The starting point is to become an ‘Invitational Church’; which is not a program but both an attitude towards those outside the Church and a parish culture. We measure ‘success’ in two ways and it’s not by the number that shows up but by

the number of invitations that are made by parishioners, recognizing that the responsibility of the parish lies in the invitation being made, not the response.
the number of lives transformed by the saving power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Alpha is the ‘pump’; it’s our primary evangelizing tool that introduces people to the life of discipleship:

‘At Alpha, people hear the Gospel in a fresh way, they often encounter Jesus, experience the Holy Spirit and are welcomed into an experience of Christian community like no other. We have found that Alpha is the best first step for people who have been away from church or have had little to no experience of the Christian faith.’ Divine Renovation Guide Book.

The emphasis on Alpha as a way of ‘on boarding’ people into the life of discipleship recognizes that the Catholic Mass presumes so much, being as it is worship for the initiated.  We encourage all who wish to be part of the parish to take Alpha. The Alpha process provides an experience of hospitality and community life, exposure to the kerygma, and group discussion that is welcoming of both newcomers and more established Catholics, recognizing that people seek to belong before they believe and behave, and forms the primary evangelizing tool at Our Lady of Mercy.

Our Lady of Mercy uses Alpha not only to initiate the journey of discipleship but also to develop lay leaders. It also forms part of our RCIA process.  Find out more about Alpha here.

Following Alpha, guests are invited to come back as members of the team on the next Alpha.  Our Lady of Mercy aims to have 50% of first-time team members on every Alpha and to move those who have already served on the Alpha team to other ministries, thereby creating a continuous leadership pipeline.  We encourage a term of service of no more than 2 years, creating space for new leaders to grow.

Grow Groups are where Alpha alumni go to connect and to grow. Grow Groups are small to mid-size groups (around 20-30 people) that retain the key ingredients of Alpha such as eating a meal together, praise and worship, a talk, and prayer for one another.  The groups, each led by discerned leaders, meet weekly and socially where their primary focus is to build community.  This is how the parish ensures that all parishioners are known individually, loved, nurtured, and taken care of.

Currently, we are launching grow groups, one group at a time.  To date, we have A Mother’s Heart, CRHP, Consuming Fire Young Adult and Vine & Branches.  In the Winter of 2022, we are launching a parish-wide grow group called Salt and Light Grow Group.  Members of this group are expected to have attended Alpha, RCIA, Bible Studies, and/or CRHP before joining the group.

The most trusted leaders within the parish are invited to pastor a Grow Group and the parish leadership team prioritizes investing in these leaders.

As a sidenote, parishioners are also invited to spiritual nourishment offerings that are focused on learning content, such as catechesis and Bible studies. Unlike Grow Groups, these are temporary, only meeting to do a particular program with no expectation beyond that. Parishioners are free to choose any program approved by the parish and are encouraged to engage in one faith development program each year.

Any parishioner can take part in ministry, which is symbolized by a hand offering a heart. Our Lady of Mercy’s intention is that every parishioner is involved in at least one ministry.  The leadership team through an in-house Charisms workshop as well as with our Grow Group leaders help identify parishioners’ gifts and talents and encourage and support their current ministry or to join one if they haven’t done so.

The final icon represents worship; in particular, the Holy Eucharist.

It is our conviction that it is only when the fullness of the Christian life is being lived with some kind of involvement in these other aspects that the Eucharist has its proper place as the ‘source and the summit of the Christian life,’ as the Second Vatican Council said. When we are evangelized and in a discipleship process, seeing, experiencing, and serving community, worship, especially the Mass, will come to life.