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Preparatory
Letters for the PPP
Letter
#1
November 26, 2005
Feast of St. John Berchmans
My Brothers and
Sisters in the Lord:
I wish to express my
sincerest thanks for the number of very positive and favorable
comments and notes regarding my homily the weekend of November 13,
2005. You may recall that, in the context of Christian stewardship,
I told the entire congregation (at all Masses) that the Parish Pastoral Council continues to search deep regarding our needs,
wants and goals of St. John Berchmans Cathedral Parish and School.
We have embarked, as a faith community, on the
exciting journey of self-reflection, needs assessment and
envisioning our parish and its many people and programs in the next
five to fifteen years.
St. John’s, as a parish, is not simply a place
where, that is, a geographical entity, but as a people who, that is, a
community of the Christian Faithful.
The parish we call the Cathedral of St. John Berchmans is the
concrete realization of the Church for many people
who make this parish ‘home.’
It is here that Catholic families and individuals experience
Church. For the most
part, therefore, pastoral care within the parish is the ordinary way in which parishioners both
exercise ministry and, along with others, receive ministry.
We must all be concerned that this pastoral care is being
fulfilled and that the parish, as a place where the ministry
occurs, is always an appropriate vehicle through and in which the
pastoral care is realized.
Mindful of its
responsibility to establish our parish’s goals and objectives and
priorities in service to the parish’s communion, mission and
vision, the Parish Pastoral Council is committed to formulating our
Five-Year, Parish Pastoral Plan (2006-2011).
The pastoral
planning begun this past summer continues within the context of
prayer and discernment of God’s will for our parish.
We are most mindful that Scripture, both Old and New
Testaments, contains much about planning and preparing for the
future. See Habakkuk
2:2, Luke 14:28-32, Matthew 16:1-4; and Proverbs 29:18, where one
reads: “Without a vision,
the people perish.”
Your Parish Pastoral
Council and I are committed to the mission of our parish.
No fixed future awaits us; there are myriad possibilities for
the future. Under the
guidance of the Holy Spirit we can do much to shape that future!
Our pastoral planning will always look to the outside at
the trends and forces existing/developing in the world today (and
within our community) - the signs of the times, demographics, etc,
while constantly examining the inside - our gifts, our needs, the
capacities and resources of our parish today and the future.
The parishioners of
St. John’s, rightly so, should be very happy and proud to be
members of a people
who have a rich
tradition and vibrant expression of faith on practically every
level. We are the
proud beneficiaries of the pastoral planning of the charter members
in 1902. The pastoral planning which we have begun will have a strong
influence on the life of the Church in our parish and school for
many years to come. Therefore,
we want as many people’s input as possible.
On Saturday, January 14, 2006, there will be a Retreat and
Pastoral Planning Conference… those who are part of this
momentous occasion of our parish include:
- all members of the Parish Pastoral Council and Parish
Finance Council,
- all members of the Cathedral Staff,
- and all the Heads-Chairs-Presidents of any council,
committee or organization affiliated with the Cathedral of St.
John Berchmans.
A retreat and
conference of this scope will greatly benefit from such input of
those who are already committed to the mission of this parish, as is
evident by having leadership roles in the parish.
Preliminary Goals
for the Parish Pastoral Plan have been discussed and they fall under
the following headings:
It is foreseen that
each Goal of the Parish Pastoral Plan will have a corresponding
committee*:
I.
Liturgy and Worship Committee
II.
Education and Evangelization Committee
III.
Fellowship Committee
IV.
Time and Talent Committee
V.
Stewardship Committee
VI.
Outreach Committee
VII.
Communication Committee
VIII.
Buildings and Grounds Committee
IX.
Church and School Relations Committee
X.
St. John and St. Catherine Relations Committee
XI.
Cathedral as Diocesan Church Committee
The Retreat and
Conference will be an opportunity to determine membership on various
committees that will finalize the goals and will propose the means
of implementing the goals. It
is the Parish Pastoral Council’s hope that the bulk of the work of
this project will occur in February and throughout the Lenten season
and will be finalized for our celebration of Easter (April 16,
2006).
On behalf of all the
people of our parish, I thank my brother priests, fellow staff
members, and members of the Parish Pastoral Council and the Pastoral
Planning Committee, who have worked so diligently in laying the
groundwork for this planning endeavor.
I also thank in advance those who will be part of the
planning process during the next months. Your work will help insure that our parish will be better
able to meet the needs of the faithful for decades to come.
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Peter B. Mangum
Rector
*Each
committee of the Parish Pastoral Council exists to support the
Parish Pastoral Council and other existing organizations of the
parish in order to assist the pastor, associate pastors, and
pastoral staff. The
objectives of each committee will be outlined in the Parish Pastoral
Plan. Ultimately, each
committee is to discern (according to the particular goal) the
on-going needs of the parish and surrounding community and to
propose means of implementation.
