Pastoral Council
The Pastoral Council seeks to advise the Pastor to ensure the implementation of the Parish Mission and to invite the People of God to embrace and live the Good News. The role of the Council, therefore, is consultative or advisory to the Pastor (Code of Canon Law: Article 536:2). The Pastor, in turn, in making decisions that affect the parish community should both listen to and give serious consideration to recommendations made by the Council.
The Council's authority is founded upon the faith enunciated in the Code of Canon Law as well as the Diocesan Guidelines. The Council is a consultative body and derives its authority from the Pastor. Nothing stated herein shall be deemed to detract from or conflict with the absolute authority and discretion of the Pastor who is the spiritual and administrative leader of the Parish (Code of Canon Law: Article 532).
The Council is responsible to ensure that the Mission Statement and the Vision of the Parish Community are carried through each ministry and committee by pastoral planning, coordinating and promoting.
Pastoral Planning: The Pastoral Council is an envisioning and planning body. In collaboration with the Pastor, the Council seeks to discern what God is calling our parish community to be and helps determine how our parish as a community can make progress in fulfilling our specific mission.
Coordinating: The Pastoral Council seeks to work together with those members within our community, inviting the participation of all members and incorporating their gifts and other goods of the community so that they complement and support implementation of our pastoral plans.
Promoting: The Pastoral Council seeks to assure that parishioners', individual and collective, efforts help our parish become the community which it has been called to be. It should enable the ministries of the community to be faithfully implemented, evaluate the progress of the pastoral plans and make adjustments where they need to be made.
The Council shall be composed of the Parish Staff: the Pastor, the Permanent Deacons, any Religious assigned, and the Coordinator of Religious Education, the Appointed Members: the two Trustees of the Parish, and the elected members: the Moderators of the Ministries and the four (4) Members at Large.