¨ Catholic Christian Values

Another activity involved drawing a Catholic Christian. What six traits do we value at St. Francis? The top values included:

 

1. Openness in all forms—communication, listening, open to difference

2. Compassionate—understand the needs of others, good stewards, volunteering, social justice

3. Faithful—prayerful, understands tradition, growing in faith, hopeful, raising God-centered children, balances world demands and the witness of Jesus

4. Solidarity with all people—inclusive, accepting, welcoming, demonstrates connectedness, unity

5. Community-oriented—humble, cross-generation interest, respects others, sees God in others, works for healthy relationships with neighbors, friends and family

6. Accountable/ownership—walk the talk, live the Gospel, take initiative about one’s own growth

¨ Trends

During the conference participants considered the past, the present and the future. Part of their work was identifying current trends that deserve attention and action from Catholic Christians.

 

 

Trends that show a decrease of some kind:

 

1) care for the common good

 

2) young family participation at church

 

3) volunteerism

 

4) family traditions

Trends identified as becoming stronger:

 

1) “doing” over “being”

 

2) polarization over immigration issue

 

3) time with electronics to the detriment of face-to-face contact

 

4) pop culture defining society’s values

 

5) demand for food and financial assistance.