The committee can request that the PPC add to or delete
action items.
Each
committee will consist of, at least: Representative of the Parish
Pastoral Council, Member of the Pastoral Staff, Three parishioners
appointed by the pastor after having been nominated by the Parish
Pastoral Council Representative and the Pastoral Staff Member, Ex
officio members: Clergy
assigned to parish.
***********************************************
Preparing for Parish Pastoral Plan
- Letter #2
December 13, 2005
Dear Fellow Parishioners:
As I indicated in my
Christmas letter to you, the Parish Pastoral Council is in the
process of formulating a new Parish Pastoral Plan.
We all acknowledge that we are the proud beneficiaries of
the pastoral planning of the charter members in 1902.
We have embarked, once again, on the exciting journey of
self-reflection, needs assessment and envisioning our parish and its
many people and programs in the next five to fifteen years.
I specifically wish to invite YOU and all who
have the position of head/chair/president of a ministry or
organization of the parish and school as well as invite those of you
who have been tapped as people who would benefit the planning
process.
All
members of the Parish Pastoral Council, Parish Finance Council,
staff members of the church and various representatives of the
church/school of the Cathedral Parish will be in attendance at this
important gathering.
Specifically, we
will establish our new Five Year Pastoral Plan:
our parish’s goals and objectives and priorities in
service to the parish’s mission and vision.
This pastoral planning will have a strong influence on the
life of the Church in our parish and school for many years
to come.
The retreat/conference will take
place on
Saturday, January 14, 2006,
9:00 am – 12:00 noon,
at the Convent of Our Lady of Sorrows
on Norris Ferry Road.
Please read the attached letter which I had
sent to all members of the Parish Pastoral Council, Parish Finance
Council, and Church Staff. It
speaks about
the task at hand and of our need for your involvement.
Please respond to this letter letting me know if
you accept the invitation to serve your parish in yet another way.
Please respond via email.
If you have questions, please, do not hesitate to ask.
If I do not hear back from you by Dec 20, I will assume you
are NOT able to serve at this time.
Thank you very much.
A blessed Advent to you.
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Peter B. Mangum
Rector
***********************************************
Preparing for Parish Pastoral Plan
- Letter #3
January 7, 2006
My Brothers and
Sisters in the Lord:
“Without a vision, the people perish.” (Proverbs
29:18)
One week from today,
on Saturday, January 14, we will gather to prayerfully discern the
vision and mission, the needs,
wants and goals of St. John Berchmans Cathedral Parish and School, a
gathering that has the potential of being such a major springboard
to future ministries, programs, activates, in our parish.
What is God calling us to do? Who
is God calling us to be? Where
is He guiding us?
This retreat/conference will serve as an opportunity to continue the
exciting journey of self-reflection, needs assessment and
envisioning our parish and its many people and programs in the next
five to fifteen years. The
pastoral planning, formulating a Five-Year, Parish Pastoral Plan
(2006-2011), will have a strong influence on the life of the Church
in our parish and school for many years to come.
Please, come to the
retreat/conference prepared, ready to listen and share and discuss.
Copies of my past
letters to you have been placed on our parish website for you to
review in preparation for the gathering:
Go to: http://www.sjbcathedral.org/PPC.htm
Those taking
part of this momentous occasion of our parish include:
- all members of the Parish Pastoral Council and Parish
Finance Council,
- all members of the Cathedral Staff,
- and all the Heads-Chairs-Presidents of any council,
committee or organization affiliated with the Cathedral of St.
John Berchmans.
The Parish Pastoral
Council has already outlined the prospective committees
corresponding to the Parish Pastoral Plan.
On which committee do you feel God is calling you to serve?
I.
Liturgy and Worship Committee
II.
Education and Evangelization Committee
III.
Fellowship Committee
IV.
Time and Talent Committee
V.
Stewardship Committee
VI.
Outreach Committee
VII.
Communication Committee
VIII.
Buildings and Grounds Committee
IX.
Church and School Relations Committee
X.
St. John and St. Catherine Relations Committee
XI.
Cathedral as Diocesan Church Committee
Remember: the
Retreat and Conference will be an opportunity to determine
membership on various committees that will work to finalize the
goals and propose the means of implementing the goals.
It is the Parish
Pastoral Council’s hope that the bulk of the work of this project
will occur in February and throughout the Lenten season and will be
finalized for our celebration of Easter (April 16, 2006).
Our work over these
next months will help insure that our parish will be better able to
meet the needs of the faithful for decades to come.
The
retreat/conference will take place on
Saturday, January 14, 2006
9:00 am – 12:00 noon
at the Convent of Our Lady of Sorrows on Norris Ferry Road
(no meals are served).
Have a blessed week!
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Peter B. Mangum
Rector
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