We recently spied this great piece from a parish’s bulletin about an upcoming feature entitled “Cut It Out.”

And I don’t think they’re talking about Dave’s signature line as Joey on Full House!

Anyway, the point is, use your bulletin! It’s the #1 form of communication read by everyone who attends Mass at your parish. Why? For most parishes it’s the one item for communication that someone’s job is devoted to, and effort is placed on. Should it be this way? Probably not, but it is right now. So Use It!

If you’re bulletin is almost the same every week with just a minor change or two, then be intentional this year about how you can make this publication worth the paper it’s printed on.

What can you include?

• Pictures and information from past events to show the fun things happening at the parish
• 9 weeks of a novena prayer for the parish to pray together
• A weekly fast the parish could do together
• Short reflection on the Gospel of the week that people could cut out and put on their fridge
• Feature a “Spotlight” on a ministry each month to invite people to join new ministries
• A weekly letter from the Pastor sharing his thoughts about a particular topic
• Walk through a different topic about the faith with a Q&A section

The secret to good communication is well written and intentional content. If you’re going to go through the trouble of producing a document/email/social media post, etc., then do the best job!