Pastoral Plan User s Guide If we wish to serve God and love our neighbor well, we must manifest our joy in the service we render to Him and them. Let us open wide our hearts. It is joy which invites us. Press forward and fear nothing. ST. KATHARINE DREXEL This User s Guide is offered as a helpful tool to those who are not sure how to begin implementing the Pastoral Plan within their diocese. The approaches presented are meant to be examples, and should be altered to fit the population you serve and their particular pastoral needs. The Pastoral Plan of Action was developed by delegates who were appointed by bishops from dioceses in the United States. These women and men brought the concerns and needs of their local communities, and worked together to develop a list of pastoral priorities. They also prayed and listened to the major presentations of Congress 12. These priorities led to a Preamble, which was presented and affirmed by the Assembly at the close of Congress 12. It was the intention of the delegates that every individual, parish, community, and diocese use the Preamble to guide their unique pastoral planning with Black Catholics for the next five years. Table of Contents: 1. Pastoral Plan Preamble...2 2. Applying the Pastoral Plan...3 Who...3 What...3 Example of a Mission Statement...3 Where & When...4 Example of a Timeline...4 Why...4 How...5 3. User s Guide at a Glance...6 4. Notes... 7-8 Please call the office or visit our website for additional information The National Black Catholic Congress 320 Cathedral Street Baltimore, MD 21201 (410) 547-8496 www.nbccongress.org
Section 1: Pastoral Plan Preamble We believe the Holy Spirit, who is Lord and Giver of Life, is upon us. Because of this, we recommit ourselves to live our Baptism as Catholics, to be authentically Black and truly Catholic and to seek leadership in our Church on all levels. We commit ourselves to promote the causes for canonization of the five holy women and men being considered for sainthood in our Church. We commit ourselves to act justly by living in proximity with those who are suffering and neglected. Specifically, we seek to promote the dignity and life of every person from the unborn to natural death. We commit ourselves to dismantle racism in all forms, which is an obstacle to justice and evangelization. We also commit ourselves to address the challenges of mental illness, mass incarceration, domestic violence, and other issues that challenge the sanctity of life. We commit ourselves to love goodness by sharing our Faith with others using creative ways, especially social media, as we evangelize in our community. We commit ourselves to support the Catholic Schools in our community. This preamble may be used as an outline to construct your own Pastoral Plan, based upon the points that are most important to your parish, diocese, or organization. If you wish to have more help structuring your Pastoral Plan, you can use the published document, pulling out the action steps that you would like to address. We commit ourselves to walk humbly with our God and affirm the universal call to holiness as it is lived out in all forms of vocations in our Church - marriage, single life, consecrated religious life and especially diocesan priesthood. We commit ourselves to listen and respond to the needs of the youth and young adults in our community as we pass on the legacy of our Faith. We commit to align these priorities with the outcomes of the Convocation of Catholic Leaders as missionary disciples called to spread the Joy of the Gospel. We commit ourselves to apply these priorities on the local, diocesan, regional and national levels and review them on a yearly basis. This Pastoral Plan of Action and other Pastoral Plans beginning with Congress 6 in 1987, are available at: https://www.nbccongress.org/pastoral-plans.html National Black Catholic Congress, Inc. 2 Congress 12 Pastoral Plan User s Guide
Section 2: Create an Implementation Structure Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How Using the Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How format, create a committee of people to implement the pastoral plan within your parish, diocese, or organization. Who? The people who are invested in the outcome will be diligent in working through the process. The Director of the Office of Black Catholics in your diocese can provide a list of people with a track record of successfully serving on committees, councils, boards, etc. If your diocese doesn t have a Black Catholic or Multicultural Ministry Office, you can contact the National Black Catholic Congress for referrals to associates in your area. If you are working at a parish level, you already know most of the people who will form your committee they are the ones you can always call on to help. At the diocesan or organizational level, appoint a chairperson with many contacts; they will recruit the talent they need to get the job done. Include on the committee representatives from organizations that directly address the Pastoral Plan objectives(s) you want to include in your program. If you choose to focus on Prison Ministry and Outreach (PPA Objective 3:2), invite the Director of the diocesan Prison Ministry Office and consider including a representative from non-catholic prison ministry organizations. The same would apply to the issues of Domestic Violence (PPA Objective 3.3), Human Trafficking (PPA Objective 3.4), etc. What? What is the targeted outcome of this committee? How will this be achieved? And just as important, how will they know they have achieved their goal? Give concrete and measurable goals. This will become the mission statement that guides the committee throughout the program. Example of a Mission Statement: The committee on social justice, formed under the auspices of (parish, diocese, or organization), pledge to reduce recidivism by creating a mentoring program for released prison inmates. We will provide advocacy, spiritual renewal, employment guidance and placement, to (20) former inmates over the next three years. We will give feedback on the success of this program by noting the recidivism rate within this group as compared to the overall rate within the community. Consider the needs of the people you serve when selecting the targeted objectives of your program. Is there a need for increased prison ministry, or would there be greater value in supporting released inmates through a mentoring program? Is there an issue with human trafficking in your diocese? If not, a better objective might be to address domestic violence. An important ministry is the evangelization of unchurched members of the Black Catholic community. Consider this the objective of your program. Congress 12 Pastoral Plan User s Guide 3 National Black Catholic Congress, Inc.
