Glenmary
Home Missioners
P.O. Box 465618
Cincinnati, OH 45246
513-874-8900
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A Spirit of
Ecumenism
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Todd County, Ky., missions continue to embody Vatican II vision
Vatican II’s Decree on Ecumenism refers to other Christians as “sister and brother churches” and encourages Catholics to work with all Christians to reveal Christ’s love on earth.
In the 40 years since Vatican II, Glenmary missioners have made ecumenical outreach a hallmark of its home mission ministry. Committed to doing nothing alone that can be done with other Christian churches, missioners have spearheaded ecumenical efforts such as food banks, thrift stores, homebuilding efforts and community service centers that serve everyone—not just members of a particular church.
This ecumenical spirit has thrived in Glenmary’s missions in Todd County, Ky., for the past 48 years. This year, St. Susan in Elkton and Sts. Mary and James in Guthrie will be returned to the Diocese of Owensboro for continued pastoral care. But the ecumenical spirit of these two communities will live on as they continue to pray, act, study, talk and coordinate in the years to come. |
 ABOVE - Ministers of local churches pray. (2000) After a racially motivated shooting in 1995, Todd County became publicly divided and racial tempers flared. Following the shooting, area churches helped the community find ways to come back together and one of those ways was the Fifth Sunday Service. The ecumenical service was held on the fifth Sunday of the month to help bring people of various faith traditions and cultural backgrounds together. |
LEFT - Brother Ken Woods worked with the people of the county to establish the Helping Hands Clinic for those in need of medical treatment but without resources to obtain it. A core group from St. Susan, Elkton, spearheaded the project that serves anyone in the county in need. The clinic operates under a board of directors and continues to serve the people of the county today. (2000)
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LEFT - Founded by Father Pat O’Donnell and supported by local churches, the Todd County Interfaith Center has helped those in need for decades. Today, the center is an outreach ministry of 28 churches which help the organization provide assistance and food to those in need as well as operate a thrift store. Glenmary pastors, like Father Tom Charters, left, have been active supporters of the center. (1970s) |
 ABOVE - Lisa Lewis Balboa, pastor of a local Christian Methodist Episcopal (CME) church, worked with Father Frank Ruff and other community leaders to organize a successful Undoing Racism Workshop that attracted 25 residents of Todd County. (2007) |
 ABOVE - Pastor Father Frank Ruff, an activist in ecumenical relations between Catholics and Southern Baptists, is secretary of the Guthrie Interfaith Ministry Association. He is also a member of the Laity and Ministers Alliance of Todd County. Both groups plan ecumenical events in the county ranging from revivals to Easter and Thanksgiving services to Martin Luther King Day observances. (2007) |
ABOVE - Members of the Baptist, Methodist and Catholic churches in Todd County formed a planning committee in 2003 to explore how to distribute the “Jesus” video to every household in the county. The group was able to raise enough money to mail the video, which is an interpretation of the Gospel of Luke, to over 5,000 households. The video project was very successful and was yet another way the churches of the county found to unite for a common cause: the spread of God’s word. (2004) |
 ABOVE - There are 79 churches and one Mennonite community in Todd County and when Sts. Mary and James, Guthrie, celebrated the 50th anniversary of the dedication of their church, they chose to mark the occasion by giving gifts to the other local churches. The gift, a wood plaque engraved with The Lord’s Prayer, was delivered to 50 churches by pastor Father Frank Ruff and parish council members. “One of the ideas behind the giving of The Lord’s Prayer plaques was to let people know that we’re here because we’re disciples of Jesus,” Father Frank wrote in a letter to the churches. (2001) |
The story above first appeared in the Spring 2008 Glenmary Challenge.
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