5. Interview with George Barrett (Part 2)

Back to George Part 1

FF: What's your mission statement?

To seek the well being of the city and in so doing seek your own. That's Father Michael's mission statement's idea - his way of being here. It's for the poor the marginalized. Avenues is involved in those things. We also have Boulevards for gays and lesbians, which is an offshoot of Avenues. Michael was really - he's not involved in my day to day activities - but he holds out the vision by getting people invested both financially and through his charism. You'll see that, he's just amazing. Most people who are invested in the BSM know that vision - that we are about hospitality, diversity, helping the marginalized.

FF: That's consistent through the whole staff team?

Yes. People really know that - you could ask anybody.

FF: It's stated and its real?

Yes. It's just part of who we are.

FF: Do you see that it attracts others because of that vision? Is service a motivator?

Not for most at first, but for some that's the reason why they're here. They know the basilica does reach out - a partner in the Jeremiah project, habitat, every day reaching out to the poor, partnership with Acension… they know that and that's why they are here. It's talked about from the pulpit. Fiath is not just about coming to church its about how we so we care for the people who sleep under the bridges. When the cops turn them out we hear about it from the pulpit. Father Mike talked about in sermons making sure our doors are open to gay and lesbian people. Usually you don't hear Catholic pastors talking about that. It allows people to have conversations they otherwise might not. It's kind of neat to have that.

FF: Both inviting and participatory?

Young adults sign up - you'll see them involved in all of our ministries. Sue Hayes, our director of volunteer services - says most of the young adult are coming in because they have no idea who they are and so they come to discover that here - its an opportunity to test their skills in a different way than their jobs do.

FF: Genius?

Michael's leadership is a big piece. Also a parish that through Michael allows a lot of creativity. We went though a structural staff change so that I became a manager - who I hire is my responsibility - that is unique. I don't go to the pastor to do that. People are allowed a lot of freedom and creativity. To take risks - the Block Party was a huge risk. To take risks in Avenues, in the way we do liturgy. Hiring the right people - Michael brought me in - he brought in key people start off thinking you're doing something else and then he says, 'so would you consider…' he selected us, brought us in through the back door and selected us to work together and manage the way things run here. And we work really well together

FF: 20 meters in front of the door band - inside a very traditional worship space. Can you comment on that? And its appeal to popular culture?

Not so much resistance to popular culture. Our worship is traditional, rich liturgy, the belief that people are drawn into something beyond themselves - into the mystery. That's what Catholics believe about liturgy and when it's done to the fullest effect we can touch God. When people come here there are elements of contemporary, but it's done with the richness of the high mass. Young adults who've never experienced incense the first time it assaults all their senses - smell, taste, all that - people walk out different because they smell differently because of the incense and whatever…

FF: How would you rate it?

High - young adults come here because of it. It is packed at 930 and that's our high mass. We do have numbers of young adults at our more contemporary services but our masses are usually full.

FF: Demographics. How many churched, how many Catholic?

I can get that info for you

FF: In general, what's your sense about who's being brought in over the last few years?

Over the last 3 years the initiation process (RCIA) out of 100 new Catholics, 12-15 are no church - never experienced prayer, conversation with God. 20-30 are unformed Christians. A bigger percent are from other faiths - formed there and are leaving some other tradition to come here. We have Catholics Coming Home, run by one of our adult formation staff, for people who have been alienated or hurt by the church - left it for some reason, it's a process of healing and reconciliation. A number of those have come unformed and so they go through the initiation (RCIA). The majority of ones that are formed, baptized Christians in another faith are the most challenging for me because I have to articulate my faith - like Mary for example.

FF: As you shaped this department have you shaped it intentionally? How are your work and God's work intertwined here?

When I first met with Father Michael I had a sense of how it would work, but I didn't know we would have the money and the support and the belief to make that happen, and it has. We kind of staggered a bit - let's hire a part time... then realizing we need a full time person the next year.

FF: How is God at work here in this parish?

For Catholics that's a hard question because we aren't used to talking about it that way. We are trying to get people to the place where their primary motivation is about Christ - the reason they are engaged in the Block Party or Avenues is because they are filled with Christ. Catholics have not had that in their language. In the whole initiation process - it's there. With new Catholics it's part of who we are. With old Catholics we don't have that language. That will be a whole evangelism in the church - how we articulate what Christ does for us and how we act out of that. It will be a journey. You might name it as ministry…people come because of Eucharist or service, but they wouldn't say I come because Jesus loves and fills me, and I need to give from there. And yet that's the most basic thing behind all that we do. It will be a learning curve.

FF: Formed and unformed, what do you mean by that?

"Something has gone on in their life that they've been able to connect God with their everyday experience, but they've never taken that experience of God into a conversation with a Christian community." So to be able to share that experience and identify it, to mark those experiences with ritual and prayer are not a part of their background - or they have been but they just didn't know how to name it.

FF: Anything we've missed?

Young adult ministry is the umbrella. Avenues and education components are my responsibility - but "Young Adult Ministry is much larger and much more integrated than just me or this department." Another piece of genius is the constant awareness of our need for collaboration and cooperation - we aren't there yet, but when we sit together we all know it's bigger than each of us. It's the block party, it's the liturgy, the way we do marriages, the way we do welcome, it's all those things and the way we do them well together.

FF: I celebrate the story that you told us. Mission that's not overseas it's across the street. Connecting people to God's grace. Hospitality, welcoming to the mystery of the liturgy

It's fun working here - this is the longest place I've worked at - its easy when you share in the lives of people and the faith they allow you to be in.

FF: I have a hunch about staffs - working well together how fragile that environment is - struggle and grace - how does that go for you here?

It's peaks and valleys - knowing that when it works its wonderful, and being aware that some times there will be difficulties with the same people because of our strong sense of ego. And you need strong personalities in a place like this, but that also gets in the way. There's a constant sense of working toward collaboration. When we disagree it isn't about our desire or our theology, it's about stupid stuff. Another good question is how to maintain a young adult presence in a time of transition. They have so many needs. I had a young man - 25 - on the board that was having some struggle doing his job - I met with him and he was shaking and sweating. The poor guy. He has a great job out there in the real world, and here he was petrified because we were in the church - these people are so fragile.

"For as many strengths as we have we've has some wonderful failures and learned a lot from them. So let me know if you want to talk to some folks about that."

Ask Father Mike about the marriage philosophy, its kind of a struggle for the parish - his idea is to have a great hospitable experience welcoming the family with no expectations beyond that.

Technology is a struggle - business has it but the church doesn't have access to it. We've started an email list because of a member… but we don't have broad capacity there yet, and it's very frustrating for young adults who expect it. And not having it seems inhospitable to this population - we seem antiquated and behind the times. That's where we'll fail if we don't work hard on it.