Saint Mary's Church Pastoral Priorities The six pastoral priorities are liturgy, priestly vocations, compassionate outreach, lifelong faith formation, youth and young adults, and lay ministry. Listed below are the Goals (in bold) and strategies approved by delegates for each of the six pastoral priorities that were identified through the Speak Up Sessions. Delegates voted on the goals St. Mary's, Williamstown. Bishop Joseph Galante has formally endorsed the goals and strategies approved by delegates to the Diocesan Assembly on Dec. 9, 2006. LITURGY Goal 1: That the diocese implement efforts to give the clergy the opportunity to improve homilies so that people are nourished by the Word of God. a. Develop a dynamic and required program of lifelong formation for clergy after ordination so that they have an opportunity to assess their pastoral practices, continue to study scripture, and improve their ministerial skills Goal 2: That each parish fully integrate musical participation and hospitality into its preparation for and celebration of the liturgy. a. Develop a parish hospitality ministry that welcomes, reaches out, and continues to invite people to participate. b. Hire the services of a music minister who is knowledgeable in liturgy and can work with the parish liturgy committee. c. Invite parishioners to be a part of liturgy planning and to assist with its celebration. d. Use traditional and contemporary music and music that is expressive of various cultures so that the music used in worship appeals to many. e. Conduct periodic assessments of liturgical celebrations to get feedback to help the worshipping community improve its hospitality, music, singing, and prayer. Goal 3: That the diocese and parishes focus on renewed education on the meaning of the Eucharistic liturgy. a. Use all means possible to help form the community into full, active, and conscious participants who celebrate the liturgy with understanding, gratitude, and joy. b. Re-teach what is really happening during the celebration of the mass so that those who are present can participate with faith and enthusiasm. Goal 4: That the diocese and parishes reach out to include people of all ages, diversities, and cultures, especially those who are new to South Jersey. a. Ask Hispanic leaders to help established parishes find acceptable ways to welcome and include Hispanics into the parish community. b. Extend a special welcome to all immigrants, nationalities, and newcomers at regular parish liturgies and make it easy for them to participate. c. Ensure that visitors who come to join in the celebration of a baptism, first communion, confirmation, matrimony or a funeral are welcomed and made to feel at ease. PRIESTLY VOCATIONS Goal 5: That diocese and the parishes cultivate a variety of ways to support a priestly spirituality which leads to holy, healthy, and happy witness in the vocation to the priesthood. a. Form seminarians and priests in a way that they can share the meaning and the depth of their own joys and struggles on their spiritual journey toward and within the priesthood. b. Select wise mentors and spiritual directors to guide seminarians so that they can mature into pastoral servants of the Lord who love the God's People. Goal 6: That diocese and the parishes renew efforts to cultivate priestly and religious vocations. a. Cultivate vocations in well-balanced men who love God and can relate maturely to both men and women. b. Foster regular Eucharistic adoration and other prayer experiences in each parish solely to pray for priestly and religious vocations. c. Provide greater opportunities for youth and young adults to experience and interact with young priests in their ministry. d. Provide opportunities for those who are considering priesthood to be mentored and to participate for a time in priestly life. e. Teach families how to nurture in their children and understanding of the dignity and challenges of a life lived for others whether that be the single life, marriage, priesthood, diaconate, or religious life. Goal 7: That the diocese partner with parishes to assist priests to work collaboratively so that deacons, religious, and laity can assume a greater leadership in the parish. a. Offer training sessions in collaboration for all church personnel. b. Train and hire deacons, sisters, and laity to serve in pastoral ministries that do not require the services of a priest. c. Provide financial assistance and educational opportunities to develop pastoral leadership. COMPASSIONATE OUTREACH Goal 8: That the diocese and parishes reach out to welcome back with sensitivity those Catholics who have left or feel excluded from the Church due to separation, divorce, or re-marriage. a. Communicate in various ways the Church's teaching about marriage laws and reception of Holy