Sep 22, 2012 / 12:12 pm
When Father Robert Perron, pastor of Holy Family Parish in Pawtucket, R.I., expressed an interest in reaching out to people living in the neighborhoods around his parish to let them know that the Catholic Church indeed cares for and welcomes them with open arms, he was guided in his task by a tested blueprint created a year ago as a road map for successful outreach.
For the eighth time since June, 2010, when the first Day of Evangelization was held at St. Timothy Church in Warwick, R.I. a group of more than 100 pilgrims took to the streets, this time around Our Lady of Consolation Church in Pawtucket, R.I. They knocked on doors, handed out rosaries, and even taught some people how to pray, inviting all to become active in their neighborhood church.
Holy Family Parish was established in 2009 with the unification of Our Lady of Consolation, Sacred Heart and St. Joseph churches.
"The Lord called us to go out and evangelize the nations, so we went out to evangelize our little part of the world," said Father Perron. He added that by participating in a Day of Evangelization, the volunteers' own faith is strengthened, and it challenges the rest of the parish to also put their faith into action.