Archdiocese of
Archdiocesan Pastoral Council
March 17, 2001
St. Patrick’s Day
Present: Archbishop John Vlazny, Fr. Dennis O’Donovan, and Members: Julia Bochsler, Mother Francine Cardew, Tania DeSantis, Michelle Forster, Sr. Ruth Frank, Jerry Grondin, Fr. Don Gutmann, Eloisa Hernandez, Avi Huelskamp, Robert Hughley, Mike Kerr, Sue Lepley, Bob Lowry, Kirsten Meneghello, Keith Miller, Deacon Don Philip, Fr. Dick Rossman, Rod Spring, Paul Steele, An Vu.
Staff Present: Todd Cooper, Fr. Chuck Lienert
Members Absent: None
The first meeting of the Archdiocesan Pastoral Council was called to order at 10:10am.
OPENING PRAYER
Sr. Jeremy
Gallet, SP, Director of the Office of Worship, assisted the council in morning
prayer.
INTRODUCTIONS
Archbishop
introduced himself and then invited the council members to share a little about
themselves.
ARCHBISHOP’S OPENING REMARKS about the APC
After the
introductions,
A bishop, in
virtue of his call by the Church, has what is called the triplex munus,
or three-fold responsibility. A bishop
is called to be a priest, a teacher, and a pastor (older
models use the images of priest, prophet, and king). The APC was formed to help the bishop carry
out these three primary areas of responsibility in his ministry.
1.
As
pertains to his sanctifying mission (priest), the APC must help the bishop
provide opportunities for people in the archdiocese to grow in holiness,
especially through the sacraments, through devotions, and through prayer.
2.
As
pertains to his teaching mission (teacher), the APC must make sure that we have
appropriate opportunities for education, not only for our children, but also
for adults.
3.
As
pertains to his pastoral mission (pastor), the APC will provide input on the
establishment of pastoral priorities and the allocation of resources.
The archbishop
told the APC that it is their responsibility to help him deal with these areas
of his ministry. He said that sometimes,
he may not like what the council says, but he wants them to speak freely and he
will always listen to and take seriously what the group has to say. He said that the APC is important, because it
represents the Church to him.
The APC is
different from the Presbyteral Council, the Finance Council, the Cabinet, and
the archbishop’s staff. The Presbyteral
Council is charged with helping the bishop in matters of governance, such as
taxing parishes or establishing certain diocesan policies. The Finance Council is charged with helping
to monitor the financial resources of the diocese. The archbishop’s Cabinet (department heads)
and staff are charged with implementing the pastoral plans of the diocese. It is the work of the Archdiocesan Pastoral
Council to help the archbishop develop the pastoral plans for the diocese. Though each organized body has a particular
focus and function, the work of one group affects each of the others. Oftentimes, issues of import cross over into
more than one of the particular realms of responsibility of each of the
supporting bodies. For example, when the
APC makes a recommendation that has fiscal implications, the archbishop will
dialogue with the Finance Council.
Likewise, if the APC makes a recommendation that will affect the
archdiocesan staff, the archbishop will discuss the proposal with them.
Together, the archbishop’s consultative bodies and staff help the archbishop to
determine, set, and provide for the needs of the entire Church in
When asked what
will happen if there is disagreement between the bodies, the archbishop
suggested that in such a case, he might form a temporary, joint committee to
discuss the issues in order to come to some resolution. One body does not have power over
another. There must be true dialogue and
cooperation in order to advance the common mission of the Church.
Handout
Fr. Lienert
passed out a diagram entitled “Consultative Bodies in Canon Law” (see
Exhibit A).
REVIEW OF THE APC CONSTITUTION
Fr. Lienert
reviewed the APC constitution with the council members.
Referring to the
first article, he noted that the purpose of the group was to help the bishop
understand the pastoral needs of the archdiocese.
The provision for
membership in the APC constitution is to provide a guideline in selecting
persons to the council in accord with Canon Law, in a manner that will reflect
the greater Church and in such a way as to limit the number of members on the
council.
Fr. Lienert also
noted that in accord with Canon Law it is the bishop who presides over the
council. He recommended that “preside”
be understood properly in the sense of collaboration. A chair is elected who will run the
meetings. A vice chair will cover the
duties when the chair is absent. Both
officers will work with the executive staff and the archbishop to determine the
agenda for the meetings. Input for the
agenda may come from any of the members of the APC, from the area vicariates,
parishes, consultative bodies, or various offices. The archbishop ultimately determines what
falls under the scope of discussion for the APC.
Three levels of planning
Fr. Lienert noted
that there are three levels of planning in the archdiocese. Planning occurs on the diocesan level, the
vicariate level, and the parish level.
The APC will ordinarily meet at least three times per year to do
planning on the diocesan level. Area
Vicariates will have a general assembly once per year for planning on the
vicariate level (vicariates also meet regularly throughout the year). Each parish is required to have a pastoral
council that meets regularly for parish level planning.
In order to
create a real connection on all levels of planning in the archdiocese – on the
diocesan level, the area vicariate level, and the parish level, the APC
constitution has certain provisions.
