Parish Pastoral Council
The purpose of the Parish pastoral council is to ensure that the local church community, from among which they are called, has every opportunity to carry forward the mission of Jesus Christ.
The nature and function of the Parish pastoral council are drawn from the nature and mission of the church, and its role in the parish community is to make present the ‘servant leadership’ of Christ in collaboration with the overall pastoral leadership of the Parish Priest.
The Parish is a community whose participants stand in many places, with various roles, experiences, and a range of relationships and perspectives.
The Parish priest exercises the pastoral care of the community entrusted to him under the authority of the bishop, whose ministry of Christ he is called to share, so he may carry out the offices of teaching, sanctifying and ruling with the cooperation of other priest and with the assistance of the lay members of Christ’s faithful, per the law ‘Canon Law 519.’
Each gathering of the Parish pastoral council will include time for prayer, prepared soundly. A customary practice is to participate in prayer at the beginning and closing of meetings. A prayer attitude will underpin the Council’s reflections, discussions, deliberations, decisions, and actions. “The church exists for a solitary goal, which is to carry forward the work of Christ under the lead of the befriending Spirit, and the Parish pastoral council has its role within the same goal.
The role of the Parish Pastoral Council:
Role of the Chair
- Together with the Parish priest, prepare an agenda for each regular meeting of the council.
- Study the agenda carefully before each meeting, gathering any information that might be relevant to the topics mentioned.
- Include time for prayer.
- Maintain the pastoral focus of the council
e.g.
- Encourage the involvement of all members.
- See that the practices of attentive listening and questioning for clarification continue
- Ensure that there is respect for each person’s opinion
- Monitor the time frame of each agenda item.
- Work collaboratively to set realistic short-term and long-term goals for the Pastoral council.
- Ensure there are outcomes for each agenda item.
- Ensure that there is ongoing liaison with the Parish priest.
- Provide encouragement and support for council members.
- Encourage all Pastoral councilors to work on projects and tasks.
- Ensure regular communication with the parishioners to inform them of the council’s work, including updates on important projects.
- Encourage input from parishioners about their hopes, ideas, needs and concerns.
- Represent the parish at deanery meetings as required.
- Provide the recording of the minutes of regular and special meetings of the council.
- Arrange resources appropriate for the meetings.
- Attending inward and outward correspondence.
- Distribute information and correspondence to council members and to parish groups as required.
- Keep a file of the council’s minutes, decisions, history, membership, and development.