Sister Parish Partnership

ABOUT OUR SISTER PARISH

St. Francis Xavier Parish in Umbir, India was established in December 2014 and entrusted to the Jesuits to run.

The parish has 950 families living in 18 tribal village communities.

It’s a fast growing church (last year, 117 adult baptisms).

Many villages are inaccessible and parishioners often walk 15-20 kms to attend Mass.

Each village has “central management committee” with catechists to serve the village.

The church was extended on three sides with brick-and-bamboo and a tin roof - the community raised all the money and did the manual work themselves. This was intended as a temporary structure. They are currently building a larger and more permanent church.

GROWING OUR RELATIONSHIP

We are currently exploring ways to grow our relationship with Saint Francis Xavier parish. We have established a few concrete actions that both groups have agreed to pursue:

1. Family to Family Communication

We have identified 12 households who will engage in communication (via email or WhatsApp) with a household in Umbir.

2. Electronic Newsletter and Webpage

These will contain information about parish activities, celebrations, ministries, and liturgies that can be accessed by the parishioners of the other parish.