Where and When? Find a place for your committee to meet that is convenient and accessible to all members. Are there parish halls that can be reserved on a regular basis? Is there a meeting room in the diocese that would be accessible off-hours? To determine when, or how often, the committee should meet, it may be helpful to construct a timeline of the process, working backward from the final report out date of February 2022. Include the mid-term report due date, then add meeting dates to meet these deadlines, and include an outline of what you will cover at each meeting. IMPORTANT DATES TO INCLUDE: Use the following timeline as a starting point, then add your meeting dates: MID-TERM REPORT DUE July 2020 REPORT-OUT TO NBCC February 2022 Why? Although one of the last questions we ask when forming a Pastoral Plan Committee, Why? will probably be the first question your invited committee members will ask. How will you answer? FINAL REPORT TO CONGRESS 13 July 2022 As Black Catholics, faced with individual and systemic racism throughout our daily lives, we seek the equity that can only be achieved by addressing the outward symptoms of racism as they are manifested in our communities. Using the Pastoral Plan of Action as a guide, we can adopt the action steps that target an identified objective and work to eliminate it as one of the symptoms of the inequity we face. Congress 12 Pastoral Plan User s Guide 4 National Black Catholic Congress, Inc.
How? The most important question posed is How? How are we going to affect the changes we have committed to? Using as an example Objectives 2.1 under Topic II: Leadership in the Church, the action steps listed on the Pastoral Plan of Action can be adopted as the strategies the committee will use, or action steps can be created based upon the need and available resources. At the diocesan level, address the topic of Leadership in the Church by forming a committee that includes several representatives from each of the parishes with Black Catholic members. The strategic plan the committee constructs may look like this: Objective 2.1: Create opportunities to develop existing leaders and invite new parishioners to undertake leadership positions in lay ecclesial ministry. 1) Action Step 2.1.1: Within their parish, the committee members from the parish will form a subcommittee with the purpose of identifying new leaders and providing opportunities to nurture them as they grow into positions of increasing responsibility. 2) Action Step 2.1.2: As a main committee, identify local opportunities for leadership training. Within parish subcommittees, undertake fundraising to provide access to these opportunities for our new leaders. 3) Action Step 2.1.3: As a parish subcommittee, institute parish leadership development days for our new leaders. As a main committee, develop a plan of how these days will look and what the outcomes will be. 4) Action Step 2.1.4: As a parish subcommittee, identify current lay ministers who are willing to act as mentors for our new leaders. 5) Action Step 2.1.5: As a main committee, we will contact the Diocesan Office of Priest Personnel to identify retired Black Catholic clergy or clergy of other ethnicities to act as leaders or mentors to our new leaders. At the parish level, disregard the differentiation of main committee and parish committee, and address all of the tasks as a parish committee. Consider including Objective 2.2: Affirm and celebrate lay leadership as an extension of this strategic plan. This will get the parish involved in the process of building leadership and will provide the motivation for new leaders to come forward. 12 Leadership Lessons from Pope Francis 1. Lead with Humility. 2. Smell Like Your Flock. 3. Who Am I to Judge? 4. Don t Change- Reinvent. 5. Make Inclusivity a Top Priority 6. Avoid Insularity. 7. Choose Pragmatism over Ideology. 8. The Optics of Decision-Making. 9. Run Your Organization Like a Field Hospital. 10. Live on the Frontier. 11. Overcoming vs. Sidestepping Adversity. 12. Pay Attention to Non-Customers. (Skip Richards, Lead With Humility: 12 Leadership Lessons from Pope Francis) Congress 12 Pastoral Plan User s Guide 5 National Black Catholic Congress, Inc.
USER S GUIDE AT A GLANCE Appoint Committee Chairperson (see 'Who?' on pg. 3) With Diocesan Bishop, Parish Pastor, or Organizational Director, Identify Objective (see 'What?' on pg. 3) Form Pastoral Committee (see 'Who?' on pg. 3) Compose Mission Statement (see 'What?' on pg. 3) Adopt or Create Action Steps (see 'How?' on pg. 5) Create a Timeline Including Meetings (see 'Where and When?' on pg. 4) Begin to Make Change Happen! (see 'How' on pg. 5) Congress 12 Pastoral Plan User s Guide 6 National Black Catholic Congress, Inc.
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