“The people aren’t going anywhere” — Q&A with Father Pete
This is an excerpt from our recent interview with Father Peter Guthneck, a retired priest of our diocese (and Foundation Board member) whom we featured in the Foundation’s latest donor newsletter. Father spent decades ministering at three parishes on or near the Rocky Boy’s Indian Reservation, and knows a lot about sustaining small Catholic communities through endowments.
What should Catholics in our diocese keep in mind when thinking about the future of their parish communities?
Priests come and go, bishops come and go, but hopefully, wherever Catholics are, there will always be a community coming together to pray, learn, and minister to each other’s needs. I think they need to take care to provide for the future of their community and not be overly dependent on the hierarchy to do it for them.
Endowments at the Foundation are a good way to do this. The Foundation offers people an opportunity to share what they have for the mission of the Church in our diocese. More particularly, they offer opportunities to build resources for future ministries.
What do you hope for the future of the Church in our diocese?
For the parishes you used to serve (and still do), and for other Catholic causes that matter to you? There are many people in our communities with deep faith, who have the gifts of the Holy Spirit and are already doing the spiritual and corporal works of mercy.
We need their communities thriving, with good infrastructure, because the people aren’t going anywhere, even though a priest may not always be present (especially in smaller or rural communities). We need to think outside the box… Building endowments for those communities at the Foundation can give them the resources to do what they need to do as their needs become clear in future years.
If you were talking to someone else about supporting endowments at the Foundation, what would you tell them?
I would ask them: do you believe in the future of the Catholic Christian community in Eastern Montana? Would you like to help it along? To provide resources for your community long after you’re gone—even if you have moved away?
Many people give to national or international organizations, which is a good thing, but I hope they keep in mind that those organizations already have a greater number of donors than we will ever have in our diocese or our parish community. It’s so important to remember that and to give at home— give to support local needs, the local community, especially long-term.
Lent is upon us! In this holy season, please support the local Church today and forever by giving alms to an endowment at the Catholic Foundation of Eastern Montana. Every gift makes an everlasting difference, no matter the size. If you don’t know which endowment to choose, you might consider the Parish Assistance Endowment, which helps fund grants each year for small rural parishes throughout our diocese, or the Greatest Needs Endowment, which supports the Foundation’s grant program as a whole. Reach out to us at 406-315-1765 or forever@catholicfoundationmt.org, or give online at catholicfoundationmt.org/endowments.
And if you’d like to see Father Pete’s full interview, with much more of his insight and background, let us know— we’ll send you a copy! You can also visit catholicfoundationmt.org/guthneck-interview to read it online.
Please help us continue
