Our vision at St.Pat's is to make Jesus first in the lives of our parishioners, family, and loved ones. This goal guides all of our actions, the decisions we make, and where we concentrate our efforts. We are a parish dedicated to helping people become missionary disciples, and the Discipleship Pathway is how we try to do that.
Our Discipleship Pathway is made up of 3 Steps: Belong, Believe, Build.
The image above does not list every ministry offered at our parish.
BELONG
Our Belonging Step focuses on making sure you and your friend and family know you are welcome here. Regardless of past experiences or current questions, everyone who enters our church can find a place to belong. If you’re looking to find your place or get connected to the parish we suggest going through Alpha or joining a small group. You can also join us for some social events like Fellowship after Friday 8AM Mass or Donut Sundays.
BELIEVE
Faith is an ongoing process. St. Pat’s has a variety of programs where you can grow in your knowledge of our faith. We would like to think that we have something to offer everyone. Whether you’re looking for deeper catechetical studies or fellowship with others in your same life stage we have many opportunities to broaden your understanding of the Church.
BUILD
It has been said that the sign of a true disciple is they make disciples. It is only natural that we should want to share the blessing and love we have received. Our hope is that the overflow of grace from our parish will bless and build the Kingdom of God in our Fox Valley community.
We define a disciple as someone who is actively striving to grow in intimacy and knowledge of Jesus Christ and His Church. Although we don't believe that all disciples will share the same charisms or devotions we do believe we could identify some common outward signs of discipleship: A constant prayer & sacramental life, reading scripture, acts of service, and willingness to be in community with other christian/catholics.
Jesus calls each of us to Himself in unique and specific ways. We want you to be free to discern where Jesus is calling you as you grow in your relationship with him. Feel free to “jump” in where you believe will fulfill you the most. As a parish, we believe that our discipleship pathway provides important elements (opportunities for deeper conversion, community, etc.) that are critical for growing as a disciple and will bear fruit in the hearts and lives of people who go through the pathway.
We are excited for each member of St. Pat’s to take some time to reflect and ask the Lord to show them where they are on this pathway. This will look different for every person. The pathway, as with the spiritual life, is not an exact science, and each person’s journey is unique. The Pathway invites you to mature as a disciple of Christ through continual formation with other committed disciples.
To join a small group, please email Nic at [email protected]. Depending on current landscape of the parish small groups Nic will either invite you to join a current group or let you know when new groups will be starting.