Task force will focus on parish and school planning
By Archbishop John C. Nienstedt
Wednesday, 25 March 2009
We live in an age of constant change. From the cell phones we use, to the style of clothing we wear or the model of television we watch, changes are all around us.
That They May All
Be One
Archbishop John C. Nienstedt
It has been said that “to live is to change, and change often.” As I grow older, I find even my body cannot often do what it once used to do; hence, change is inevitable.
Archbishop Nienstedt's Calendar
» Friday, Aug. 20 to Friday, Sept. 3: Spanish course offered by the International Institute for Culture in Puebla, Mexico.
» Tuesday, Sept. 7: 8:30 a.m., St. Paul, Archbishop’s Residence: Scheduling meeting with staff.
9:30 a.m., St. Paul, Chancery: Archbishop’s Council meeting.
noon, St. Paul, Chancery: Presbyteral Council meeting.
» Wednesday, Sept. 8: 5 p.m., St. Paul, St. Mary’s Chapel at St. Paul Seminary: Opening Mass for academic year with faculty’s Profession of Faith and Oath of Fidelity and banquet.
» Thursday, Sept. 9: 9 a.m., St. Paul, Chancery: Report on schools.
11 a.m., St. Paul, Chancery: Meeting in preparation for Presbyteral Council meeting.
6 p.m., St. Paul, Archbishop’s Residence: Dinner for 2010 new investees to the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem.
Called to stewardship
The one area in my life where I do not expect change is in the tenets
of faith. “Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday, today and forever”
(Hebrews 13:8). His teachings rooted in objective truths do not change,
but my depth of appreciating and understanding those teachings can and
does change; hopefully, I am constantly growing in faith.
The structures of parish life can and do change, i.e., demographics
shift, pastoral needs are altered, resources, once abundant, diminish.
As good stewards of the gifts we have been given from our forebearers,
we must constantly be reading “the signs of the times” to determine our
proper response to the changes taking place around us.
When I first arrived in the Diocese of New Ulm, the pastoral leaders
there were beginning their third Plan for Parishes. Changes were
happening rapidly in this rural area: The family farm was dying, co-ops
were buying up large tracts of land for harvesting, the youth, in large
numbers, were moving to larger cities and priestly vocations had
diminished. There were too many churches for our sacramental needs and
not enough priests to continue “business as usual.”
We had to act, and so a committee had been formed. The end result was a
new model of parish structuring, called the “Area Faith Community.”
Here, three, four, even five small parishes came together in a
collaborative relationship with one pastoral council, one worship
committee, one social concerns committee, etc. The main principle at
work was “to build on our strengths, not duplicate our efforts.”
The task was not easy: It required multiple drafts and as many town
hall meetings with all the pastoral leaders involved. But, in the end,
it worked because it was founded on general consensus and a sense of
ownership on the part of the majority of its stakeholders.
For the past year and a half, I have visited over 90 of our 218
parishes in all areas of our archdiocese, as well as over half of our
103 Catholic schools.
I have sat through eight months of meetings of the Comprehensive
Assignment Board, which concerns itself with recommending priests and
deacons for parish assignments.
I have listened to presentations on shifting demographics, on the
emergence of new diverse ethnic groups and the impact of these changes
on financial viability in the different quadrants of our local church.
Responding to changes
What I see are changes happening before my eyes. I believe it is time
to respond. But the response should be framed within the concept of
being good stewards of the gifts we have been given from our
forebearers. We must use the various gifts and resources that have been
entrusted to our care to serve the needs of the people of our
archdiocese.
On Feb. 26, 2009, I called the first meeting of a Strategic Task Force
for Parish and School Planning in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and
Minneapolis. I shared with the Task Force some basic principles to
guide their work:
• Full sacramental ministry must be available to every Catholic in each
geographical area of the archdiocese. In other words, every Catholic
will have a home parish and will know where to go for spiritual
assistance.
• Qualified pastoral leaders (i.e., clergy, religious and lay) will be assigned to each of those geographical areas.
• Special concern must be given to the poor, the marginalized or the immigrant.
• Every parish will be involved, to one degree or another, in the
planning process. We will not permit discussions to fall along the
lines of “the haves” and “the have nots.” Every parish will be expected
to evaluate its spiritual, sacramental, communal, financial and faith
formation resources. Adjustments will be made with other parishes in
that particular deanery based on the evaluation.
• Catholic schools cannot be left out of the plan. The situation with
our schools is complex and diverse. But we want to continue our support
for them to the best of our ability.
• The discussions surrounding this planning should be characterized by
mutual respect, patience, honesty and an ability to listen to all
points of view. The main thrust of the planning is about collaboration
and cooperation, not about closing, though the latter may happen in
some cases.
A listing of the members of the Strategic Task Force and their backgrounds are mentioned HERE.
I have asked them to give me a set of recommendations in 12 to 18
months. They will hold monthly meetings and send me executive minutes
after each gathering.
I assured them that I believe in the process and will remain engaged in
that process. I thanked them for what will be an arduous task, yet one
that will be extremely beneficial for this local church and, I hope,
personally satisfying for each of them.
Please pray for the success of this undertaking. Your prayer will be an important contribution to the task force’s success.
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