many parishioners travel and are out of town on weekends so are unable to
celebrate the Liturgy (Mass) every weekend here at St. Andrew. However, to establish St.
Andrew as a home parish we require that our parishioners celebrate the liturgy at least 65% of
the time here at St. Andrew.

3. On Sundays when you do not participate in the Mass at St. Andrew, it is your responsibility to
participate in the Mass at another parish. To miss Mass on Sunday through one’s own fault is a
serious (mortal) sin of idolatry and is to be acknowledged in the Sacrament of Penance before
receiving Communion.

4. Your participation at the Sunday Liturgy (Mass) at St. Andrew must be verifiable. Each
registered family is provided with parish envelopes to use to verify your attendance.
If you contribute on a monthly, quarterly or annual basis, we ask you to use the empty envelope
to verify your attendance. All envelopes are recorded and verify your regular presence
at Mass. This record provides the pastor with the founded hope that you are a practicing
Catholic.

5. You must have a current stewardship card on file that indicates a financial commitment to the
parish. Your commitment should reflect a sincere effort to comply with God’s invitation to tithe.
God does not call us all to be equal in the quantity of how much we give, but rather He calls us to
be equal in the sacrifice we make. Thus, He asks us all to tithe. In our tithing, the Archdiocese
asks us to set aside 5% for the parish offertory, 1 % for the Archdiocesan Annual Appeal, and the
remaining 4 % for the favorite charities of each person’s choosing.

6. Your financial support to the parish and Annual Appeal must be verifiable. When contributing,
therefore, we ask you to use the parish envelopes provided, direct deposit or checks.
(When using checks only, we ask you to please write your membership number on the check).
We are unable to identify the contributors of cash unless it is in an offertory envelope.

7. There must be a willingness to help in the ministry of St. Andrew. We understand that you cannot
become involved in all of our ministries, but you are invited to make a special effort to become
involved in some of our ministries. We offer many fine spiritual programs, for example, CRHP, the
Women’s Guild, the Knights of Columbus, Mother’s Ministry, St. Martin de Porres, Legion of Mary,
etc.

8. Twenty-one Years: When you reach the age of 21, the Church considers you as an adult whether
your parents think you are or not. In such a case we invite you to register under your own name.

Establishing a home parish has many benefits:

• First of all, it identifies your wish to take ownership and become a partner of this great
community.

• Secondly, you and your family have an identity that helps us as a staff team to reach out to you
and your loved ones in a variety of ways.

• Baptisms and Confirmation Sponsors: If you are asked to become a Godparent or Sponsor by a
family member or a friend, the majority of Catholic diocese in the United States will ask for a
letter from your pastor stating that you are a responsible, active member. Establishing St. Andrew
as a home parish enables us to honestly verify your good standing and practice in the faith.

• Catholic Schools: We get many applications for Catholic Schools from people who state they are
members of St Andrew. The pastor is asked to honestly respond in writing to each of these
requests, as the response impacts the school’s decision. Only persons who have established St.
Andrew as a home parish receive a positive response.

• Sacraments outside of parish- If you decide to have your sacrament performed outside of your
parish, your pastor is required to honestly state in writing that you are an active, registered
member. This letter is denied if you have not established a home parish.

I started off by saying that we are all embarked on the great journey of life and have decided to
accompany others along the way, thus forming a relationship. In order to keep this relationship viable
and healthy we must ever be aware that it is a two way street of giving and receiving and visa versa.
Should anyone try to make it otherwise, such action becomes both unhealthy and destructive, just like
in all relationships. On this journey then let us make sure that whatever we do will be for the greater
glory and honor of God and not for the glory of self. Ever conscious of God’s blessings toward us, may
we continually strive to love and serve Him in a spirit of gratitude. Let the words of the Psalmist be in
our hearts and ever on our lips,

“What can I offer the Lord for all his goodness to me.” Ps 116:12

“Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, His mercy endures forever.” 1 Chr 16:34

Click here for the PDF version of this letter