All Parishes Will Participate in Planning Project
 

Bishop Joseph F. Martino has announced a comprehensive planning project that will focus on the spiritual and pastoral renewal of the Diocese of Scranton.

Entitled Called to Holiness and Mission: Pastoral Planning in the Diocese of Scranton, the project will involve every parish in the 11 counties of the Diocese. The process will begin in January.

Bishop Martino introduced the project to priests and deacons at a meeting on Dec. 3 at St. Maria Goretti Parish Center in Laflin. He has outlined the initiative and its goals in a pastoral letter published in this issue of The Catholic Light.

The Bishop also discusses the project on the this month’s edition of “Our Faith, Our Diocese,” which airs on CTV: Catholic Television on Dec. 13, 9 p.m.; Dec. 17, 2 p.m.; Dec. 19, 4 p.m.; Dec. 23, 5 p.m.; and Dec. 27, 10:30 a.m.

In announcing the project, Bishop Martino referred to a pastoral letter he issued in July 2004, in which he said: “The spiritual and pastoral renewal of the Diocese of Scranton will mean that we need to look at every one of our structures, i.e., our parishes, schools, institutions, buildings and programs. Are these entities the right ones for the 21st century? Are these entities currently prepared to announce the Good News of Jesus Christ as Jesus intends them to do?”

The Bishop stressed that prayer must be the foundation for this “arduous but necessary endeavor as we progress further into the new century and new millennium.”

Called to Holiness and Mission is intended to help parishes evaluate their current ministries, plan for ways to enhance them, and collaborate in order both to share and conserve resources so that ministries can be more fruitful. 

Called to Holiness and Mission is inspired by the following goals:

1.      To foster the personal and communal holiness of Catholics and support them to deepen their commitment in living out the mission of the Church.

2.      To enhance quality parish life throughout the Diocese of Scranton.

3.      To strengthen the presence and ministry of the Church in the urban, suburban and rural areas of the four regions and eleven counties.

4.      To increase collaboration between and among leaders, parishes and the whole Diocese of Scranton.

5.      To act as good stewards of all human, financial and facility resources.

6.      To support increased understanding of and action for the assumptions and criteria related to vibrant parish life.

7.      To build a greater sense of unity within the rich ethnic, cultural and generational diversity present within the local Church.

8.      To work on the deanery, vicariate and diocesan wide revitalization. 

Each parish will assess its resources, ministries and facilities. The parish will then suggest more realistic and efficient formats that will enable it to provide the sacraments and other important ministries such as religious education for youth and adults, service to the homebound, assistance to the needy, etc.

Various models will be considered, including consolidation to form a new parish entity, linking of two or more parishes under one pastor, establishing partnerships with other parishes to operate joint programs and share resources, and forming teams of two or more priests, deacons and lay people who would serve multiple parishes.

The process will feature broad consultation involving clergy, religious and lay faithful in every parish, according to Monsignor Vincent J. Grimalia, V.G., Vicar General of the Diocese and the planning coordinator for the project.

“Nothing has been pre-determined,” Monsignor Grimalia said. “The only thing we know at this point is that we have to move beyond the status quo. The insight we receive at the parish level will guide our journey. The positive and enthusiastic response of our priests and deacons to Bishop Martino’s address at the December 3 meeting in Laflin has been most gratifying.”

The process will involve a Diocesan Planning Commission composed of clergy, religious and lay representatives; Parish Core Teams consisting of the pastor and four parish leaders; Cluster Core Teams comprised of the Parish Core Teams in a given geographic area; the already established Pastoral and Finance Councils for each parish; parish staff and the parishioners. The Presbyteral Council and other diocesan advisory groups will also participate.

These groups will evaluate key factors including demographics of the parishes and the Diocese as a whole, the number of priests available for active service, and the status of parish ministries, programs and facilities.
It will be the responsibility of the Parish Core Teams to insure that the necessary work is done in each parish and that communication and consultation involve all members of the parish, the Parish Pastoral Council and Parish Finance Council.

The Diocese has commissioned The Reid Group to facilitate the process. The company, based in Bellevue, Wash., has extensive experience in planning within a wide variety of organizations at the diocesan, parish and school levels.

Conversation and consultation will continue through most of 2008. After considering the recommendations from these groups, Bishop Martino will make the final decisions in January of 2009, with implementation beginning on July 1 of that year.

In the meantime, several parishes have recently undertaken evaluation processes and reached conclusions about the status of particular churches and other properties. Those conclusions have been or will be implemented, but those parishes will also participate in the forthcoming pastoral planning project because it concerns the future direction of all parishes in the Diocese.

Detailed information about Called to Holiness and Mission: Pastoral Planning in the Diocese of Scranton will be provided in The Catholic Light, on CTV: Catholic Television, on the diocesan website at www.dioceseofscranton.org, and through public announcements as the process unfolds.