Divine Renovation
Divine Renovation began with the work of Father James Mallon, Parish Priest of Saint Benedict Parish in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. As a young priest aged 31, he and his co-workers faced challenges and questions that parish teams and leaders have faced all over the world: “How do we continue to bring people to Jesus Christ in a society and culture that are constantly moving away from that relationship?” “What would it look like if a parish was full of missionary disciples on fire for mission? What could a pastor accomplish if they had the energy and capacity to lead?” Fr James gathered a parish leadership team together, which was committed to prayer, effective formation in faith as disciples of Jesus, for themselves and others, and to finding practical ways to bring their parish ‘from maintenance to mission’. There were successes and failures along the way and the story of ‘Divine Renovation’ unfolded from there. One feature of their success was the use of a process called ‘Alpha’, as a tool to introduce parishioners, enabling them to talk with others about faith and discover possibilities for a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
Fr James’ first book, Divine Renovation: Bringing your parish from maintenance to mission, was published in 2014. Further books, podcasts, resources and coaching for other parishes followed. The international Divine Renovation network now extends to Australia and New Zealand. On Saturday, 24 October 2020, Divine Renovation Australasia was launched.
Kevin Bailey, the newly appointed Regional Director for Divine Renovation Australia, writes: “We recognise the primacy of Evangelisation, animated and led with reliance on the Holy Spirit and a focus on the best leadership principles and practices.”
View the Devine Renovation Launch event on YouTube.
To find ot more, go to the Divine Renovation Australasia website.
Alpha and Alpha Online
Alpha, which originated in the United Kingdom, is now accessed by people throughout the world. An Alpha process, supported by the Alpha Australia network has been adopted by many Australian parishes. The face- to-face model, which Alpha follows involves shared meals, short videos followed by discussion. While face-to-face options have been impossible in 2020, Australian Alpha Online opportunities have attracted large numbers.
To find out more, go to the Alpha website.
Rebuilt Parish
Rebuilt Parish is a movement that began with Fr Michael White and Tom Corcoran, leaders of the Church of the Nativity, in Timonium, United States. The story and aims of this movement are similar in many ways to those of Divine Renovation, as noted on the Rebuilt Parish website:
“Rebuilt Parish is a movement aimed at impacting the minds and hearts of parish leaders so they can refocus on reaching the un-churched, creating a clear discipleship path, and rebuilding their parish culture. Our personal Rebuilt journey, from our own home parish, developed field-tested tools to establish an irresistible Catholic parish making disciples in our community. This growth continues in real-time as we develop new resources and tools to fulfil the mission God gave us: go make disciples.”
During the 2020 pandemic, the Rebuilt Community has continued to offer free webinars and a ‘COVID-19 Support Pack’ to support parishes through these difficult times. The focus of current 2020 webinars is ‘A Christmas to Remember’.
To find out more, go to the Rebuilt Parish website.
