With our Centennial celebrations now behind us, Year 101 gives us the chance to ask what comes next.

For us, the answer begins not with doing more, but with returning to what matters most.

This is Project 101.

Just as “101” suggests the fundamentals—the things we return to before anything else— Project 101 is an invitation to reconnect with the basics of Christian and ministerial life: Eucharist, Prayer, and Service.

We begin with the Eucharist, because everything in parish life must begin with Christ. Before there are programs, meetings, ministries, events, or plans, there is the altar. We gather, we receive, we give thanks, and we remember who we are and whose we are.

We invite you to:

• Go to Mass every Sunday. No matter where in the world you find yourself. No questions asked!
• Visit the St. Joseph Adoration Chapel on a regular basis. Start with 5-10 minutes, once a week, then work your way up to a weekly or monthly Holy Hour. Remember, the Chapel is open and accessible 24 hours a day.
• Go to Confession at least once a month. Every Saturday morning, from 8:30a – 10:00a, the Blessed Sacrament is exposed on the altar, the lights of the confessionals are turned on, and the Lord waits… for you.

With the Eucharist, we also need Prayer. Ministry cannot be sustained by activity alone. Prayer teaches us to listen before we act, to discern before we decide, and to remember that this work belongs to God before it belongs to us. It keeps our work and ministry from becoming merely busy and restores the relationship with Christ at the heart of everything we do.

We invite you to:

• Join the COTLF Parish Page on the Hallow Prayer App. Oftentimes, we want to pray but don’t know where or how to begin. Hallow offers guided prayers and reflections that can help make prayer more accessible and consistent
• Make prayer a primary element of your daily routine. Start with a simple prayer early in the morning to start the day, pray before meals, or take some time to reflect on your day and give thanks before going to bed.

From that relationship flows Service. We serve because Christ first served us. Sometimes that service is visible and significant; more often it is quiet and ordinary— a welcoming word, a meal delivered, a person remembered, a need noticed. Project 101 reminds us that no act of love is too small when it is offered well.

We invite you to:

• Live St. Therese’s Little Way, performing every day, ordinary acts with extraordinary love – for the Lord and for one another.
• Seek out a Parish Ministry to participate in and serve, helping to foster a greater sense of community, involvement, and belonging.

Project 101 is not a parish program. It is an invitation to look again at the life we already share and ask whether Christ is truly at the center, whether prayer is sustaining us, and whether our work and ministry is genuinely serving people. Year 101 gives us an opportunity to simplify, reconnect, and strengthen the foundation before we build whatever the Lord calls us to next.

For now, let’s get back to basics.