Bishop Daniel Felton: Dear Readers of the Northern Cross

Dear Readers of the Northern Cross,  

Thank you for your loyal readership of the Northern Cross. Since its inception nearly 20 years ago, we have valued the opportunity to come into your homes and share the Good News of Jesus Christ. I pray that what you have read has given you healing, hope and joy in Jesus. 

As you may know, over the last two years, I have asked our priests, their staff and our parishioners to rethink how they serve, and now it’s time for me to do the same with our Pastoral Center to better support those at the parish level, and the communities that we serve within our mission fields. 

To that end, we are radically restructuring the Pastoral Center to align our ministry to mission. There are several ministries that serve important purposes but will look very different in order to support our parishes and mission fields more effectively.  As a result, many of the positions as we currently know them will no longer exist.  

As such, I am eliminating the positions of the Director of Communications, the Director of Marriage, Family and Life, and the Director of Social Apostolate, effective November 8.  Please join me in thanking those who have served in these roles, sharing their gifts with our Catholic Church. 

For readers of the Northern Cross, this decision will impact you directly. Because the Director of Communications also serves as the Editor of the Northern Cross, the elimination of that position means we will be suspending production of the Northern Cross after this issue, November 2024. I am grateful for all those who have shared their gifts of faith with the Northern Cross since its beginning.  

The Northern Cross is a monthly, diocesan newspaper that we mail to all parishioners in 10 counties.  As we change the way we collaborate with each other, we also have to change the way we communicate with each other. We want to explore effective ways to bring the Good News of Jesus Christ to our parishioners and will be working closely with our priests and parishioners to determine the best methods for us moving forward. In the meantime, keep an eye on our diocesan website (dioceseduluth.org) and parish bulletins for any information relating to the Diocese of Duluth.  
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By better collaborating with our parishes, there will be more resources and opportunities for being disciples on mission, leading all people in each mission field to Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God. 

Bishop Daniel Felton is the tenth bishop of the Diocese of Duluth.