WHAT IS TWINNING?
Parish twinning, also known as sister parishes or parish partnerships, is the
intentional, mutual relationship between two parishes for the purpose of
engendering personal relationships with people from another culture and to
deepen parish consciousness of and commitment to global solidarity.
Crosscultural international mission has been integral to church life since its very
beginning. For most of the church’s history, however, that aspect has been
accomplished primarily through professional missionaries who were sent out.
Recently a new form of mission has bubbled up from the grassroots: from one
parish to another through building of parish twinning relationships. In 1997 the
U.S. Catholic Bishops wrote a pastoral letter entitled Called to Global Solidarity:
International Challenges for U.S. Parishes, which invites parishes to become
more conscious of and connected to our brothers and sisters around the world.
The bishops suggest parish twinning as a means of such connection. Parish
twinning involves visits to one another’s parish so as to really get to know our
brothers and sisters, their joys and their struggles, their gifts and their culture,
and hopes and dreams. Parish twinning is an invitation to live our lives and faith
in a spirit of global solidarity. If you would like to read Called to Global
Solidarity: International Challenges for U.S. Parishes it can be found at the
following website:
http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/international/globalsolidarity.shtml