ST MICHAEL S PARISH NELSON BAY

Transcription

1 ST MICHAEL S PARISH NELSON BAY PLENARY COUNCIL SUBMISSION Background 1. The Parish conducted two approximately half hour World Café style workshops after the vigil Mass on 27 October and Sunday Mass on 28 October Attendance at these sessions was 16 and 19 persons, respectively. The workshops comprised two 10 minute brainstorming sessions in small groups of 4-5 people, addressing the following questions: a. What do you think God is asking of us in Australia at this time? b. What questions do you have about the future of the Church that you wish the Plenary Council to consider? 2. The aims of the sessions were stated as being to encourage: a. individual input to the Plenary Council with the benefit of group synergy, and b. thinking on Plenary Council issues and prompt subsequent individual input. 3. The sessions were well received by those who participated. A copy of the programme leaflet used is attached as Enclusure Subsequently, four additional individual written submissions (to the one submitted prior to the workshops), were received from parishioners. St Michael s School teachers also undertook a separate workshop session. The contents of these have been incorporated in this report. The indidiual submissions are attached as Enclosure 2. Summary of Responses 5. Many of the over 140 responses to the questions were overlapping, as was to be expected. Similar responses have been amalgamated in this report, unless they were substantially different. In a number of cases, answers provided to one question belonged more correctly to the other. In such cases, the responses have been reassigned under the more appropriate question for the sake of clarity and coherence. Some responses were equally valid to either question. No responses have been omitted. 6. Responses to the questions have been grouped under headings. These groupings, and the responses within them, have been ordered from the most frequently submitted to the least. A numeral in brackets after each multiple response indicates the number of repetitions of tis point or very similar points. Executive Summary 7. A single page executive summary of this Report is also provided at Annex A.

2 -2- Question 1 What do think God is asking of us in Australia at this time? Laity 8. We need the laity to be more active, have more say in the administration of parishes and take on leadership roles in the Church (eg, trained lay pastoral leaders in charge of parishes where priests are unavailable). (10) 9. The people (laity) are the (bulk of) Church focus on ordinary people. (2) Youth 10. Where are the youth and younger families? How do we attract young people to the Faith and its practice? How can we make the Church more relevant to teenagers and young families? They need to be engaged at their own level, create programmes and experiences to which they relate, such as the environment. Use people like Fr Rob Galea and his approaches to youth ministry. (11) 11. Use the third rite of reconciliation to help the young come back to the church. Faith Practice Perspectives 12. Go back and understand the basics of our Faith Pope Francis is leading and showing the way. Get away from Canon Law. (6) 13. The practice of our Faith and the interpretation of the Gospels needs to become relevant (to the lives) of the people who make up the Church in contemporary society we are still operating by rules formulated for a long-gone society. (4) 14. Focus on what was Jesus message of love and forgiveness and start from there. (3) 15. The Church needs to be restored to the simplicity and holiness of the Gospels run by men and women who live the life of the Spirit. 16. We need to be more inclusive, tolerant, accepting and empathetic and open our doors wider to others and refrain from being judgemental. (4) 17. There needs to be a greater emphasis of family prayer and family-focused practice of our Faith. 18. Don t blame God for everything that has gone wrong. Instead be thankful for His gifts and use them. 19. Help out in the community, regardless of religious background. Social Justice 20. Emphasise social justice issues -preference for the poor, compassion for refugees, help those in need. (4) 21. Deal with inequality and the increasing gap between the haves and have-nots, indigenous and non-indigenous peoples. (3) 22. Has the Church done everything in its power to bring the children off Nauru and Manus Is?

