Why does the Christmas Carol Festival project focus on one-to-one invitations to events?
The parish bulletin does not reach inactive Catholics, those who attend sporadically, people with literacy problems or the unchurched. Area bulk mailings, signs outside the church, signs in the local supermarket, library or medical offices (with permission of course) can be helpful in reaching a wider audience. Announcements in local newspapers, radio bulletin boards, parish email newsletters and announcements on the Internet are great ideas. All of these avenues only work as reminders that reinforce an earlier invitation. None of them replaces a one-to-one, personal invitation and the relationship behind it. In one parish, a woman invited a young friend who was going through the RCIA process to come to the Festival. Afterwards, this young woman called to thank her, “You probably don’t know this”, she started,” but I was thinking of dropping out of the RCIA. But after last night, I am so excited. Now I know what the RCIA is all about.
