One Common Mission: A Story from the USA
Father Martin Vu was still in the seminary when he first picked up Divine Renovation: Bringing Your Parish from Maintenance to Mission. At the time, it stirred something in him. He didn’t just want to maintain a parish someday—he wanted to see people encounter Jesus personally and come alive in their faith.
As a parochial vicar (assistant priest), he began experimenting with renewal in small but intentional ways—forming leadership with Spanish-speaking parishioners, focusing on evangelization, and participating in group coaching. When he was appointed Administrator of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Placentia in July 2024, that vision moved from theory to reality.
When Father Martin first arrived, average Sunday Mass attendance was around 2,100. Today, it is closer to 2,500. On the surface, St. Joseph appeared stable and even strong. But the parish had just endured a season of deep disruption.
At Home, On Mission: A Letter from the USA
“There’s no weekend where someone doesn’t tell me, ‘Father, this parish is so welcoming; we felt at home here. What’s your secret?’” Father Rich says. The secret is not really a secret at all; rather, it’s the fruit of almost a decade’s worth of hard work, prayer, and – of course – dependence on the Holy Spirit.
In 2016, Christ the King Parish was ripe for renovation. It was only a few years after Sacred Heart, Saint Peter, and St. John the Evangelist parishes were combined into Christ the King Parish. Hoping to invigorate the churchgoers and to unify them into one parish, Father Rich and others on staff read “Divine Renovation: Bringing your Parish from Maintenance to Mission” by Father James Mallon.
The book, which centres on Father James’s own experience as a parish priest in Nova Scotia, Canada, details his journey into renewal, “renovating” his own parish, and discovering what “going on mission” really means.
“I Walked Out Free”: A Story from Canada
St. Joseph’s in Vanderhoof, Canada, is a small rural parish comprised of approximately 75 families. The community’s economy is supported by logging and farming.
Parish Priest, Fr. Pier, wears a lot of hats to keep things going. But when a parishioner gave him the book, “Divine Renovation: Bringing Your Parish from Maintenance to Mission,” he was struck by its call to mission. He built a small team of volunteer lay leaders – because there was no money to hire any staff. He starting leading from a team and using a tool called Alpha that helps share the faith in a clear and simple way. They started small: a few parishioners praying by name for people in their lives who didn’t know Jesus. They ran Alpha, personally invited friends – anyone. They were nervous no one would come.
And then something happened.
People showed up.
A New Normal: A Story from the UK
In 2015, still in seminary, Father Damian Ryan heard about a new ministry out of Canada called Divine Renovation. Later, he picked up the book “Divine Renovation: Bringing Your Parish from Maintenance to Mission.” He recalls thinking, “WOW, this priest gets it, he totally gets the reality of priesthood.” He was relieved that the book was addressing the very real problems of the modern Church while still being grounded in Catholic Theology. Father Damian says, “reading the book felt like ‘this is going to equip me.’” He started getting ideas for when he would be a priest.
In the summer of 2017 as an assistant priest, Father Damian interned with Father James at Saint Benedict Parish in Halifax. He left encouraged and focused on the future.
But then he became a parish priest.
The reality of leading a parish hit him like a ton of bricks.
Evolving in Darwin: A Story from Australia
Six years ago, Father Dave stepped into the role of parish priest for the first time. As a member of the Missionaries of God’s Love, his vocation had been focused on formation for novices. But now he was in Darwin, Australia, at Holy Spirit Parish.
He was told by a couple of local priests, “Don’t expect anything to happen in Darwin.”
For the Beauty of the Church: A Story from Canada
Setting foot in the Holy Eucharist Cathedral in New Westminster, Canada, is a visually arresting experience. An artist-in-residence has filled every wall, ceiling, and corner of this Ukranian Catholic Church with newly painted sacred art.
Perched above, in the glassed-in choir loft, a recently created non-profit daycare is buzzing with neighbourhood children.
All of this is part of the parish’s focus on evangelization. From art to Alpha, childcare to catechism classes, Holy Eucharist Cathedral is set on renewing the parish through reaching out to people in every way possible with the message of the gospel.
Father Mykhailo Ozorovych has had a fire for evangelization since childhood. He sees his calling to Canada as distinctly missional. An Eastern Rite priest, Father Mykhailo never thought he would end up in North America, let alone be the youngest parish priest of a cathedral. He says, “I came here to evangelize, to be a missionary.”
Sparking a Generation of Evangelists: A Story from France
Astrid and Tiphaine laugh as they switch between English and French on the Zoom call. It is Maundy Thursday of Holy Week and they are sharing their testimonies before heading off to evening Mass at St. Marc and La Daurade Church, part of the Paroisse Etudiante de Toulouse (Student Parish of Toulouse).
Paroisse Etudiante de Toulouse is a non-geographic multi-church parish focused on the largest concentration of college students in France (140,000 students within the city).
The assistant priest, Father Antoine Laviale, interned with Divine Renovation at Saint Benedict Parish before his ordination in 2023. Now, he ministers within a parish seeing intense renewal, especially in the Gen Z population.
Paroisse Etudiante de Toulouse is unique, yet the overarching principles of Divine Renovation are at work. Their Leadership Team oversees smaller teams representing each of the parish’s four fraternities, composed of priests, young families and students — reflecting the unique structure of this student-focused parish.
The primacy of evangelization has spread beyond the clergy and leaders into the students themselves. Astrid and Tiphaine are evidence of this.
Fr. Justin Huang: Going on mission with St. Anthony’s of Padua Parish – Vancouver, BC
“Evangelization is the greatest act of love for neighbour.” St.Anthony of Padua Parish in Vancouver, Canada has been on the renewal journey for over a decade. Pastored by Father Justin Huang, they have moved from a place of barrenness to vibrant life and growth through an unwavering focus on mission.
From a Warehouse to the Lord’s House: A Story from Lithuania
In 2018, Švč. Mergelės Marijos Ramintojos bažnyčia (Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Peacemaker) in Vilnius, Lithuania, started its first Alpha. Today, their Alphas are so fruitful that over 60% of participants identify as unchurched — and even as they run the course twice a year, they still need to put people on a waitlist.
But the history of this church is much older and more convoluted than their present-day evangelistic fruitfulness would suggest.
“I have watched people being transformed” – A Story of Parish Renewal from Johnstown, PA
Watch the story of how Our Mother of Sorrows Parish has transformed from a place that felt cold and disconnected to a thriving missional church known for their radical hospitality.
