Friends
Peace be with you.
On Thursday October 10, the majority of the priests of this Archdiocese gathered with our Archbishop for a presentation by a group called the Catholic Leadership Institute (CLI). I was familiar with this group from a previous experience of leadership training I had called Good Leaders, Good Shepherds. They taught some of the priests of this Archdiocese the best practices used by business leaders that we could incorporate into our leadership of a parish. The Archbishop has decided to use CLI to help him frame a Vision and Mission statement that will guide us as an Archdiocese in our pastoral planning efforts.
To help with this, CLI wants to implement a three point plan of gathering data before determining a process that leads to an outcome. It’s important to emphasize that the Archbishop isn’t walking in with a plan already in mind that he intends to implement regardless of the data that is collected. We already have some data from the Synod process but that will be folded into the data CLI is collecting before a process is developed to guide us in pastoral planning. The priests will be filling out a Priestly Leadership Inventory that will help us indicate to the Archbishop the types of parishes and ministries in which we see our gifts and talents being best utilized. This will be used to help determine assignments. Starting in December, you will be asked to fill out a Disciple Maker Index (DMI). Then, a study will be carried out to determine the effectiveness of the Archdiocesan Pastoral Center.
Please be prepared for me to often repeat in December the request that you fill out the DMI. The results will not only be used by the Archbishop but they will be turned over to me and I will share them with the members of the Pastoral Council as we shape what our goals and objectives should be as a parish. I’m guessing we will also talk it over with the deanery to talk about deanery-wide projects. I’m told you will be able to fill it out online or they can mail you a paper copy if you prefer that. I know December can be a very busy time for people with Christmas but it is also a time when many people return to the church after not practicing for a while.
The hope is to have all the data collected, reviewed, and processed by April 2025 and begin to prepare the mission and vision statements thereafter. Then, in the summer of 2025, they will allow those statements to guide the next steps of pastoral planning. I feel like it’s important to emphasize that the point of this process is not to develop a blueprint to close parishes. It’s really to get parishioner’s input on how we can be vital parishes with fewer priests. This is where I think St. Patrick’s is ahead of the curve. Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, our adoration chapel, and beginning to partner with Evangelical Catholic have set us up to be a parish of deeply faithful lay leadership seeking to make disciples. So, don’t be afraid, be ready and willing to fill out the DMI when it comes, and please pray for this process that the Holy Spirit will be the primary driver and not human desires.