Archbishop Nelson Pérez of Philadelphia has unveiled plans for a major initiative to highlight the Catholic Church’s work in the region and to encourage distant Catholics to return to the Church.
“Following the example of Jesus Christ, we are moving to encounter all of our brothers and sisters wherever they are,” Archbishop Pérez said, according to the Sept. 29 press release announcing the initiative. “I want everyone to know that they are not alone and that they will always have a home in the Catholic Church.”
The initiative has two major pieces: establishing five “missionary hubs” across the archdiocese and running an extensive marketing and advertising campaign.
The missionary hubs will be located at parishes across the diocese and will include pastoral, educational, and charitable ministries. Each hub will have a team composed of five trained Catholics. The teams will be led by the pastors of the parishes in order to ensure that the hubs meet each area’s particular needs.
“Through these hubs we will go forth to share the mercy and healing love of Christ by meeting the needs of all people, especially those who feel distant from the Lord,” Archbishop Pérez said. “Through their evangelical outreach, programs, and resources, we want to welcome and invite people to connect more deeply with Jesus.”
The “Catholic. Every Day.” marketing campaign will consist of ads highlighting the work the Church does across the Philadelphia region.
“The Catholic Church in our region has 1.5 million Catholics, directly helps hundreds of thousands of people through our schools and charitable ministries, and has an economic impact of more than $1 billion a year,” the archbishop explained. “It [is] important to highlight the broad scope of compassionate and dignified service we provide to people of faith traditions and diverse walks of life.”
Ads will be run across local TV and radio, social media, billboards, and bus shelters. Some will feature prominent Catholics.
“In this digital age, it’s critical that we use all the means available to us to get our story out,” Archbishop Pérez said. “This campaign will remind Catholics of their rich heritage of service to others in Philadelphia, while introducing our message to new audiences in fresh and compelling ways.”
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