Open Hearts, Open Hands: Overview

The St. Paul Catholic Center has been an important part of the Bloomington and Indiana University communities for nearly forty years. St. Paul's is not only a place for Sunday worship, but it is also a space where various groups associated with the church's mission gather. Do you know that nearly seventy different groups use the facilities at the St. Paul Catholic Center during the year? From educational to multicultural ministries, from student fellowship to peace and justice programs, St. Paul's helps to address the spiritual and social needs of the members of our parish. In addition, a number of community groups, such as Alcoholics Anonymous and the Bloomington Newcomers Group, use the St. Paul Catholic Center for their regular meetings.

The St. Paul Catholic Center is now facing significant challenges supporting our ministry to Indiana University and outreach to the Bloomington community. Because the ministries of the St. Paul community are ever expanding and the number of groups that wish to use our facilities for ministries and meetings is growing, the space at St. Paul's is currently filled to capacity. On any given evening up to eight different groups can be found using the meeting spaces at the St. Paul Catholic Center. Ministry groups are frequently forced to meet in spaces that are not adequate for their needs, and our parish has to routinely deny requests to use our facilities.

This is an opportune moment for the St. Paul Catholic Center community to embark on a stewardship campaign. The goals of our parish campaign were prayerfully decided by the Pastoral Council in response to the desires expressed by parishioners during the fall town hall meetings. Indeed, a number of capital improvements are necessary: the downstairs meeting space needs to be reconfigured and its walls soundproofed in order to meet the needs of current and future staff as well as to provide adequate space for ministry and educational groups. In addition, our building needs improvements in insulation to control utility costs. Our parish has also postponed necessary repairs and renovations to the facilities. These must be addressed. As one example, the beautiful stained glass windows in the back of our church are currently held in place with caulking and are at risk of falling out. The church also needs to establish an emergency fund to help protect the parish from large, unforeseen expenses. Because the facility is nearly forty years old, it is certain that such expenses will arise in the future.

Most importantly, the campaign is about more than "bricks and mortar." Entitled "Open Hearts, Open Hands," our campaign will specifically focus on helping the parish to spiritually grow in a greater understanding of stewardship -- the call to share our time, talent, and treasure. As a parish we have been blessed abundantly. In the spirit of gratitude, our campaign will call all parishioners to prayerfully discern their involvement in the life of our church. Through this campaign we can continue to expand and improve our mission of being a spiritual home and of reaching out to Indiana University and the surrounding community.

More information about the campaign will be provided in the weeks and months to come. Specific details about the campaign are available on this website. Please include the stewardship campaign in your prayers as we move forward on this exciting endeavor.