Pastoral Council
OVERVIEW OF PASTORAL COUNCILS
Based upon Cannon Law (535) our Bishop has mandated that Pastoral Councils be established in every Parish. The purpose o a council as explained in Cannon Law is to “assist in fostering pastoral activity. The task of a council is not to be involved in Parish administration or Parish Finances which is the role of the Finance Council. The task of the council is assist the Pastor and the pastoral Staff in helping the Parish better serve the poor and the needy, to better celebrate the sacraments especially the Eucharist, to help all parishioner of all ages to grow in the faith, to evangelize, and to better care for members of the parish community.
The Diocesan Guidelines on Pastoral Councils explains how the Council “fosters pastoral activity”
“The Parish Pastoral Council is intended to be a source of open and responsible dialogue between parishioners and pastors in their parishes concerning the discernment and assessment of the pastoral needs of the parish. In addition, the Parish Pastoral Council is intended to foster the mutual cooperation of both parishioners and their pastor in determining the proper pastoral planning necessary for them to fulfill together those pastoral needs.”
The code of Cannon Law (535) clearly states that the Council has a consultative vote only. The council provides the structure by which the pastor can work with the Parish in a collaborative and consultative way to achieve the pastoral mission of the Parish, but this does not mean that the Parish has become a democracy. The Pastor remains the final authority.
DEVELOPMENT OF A COUNCIL ACCORDING TO DIOCEAN GUIDELINES
Canon Law also give the bishop the authority to establish guidelines for the formation and conduct of Councils in his diocese. Working with the Office of Pastoral Planning Bishop Da Cunha has developed such Guidelines. Click here to read them.
According to the Diocesan Guidelines in twinned parishes which share a pastor a single Council should be established between the two Parishes. In the development of a new Council, one third of the members will be chosen by the pastor, one third are ex officio, and one third elected by the Parishes. In our case with two Parishes, this means that two members will be elected from each Parish. An ideal number to have on a council is 12 members because with more members open dialogue can be lost.
It is unusual for a Pastor to develop a Council immediately after being named, but I have been here as Administrator for five months. I know enough people to form a Council. Also, I believe that a Council is need to discuss how we can heal from the trauma of having such a well-loved pastor removed and begin to rebuild the Parish.
If possible, I would like to have the development of a Council completed by the celebration of Easter. We will have two weeks to nominate people for the Council. Only those who registered in the Parish, and go to Mass here on a regular basis, are eligible to be on the Council.
After the nominations are completed, I will to contact each person to see if they want to serve on the Council. I will point out to them that serving on the Council involves multiple meetings. It is not just an honorary thing. We will also check to see if they are registered Parishioners. If I cannot contact someone because we do not have a current phone number, their nomination cannot be completed.
Once all those who are nominated from each Parish have been vetted, we will compile an election ballot for each Parish. Elections will be done at Mass. Happily, we have many non-parishioners going to Mass here, but only registered parishioners will be able to vote.