3 -3- The Plenary Council 23. The Plenary process is taking too long we need to show young people the way now, not by 2020/21. (3). The Nature of Church 24. To be more outgoing and outreaching and share our Faith with others through friendship with all. (2) 25. Be a more welcoming Church. (3) 26. Find ways to welcome back the good people of our Faith who are no longer participating. (2) 27. Stand up and be proud of being a Catholic/Christian. Speak up for Christian values. (2). 28. We need to develop a more contemplative and mystical faith. So many Catholics have become attendance box tickers and do not live the Faith in any meaningful form. 29. Be more evangelical like Jesus, go out of the building and take His message to others (eg Ignite Youth, Spirituality in the Pub) (2) 30. We need a much deeper, contemporary theological understanding of scripture. Undo the child-like reliance on the myths and stories in scripture that form a barrier to educated young people in their acceptance of the Christian faith. 31. Build community and support one another and work together in decision making. (2) 32. The Catholic Church needs to reassert itself as a leader in society 33. We may not like change, but we need to change to move forward. 34. God is telling us to re-establish trust. 35. We need to listen (to others and God) with an open heart and remain faithful. (2) Dealing with Royal Commission Outcomes 36. To pray, love and forgive (2). 37. Truth and justice dealing with complaints. 38. We have to rehash where things went wrong. Question 2: What questions do you have about the future of the Church that you wish the Plenary Council to consider? The Laity s and Women s Role in Particular 39. Redefine the role of women in and church based on their contemporary role in society. The concept of women as deacons and priests needs to be seriously considered. What happens when boys don t want to be priests any more? (13)

4 The bishops need to give serious consideration to establishing Lay Pastoral Leaders (LPL) such as those produced under the Launch Out programme set up and running so well in the Archdiocese of Wellington NZ. LPLs, (women and men) are appointed (after 4 years preparation) to lead parishes in the absence of or in collaboration with parish priests. They should be able to officiate at baptisms, marriages, funerals, undertake chaplaincy roles and do all those things other than those requiring an ordained priest. This includes conducting regular services of the Word and Holy Communion (Sunday Celebration in Anticipation of the Eucharist SCAE) where Mass is unavailable. They often work as a leadership team with the PP to carry increasing workloads. LPLs are appointed by and report directly to their bishop. (2) The Church in Australia needs to start taking seriously the message of Lumen Gentium, particularly Chapter IV. The reality of the different but equal roles of laity and the ordained needs to be made more evident in practice. This will help remove clericalism in the Church and extend its ability to evangelize and serve its own and the wider community. The Clergy 42. Celibacy for priests needs to be seriously questioned as an option, not a mandate. (11) 43. More support for priests support staff, proper remuneration. 44. Reinstate priests who have left to marry. 45. Get priests from overseas (not widely supported). 46. Some priests are too dictatorial and control the parish to the exclusion of laity. 47. We must eradicate clericalism in the church. Future Direction 48. We need to move on/forward, to reinvigorate and to heal and build bridges to do so and give them (those who have left the Church) a reason to come back. (5) 49. Desperately needed is scripture education that embraces contemporary understanding of its exegesis and modern theological thought. Make Christ real in the context of current scientific understanding and the Global issues that face us. So many Catholics are still in the Middle Ages when it comes to the sophistication of thought on the Divine Mysteries and the nature of God, Christ and the Trinity. (2) 50. The Australian bishops should adopt the exhortations in Pope Francis Laudato Si encyclical as the basis for action and a vision for the Church in Australia. (2) 51. The matter of divorced and remarried Catholics being able to partake of the Eucharist needs to be resolved. Some priests allow it while others don t. Divorced Catholics are (by definition) adulterers. In October 2016 Pope Francis welcomed/invited divorced Catholics back to the Mass. Did he also mean they could take Communion? Annulment is not the answer 52. Put more energy into inter-faith and ecumenical dialogue. 53. Be more accepting of broken families. 1 On the more frequent use of SCAE.

5 Provide more support for young families 55. Changes to marriage annulment procedures that allow for annulment without the requirement to interview both parties where one party has been the subject of abuse. 56. Offering alternative apostolates. 57. Focus on ordinary people. 58. Insufficient social opportunities for engagement Liturgy 59. The music ministry needs to be examined and updated it s archaic. Use young people in bands and choirs. (3) 60. Catholics need a better education on the liturgy, particularly of the meanings and symbolism of the parts of the Mass, from the procession to the dismissal. Liturgy needs to be adapted, where necessary, to reflect the local culture, including the multicultural nature of many Australian parishes. 61. Look at the liturgy, etc, as reflecting the contemporary needs of the Church. (2) 62. Ditch the provisions of Liturgicum Authenticum and provide the Lectionary in the language of the NRSV of the Bible. The language of the liturgy has gone backwards and is not the language of Australians. The elitist views of the Congregation of Divine Worship are lost on the bulk of worshipers and don t help in understanding how we worship in this country. Leadership and Communication 63. Are the bishops masters or servants of the church? When they attend the synod with ideas, Rome s representatives tell them what to do are our voices really heard? 64. The Pope s communications are heard here, but is our voice heard in Rome? 65. Leaders to speak out. 66. Catholics have a cultural cringe Youth and the Marginalized 67. Engage young people in ministry. (2) 68. Offering part-time work for young people within the community. 69. Review church relations/appeal to Aboriginal peoples. 70. We need (support) relevant to our region to serve an aging population, requiring more priests, deacons, lay pastoral leaders 71. Help for children to be educated in religion and brought up in the Faith. There is a gap between baptism and confirmation/first communion when children do not attend Mass.

