A parish makes the big church smaller as we seek to live as Christ’s people in the places where He has called us.

Even before the global pandemic, we sensed the Lord leading us to connect, abide, and extend in deeper ways as a church. During the disruption and isolation of COVID-19, we have been working to launch a parish ministry that helps our members connect with one another in their neighborhoods. As we know and love our neighbors well, we pray that the Lord will give us many opportunities to abide in Christ and to extend the love of Christ to those around us.

Our church draws people from across the Metroplex. Truly, we are scattered around the city. What seems like a weakness actually becomes a strength when we come together in a particular neighborhood to be the church and to shine the light of Christ where we spend most of our lives. We believe that parish ministry helps us do that.

For members of our church, we hope that parish ministry means that no one is falling through the cracks and that everyone is at least invited into deeper connecting, abiding, and extending. For people who are new to PCPC, we hope that connecting with some of our members in your parish is a great way to get to know our church.

What is a parish?

“Parish” is a word with a long, rich history. In classical Greek, the word paroikos referred to someone who dwelled near, or a neighbor. For early Christian writers, the same word came to mean “sojourner”, which we are in this world (1 Peter 2:11). Over the centuries, the word came to refer to a certain area with its own church, or the members of such a church. For us, a parish represents the members of our church in a particular neighborhood. As the church scattered around the city throughout the week, we want to come together with our neighbors to connect, abide, and extend. A parish makes the big church smaller as we seek to live as Christ’s people in the places where He has called us.

Which parishes have launched?

We have launched in the following parishes:

• Far North Dallas
• Lake Highlands
• Lakewood
• Love Field
• North Dallas
• Northeast Dallas
• Northwest Dallas
• Oak Cliff
• Oak Lawn / Design District
• Old East Dallas
• Park Cities Armstrong Elementary
• Park Cities Boone Elementary
• Park Cities Bradfield Elementary
• Park Cities Hyer Elementary
• Park Cities UP Elementary
• Richardson
• Uptown / Turtle Creek
• White Rock

We are actively seeking to launch in a number of other areas, and we will update the list and the map as things move forward.

What is the heart behind parish ministry?

The elders of our church desire to know and love our people well. We want to keep up with our people and help them to thrive in Christ. Parish ministry gives us some structure to encourage the kind of relationships and growth we long to see.

In the parishes that have launched, elders have gathered a parish team of deacons and laypeople, men and women, who feel called to connect and keep up with their PCPC neighbors in the area. The structure means that every member in a parish has a connection to a parish team member and an elder.

We hope that parish teams will help us love one another and come together as the Lord’s people in a particular place. This starts with knowing one another, but once there’s a relationship, we want to help one another grow in connecting, abiding, and extending in Christ. The parish structure is like a trellis supporting a beautiful rose bush. We know we need the structure, but we’re praying that the Lord will bring the growth. We’ve already seen the Lord at work in beautiful ways, and we’re looking forward to what He will continue to do in and through us in our parishes!