Parish Pastoral Council Formation and General Parish Renewal

The Living Church Team are working with Parishes and groups of Parishes who are interested in beginning the process of establishing Parish Pastoral Councils. A Parish Pastoral Council is a group of committed people of God (priest, religious and lay people) called upon to investigate pastoral matters, reflect on them thoroughly and recommend practical conclusions to the Parish Priest. The Parish Priest, in turn, acknowledges the wisdom of the Parishioners and expresses his desire to share with them his responsibility for the governance of the Parish. It is key that Council members are fully aware of their roles and responsibilities and that they are the right people to be on the Council so as to ensure, as far as possible, that their advice is wise and in keeping with Church teaching. Together with their Parish Priest, the Council set Pastoral Themes for the Parish.

Our facilitation is delivered through a series of events where those who gather have an opportunity to explore the following issues:

* What is a Parish Pastoral Council?

* Is a Parish Pastoral Council right for us?

* What work does a Parish Pastoral Council do and how does it do it?

* What are the roles of those who sit on a Parish Pastoral Council?

* What are the skills, qualities and experiences necessary for Council members?

* How do we go about getting a Parish Pastoral Council in place?

We are also working in Parishes to facilitate discussions between all the people of God- priests, lay and religious-about how to renew the life of their Parish. On this page we will publish the summary reports from the Parishes we are working in both on Pastoral Council formation as well as Parish renewal more generally:

Brief Summary St. Teresa’s 11th June 2012

Summary St. Teresa’s 25th June 2012

Summary St. Teresa’s 9th July 2012

Summary St. Teresa’s 12th August 2012

Summary St. Teresa’s 26th August 2012

St. Anne’s Parish Pastoral Council

Summary Our Lady Queen of Peace PPC 1st Sept 2012

Summary St. Teresa’s 9th September 2012

Summary Antrim Coast Parishes 24th September

Summary Downpatrick Parish Renewal 27th September 2012

Summary Loughshore Parish18th September 2012

Summary Loughshore Parish 8th October 2012