6 -6- The Church & the Royal Commission 72. No altar servers even though we have a Catholic School (reflection of past sins 2 ) 73. The church is dying 74. Clean out all the garbage that exists before we can move forward and rebuild the Church from all that has happened (comment on the Royal Commission revelations). 75. Guilty priests and bishops must man up if they have offended. 76. We need more than expressions of sorrow and regret from those clergy and others in positions of authority in the Church who have offended. There must be demonstrable and significant change, from outside perception, to the way we work, well before 2020/ We are a persecuted church that needs to fight back by explaining our role, emphasizing our positive works. A central body to do this may need to be set up. 78. Unlock the hidden wealth of the Church (real estate, etc) 79. There should be an inquiry into the administration of the Church at all levels. 80. Urgently address the need for love and healing us. 81. Build trust by being humble and open. 82. (Re)build moral credibility. 83. Lay people to be involved in committees looking into complaints re children. Ben van der Wijngaart Workshop Facilitator St Michael s Parish, Nelson Bay Annex: A. Executive Summary Enclosures: 1. Workshop Programme Leaflet 2. Copies of Individual Submissions Received 10 January Reference to the understanding in the Parish that the behavior of a past predatory priest is now still affecting willingness of parents to allow children to become involved as servers.

7 ANNEX A EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. St Michael s Parish Nelson Bay has Plenary Council input was primarily derived from two short workshops on 27 and 28 October involving 35 parishioners in response to the two principal questions posed. Figure 1 2. Figure 1 summarises the workshop and individual input. Direct Input reflects the number of comments that directly related to the labelled topic. The Indirect Input was added where a particular response had a broader or indirect implication on additional topics. The topics are logical groupings of over 160 separate statements. The groupings were not discussed in the workshops. 3. There are three broad, closely interwoven, principal conclusions that may be drawn: a. The involvement of laity in leadership roles in the church, including that of women on an equal basis, is the collective predominant issue. b. There is a heartfelt desire to refocus on the practical essentials of Christ s message, uncluttered by institutional dogma and rules, ( back to the basics ) as the only way to appeal to contemporary young Australians. The Church has a pre-vatican II image problem. Related to this is that Pope Francis message has substantial and broad support, but there are concerns that the broader Church hierarchy is not responding as urgently and well as it should; eg, on contemporary mega-issues as propounded by Laudato Si. c. The sexual abuse scandals in the Church, have left an indelible scar on people s immediate outlook, yet there is a clear desire to forgive, re-establish trust and move on.

8 ENCLOSURE 1 Plenary Council Workshops Opening Prayer God of Love, You are with us in every transition and change. As we enter into this new era with excitement and even some anxiety, we recall your deep compassion, presence, and abounding love. We thank you for the gifts, talents and skills with which you have blessed us. We thank you for the experiences that have brought us to this moment. We thank you for the work of others that gives breadth and depth to our own work. Be with us as we move forward, rejoicing with you and supporting one another. We ask this in your Holy Name. Amen. World Cafe 2 Questions - 10 Minutes to brainstorm each. o Primary purpose is to capture thoughts, not discuss or critique them. o A nominated person is the scribe/facilitator at each table. Bell after 10 minutes - start work on the question on the second sheet. Quick summary by facilitators/scribes at the end Closing Prayer Creator God, we thank you for the encounter with one another today. We know that where there are two or three gathered, you are in our midst. Thank you for being with us and for the courage to speak boldly and with passion, and the humility to listen with open hearts. We ask you to continue to walk with us, as we discover the pathway toward the future you are calling us to. Amen