Communion. b. Provide regular information sessions on the annulment process. c. Provide a parish ministry which assists and supports those who are experiencing marital difficulties or who have experienced the breakdown of a marriage. d. Accompany people who would like to return home to the Church through the various steps along the way so that they know and feel they are welcome. Goal 9: That each parish identify and reach out to those in need of the spiritual and corporal works of mercy through organized ministries. a. Foster and protect all dimensions of life in concrete and specific ways, for family and children are the basic building blocks of the Church and society. b. Address the spiritual and social needs of the lonely, the elderly, and shut-ins. c. Collaborate with other parishes in building a stronger community resource base to minister directly and indirectly to those in need, e.g. 12 step programs, food pantry, soup kitchens. d. Cooperate with other church groups, organizations, and those that share similar values in addressing societal issues, e.g., housing, hunger, drugs, violence, and urban decay. e. Develop an attitude that every parish is a place where the alienated and marginalized are welcome and treated with compassion and respect. LIFELONG FAITH FORMATION Goal 10: That the diocese and each parish begin to re-evangelize the faithful, through ongoing formation, educational opportunities, and experiences that are directed toward a lifetime lived in faith. a. Initiate an opportunity for adults in all parishes to experience spiritual renewal as a journey of ever deepening conversion. b. Utilize a successful catechumenal model to re-evangelize the entire parish community. c. Expand adult faith formation to include the teaching tradition of the Church: doctrine, morality, sacraments, spirituality, social justice, ethics, contemporary faith issues, etc. d. Expand the use of technology and media as an evangelizing and teaching tool to present contemporary issues in the light of Catholic teaching. e. Collaborate among parishes and within regions and the deanery to share educational resources, materials, publications, websites, workshops, mass schedules, etc. Goal 11: That the diocese and parishes develop ways to support family faith formation. a. Ask Catholic parents to find ways to worship together regularly at liturgy with their children. b. Schedule faith formation sessions at times when parents and children can come as a family to be nourished in faith (e.g. between Sunday masses, on a given night, etc.) c. Involve families in preparation for all of the sacraments. d. Offer multigenerational family retreats, community-building events, and social activities. e. Offer marriage and parenting helps for new parents and for parents of teens. YOUTH AND YOUNG ADULTS Goal 13: That the diocese and parishes welcome their teens, invest in them, and empower them to contribute to the life of the community. a. Provide diocesan guidelines for youth ministry for parishes, regions, and deaneries. b. Hire a professional degreed youth ministers in each deanery to collaborate with parish youth ministers to create and maintain dynamic, liturgical, formational retreats and social offerings for youth. c. Schedule regular youth masses in the parish or region in which liturgical planning, music, and ministries are done by yout d. Initiate a creative post-Confirmation catechesis for teens. e. Ensure that there are sufficient and appropriate locations for teens to gather. Goal 14: That the diocese and parishes reach out to young adults with ministry, support and challenge so that young adults are formed to be a vital Catholic presence wherever they are. a. Sponsor opportunities for young adults to serve those who are most needy. b. Provide the opportunity for both discussion groups and support groups which explore issues from a practical faith perspective. c. Support ministerial initiatives developed by young adults that address societal and global issues, e.g. peace, justice, culture of life, care of the earth. LAY MINISTRY Goal 15: That the diocese and parishes work in partnership to call forth the gifts of the laity and help form, empower, and support them in ministries that build up the Church. a. Develop diocesan guidelines to support lay ministry including compensation. b. Co-sponsor Lay Ecclesial Ministry Formation within the diocese so that laity can become certified or crentialed through a degree program. c. Identify facilities in various locations for Lay Ecclesial Formation and share an equitable funding base between the diocese, the parish, and the one being trained. d. Hire lay Business Administrators, Parish Administrators, and Parish Ministry coordinators as needed. Continue to welcome volunteers in ministry. Back to Pastoral Planning Home