This is not to discourage gathering with those outside your parish – we rejoice in the opportunity to gather with saints both far and near. Parishes give added opportunities to build relationships and receive encouragement from nearby members. When our church was small, we might have a Friday night hymn sing at someone’s home or a picnic at a park after church. The entire church was invited. We are now too large for the whole church to gather at one home or a park. So those types of fellowship events are organized according to parishes. It should be noted that a parish is different from the typical midweek, small group, home meeting that is popular in churches today. There is no weekly gathering of the parish. Rather, it is an organizational tool to facilitate fellowship events and provide the personal accountability of an elder.