Core Team Update #21

Strengthen and Enlivening Parishes

For so the Lord has commanded us, I have made you a light to the Gentiles, that you may be an instrument of salvation to the ends of the earth. – Act 13: 47

One of the five goals of the Faith in the Future process is to make suggestions that will strengthen and enliven the parishes and diocesan ministries in your area.  We can no longer live with the  belief that things are “fine just the way they are,” when every year mass attendance falls, fewer young people participate in parish life, buildings sit empty, and more Catholics drift away from the practice of the faith.

Too often, a parish grows at the expense of its neighbor; and the challenge of reaching inactive Catholics or sharing the Gospel with those who seek God goes unattended.  Across the diocese, not just a few, but every parish must flourish for circumstances to improve.

There won’t ever be enough money, or enough time, for a small number to do the work that belongs to all of us.  Certainly, more than cooperation on a few programs will be required.  In every parish real progress will mean letting go of personal preferences and prioritizing our use of resources.  We must be willing to challenge assumptions about the way things have to be done, and choose a new way forward.

The Lord Jesus calls us to be “an instrument of salvation to the ends of the earth.”  What sacrifices are you willing to make in order to become a diocese of strong and lively parishes?  What parish models or ministry initiatives will let the light of Christ reach more people?

Dear Core Team Members:

If you need to review what you learned at the cohort trainings in March or if you have some core team members who missed the training, you can find a link to a video of one of the Monmouth trainings  at:https://youtu.be/XgsiChboRdk

The focus of your cohort work in the next few weeks is to:

• work in small groups organized around the four evaluation areas (Sacramental Life, Evangelization, Catechesis and Catholic Schools, Communal Life and Stewardship and Administration).
• talk about the implications of parish evaluations, data verification forms and parish summaries in your cohort. What are you learning?

• prepare your cohort evaluation and suggestions by June 1, 2016. The draft of your cohort evaluation and suggestions should be sent to your Reid Group consultant by May 20, 2016 for review and feedback.

Please keep in mind that the suggestions are just that:  suggestions.  These are not decisions; the final decisions are made by Bishop O’Connell after receiving final recommendations from the Planning Commission and consulting with other appropriate bodies.

Remember to update your fellow parishioners on a regular basis about the work of your cohort.  You will find sample bulletin announcements in your Planning Guide on p. 50.

We strongly encourage you to make use of the parish facilitators during this cohort phase.  These trained facilitators can be used to facilitate cohort meetings, town hall meetings and other parish gatherings at no cost to the cohort parishes.  To arrange for a facilitator, contact your Reid Group consultant.

Please let us know what questions you have about your work and the whole Faith in Our Futureplanning process and we will answer them in future updates.

Thank you once again for contributing your time and energy to this important project.

FAQ—Frequently Asked Questions about Faith in Our Future:

Q. Should we call for a facilitator only when there is tension or disagreement to resolve?  How much do the facilitators cost? 

A. Facilitators are available at no cost to you. You should feel free to call for a facilitator whenever you feel it would enable the meeting to go more smoothly, not just when there is a clear disagreement to resolve. A facilitator can be particularly helpful to facilitate the full cohort meetings or for large gatherings like town hall meetings or parish focus groups.

Q. There are parishes in another cohort that we already work on some things with.  Will that need to stop?

A. Definitely not. We want to encourage collaboration between parishes wherever and whenever working together helps parishes accomplish their mission. If there are major areas of collaboration identified (e.g. shared staffing, regional programming, etc.) then that information should be part of both cohort suggestions.

Please let us know what questions you have about your work and the whole Faith in Our Futureplanning process and we will answer them in future updates. 

FAITH IN OUR FUTURE STAFF & COUNTY CONSULTANTS

Diocesan Office Staff

Msgr. Leonard Troiano, ltroiano@dioceseoftrenton.org, 1-609-403-7159

Sherrie Sporek, sspore@dioceseoftrenton.org, 1-609-403-7193

FAX: 1-609-406-7413

MAILING ADDRESS:

Faith in Our Future, Diocese of Trenton

701 Lawrenceville Road

Trenton, NJ 08648

The Reid Group Consultants

Burlington & Ocean Counties Consultant

Tom Reid, TReid@TheReidGroup.biz, 1-206-947-2990

Monmouth County Consultant

John Reid, JReid@TheReidGroup.biz, 1-206-947-1055

Mercer County & Bi-Lingual Consultant

Cleo Molina, CMolina@TheReidGroup.biz, 1-206-383-2536