Pastoral Update

Member Portal — Your Views Please

After carefully considering the high value we place on inclusivity in our community, and discussing where our boundaries lie in sharing sensitive information over the web, the Council has decided to experiment with a ‘Members’ Portal on our site as others have done before us.

Once the portal is available we will issue a password to those who participate, or have participated, in community events.  Drawing a line around what is shared publicly is a ‘hot’ topic these days as concerns about privacy have become increasingly important.  How do we remain inclusive while also respecting privacy?  What constitutes appropriate boundaries when inclusivity is a value we hold dear?

These questions have no easy answers, which is why the Portal itself is an experiment.  I invite you to think about the question and to discuss it with each other here by adding your comments to this post.  Let’s see where all this takes us and learn the parameters of our shared boundaries as we move forward in this unfamiliar territory.

New Website

Welcome to our new website!  As you explore this site you will notice  a number of new features, including stories from members, a method of donating online, archives of previous newsletters, access to the current newsletter with a click of a button on our welcome page, and a space (and invitation) for you to comment on the current homily as well as posts such as this one.  As you tour the site, enter your comments below.  Let us know what you think!  We are eager to hear from you and excited about opening this opportunity for the community to interact in a new way.

Since this is a new tool for many of us it will take time to learn its features and possibilities.  Your ideas are most welcome.  Enjoy!