Pastoral Council

James Cardinal Hickey assigned Rev. Jack MacFarlane to St. John the Baptist Church in Silver Spring in the Summer of 1980 to study the needs of the growing Catholic population in the greater Silver Spring area. Father MacFarlane eventually recommended that a parish be established and a church built on church property in the Burtonsville area.

In the Fall of 1980, the parish began to use Paint Branch High School, Liberty Grove Methodist Church, and St. Mark’s Episcopal Church for Sunday Mass. The Archdiocese announced the establishment of the new parish and on Easter Sunday, 1981, the name, Church of the Resurrection was announced by Father MacFarlane.

From the beginning in 1981, the parish has grown into a thriving parish today. Many, many parishioners are involved in the parish as we strive to share the presence of Christ with the surrounding community.

An all-purpose building was completed at the corner of Greencastle Road and Old Columbia Pike in 1986. It was used for all parish activities, including week-end Mass. On November 12, 1989, the new church was dedicated by Cardinal Hickey. The dreams of that small group of people who first gathered as the Church of the Resurrection on Easter, 1981, were finally realized.

In March of 1992, Rev. John Pennington was appointed by Cardinal Hickey to be the second pastor of the Church of the Resurrection. A modular structure was placed on the Church property to house the parish’s new Preschool which opened in October of 1992. Our Parish Offices were given a permanent home in the lower level of the Church in December of 1994. In August 1999, Rev. Robert Keffer was appointed by Cardinal Hickey as the present pastor of the Church of the Resurrection.

The adjoining Parish Life Center, a new facility containing meeting rooms, classrooms, an office wing, youth center, and a courtyard, was completed and dedicated in August of 2006 to accommodate the vibrant parish in its continuing growth.

Mission Statement

We, the Parishioners of Resurrection Catholic Church, strive to be a welcoming Christian Community as we come to together to share in the Eucharist. Strengthened by our bond to Christ and one another, we accept the challenge to bring the unity to which we are called by reaching out to others and offering them an experience of Faith, Hope, and Love. In this way we proclaim the Kingdom of God.

Pastoral Plan Goals

· To educate the laity to their potential, identity and responsibility as People of God.

· To empower the members to express their needs and voice their vision.

· To study and grow in the Word of God in our daily lives.

· To reach out, to be inclusive, to be open and inviting within and beyond the parish and to become individually responsible for establishing community with the parish.

· To encourage and challenge youth about our faith.

Pastoral Council

The Pastoral Council works in harmony with the Pastor toward the fulfillment of the spiritual and general well-being of the parish community. The Council also makes available to the Pastor the knowledge and experience of the laity in temporal and spiritual matters pertaining of the good of the whole parish. Elections to the Pastoral Council are held annually and member are elected to a 3 year term. Any registered parishioner at least 18 years of age is eligible to run for election.

To view members of the Pastoral Council, Click Here

To view the Pastoral Constitution, Click Here