Every three years, there will be an Archdiocesan Pastoral Assembly to
elect new members for the APC. This
assembly is important, because it will help to keep the APC rooted in the work
of parish pastoral councils. Delegates
to the assembly should be members of their own parish pastoral councils. Ideally then, those elected to the APC will
be active members of or at least observing members of their respective home
parish pastoral councils. The APC
constitution also makes provision for the regional representatives elected at
the assembly to be present at the yearly Area Vicariate Assemblies. This will keep the APC members in touch with
the area vicariates that they represent and give the opportunity for true
dialogue between the vicariates and the APC representatives.
Consensus
Referring to the
final article of the APC constitution concerning procedure, Fr. Lienert spoke
about the importance of consensus on the APC. The group will have to determine the best way
to reach a consensus. It is important
for the archbishop to know the sense of common good behind any recommendations
made by the APC. It will not help him if
the APC simply gives him, for example, an 11 to 9 vote on a particular
issue. This body is not a political
one. Its purpose is to discern the
pastoral needs of the Church and to communicate those needs to the archbishop.
Finally, Fr.
Lienert noted that when the see is vacant (upon the transfer or death of a
bishop), the APC goes out of existence.
In such a case, a new bishop would have the option to reconstitute the
APC if he desired its continuance and felt that pastoral circumstances
encouraged it.
ARCHBISHOP’S REMARKS
At the close of
Fr. Lienert’s presentation, the archbishop made some further remarks about the
council. He spoke to the advantage of
having an APC. Such a council gives him
the opportunity to develop a more personal and better working relationship with
a group of people who are individual members of the Church. While his pastoral visits bring him in touch
with people in individual communities and parishes throughout the diocese, they
do not provide the occasion to maintain a longer term and working relationship
with the average parishioner. This group
provides that important opportunity for him.
The archbishop
repeated that he sees the APC as his primary agent for pastoral planning in the
archdiocese. The group will help him
determine the pastoral priorities of the archdiocese. The council may create a list of twenty
priorities, and would then need to determine, for example, which were the three
most important priorities. The
archdiocese would then focus its energy and resources on those priorities in
the coming years.
Archbishop noted
the archdiocese’s decision to begin Disciples in Mission. This decision was made through consultation
with various groups, including the Presbyteral Council. From this point forward, the archbishop will
make similar, pastoral decisions with the consultation of the APC.
Discussion before
lunch
A member of the
council pointed out that the way the APC constitution is written, there will be
a completely new council every three years.
She wondered whether or not there should be staggered terms so that
there is continuity between councils?
Archbishop responded that the current plan was thought to be a good
one, especially to get the council started, but that it is not set in
stone. If the APC members want to
recommend a different approach, he will be open to that.
Area Vicariates
A member asked
for clarification of the relationship between the APC and the Area Vicariates.
Fr. Lienert responded by reminding
the council that the Local Church is rightly considered as the diocese, not the
parish. The diocese is divided into
parishes and these parishes are clustered to form area vicariates. The area vicariates form a middle level of
planning and cooperation. At the head of
each vicariate is a vicar whose charge is to help the parishes in his vicariate
work together. The vicar carries out
this charge with little authority and few resources. The purpose of the area vicariate meetings is
to encourage dialogue and planning for the whole vicariate.
Information and
ideas for pastoral planning flow in all directions: from parish to vicariate to diocese, from
parish to diocese, from diocese to vicariate and parish. It is the individuals involved in the
planning that help to establish the connection between each level of planning. The activities at each level of planning
should not only reflect some of the planning at each of the other levels, but
they should influence some the planning that occurs on the other levels of
planning as well. This is why it is
important for the APC member to attend the annual area vicariate assembly and
to serve on his or her parish pastoral council.
If planning at each level occurs independently and regardless of the
planning on the other levels, our efforts to spread the Gospel and to grow in
our faith will be far less effective.
Working together on each level of planning unites us as one body and
helps us to carry out the mission of the Church. Communication and dialogue is important on
every level. The current organizational
structure is meant to foster dialogue and to establish a real connection on all
three levels of planning.
Canon 514, which
says that the bishop alone should make public the work of the council, should
be understood as follows: Members of the
APC have full freedom and are encouraged to discuss the work of the APC on
every level of planning or with any individual.
Developing strong pastoral planning proposals through communication and
consultation is the work of the APC. The
actual decision-making is left to the archbishop. While the archbishop will likely adopt many
of the APC’s proposals, keep in mind that he will not adopt them
automatically. The archbishop will
announce when he has made a decision on a particular proposal. Until that time, a proposal remains a
proposal and does not constitute a decision on the part of the archbishop.
A question was
raised about who should attend the annual Area Vicariate Assemblies. The archbishop stated that it would be good
if all pastoral council members and key pastoral staff members from each parish
within the vicariate would attend.
When asked if all
of the area vicariate annual assemblies would be expected to hold their
meetings on the same day, the archbishop indicated that it would be good if the
annual assemblies all occurred within approximately one month of each other.
Building good
relationships is one of the primary goals of the Area Vicariate Assemblies.
BREAK FOR LUNCH
At 1pm the
meeting was called back to order.
REPORT ON THE ARCHBISHOP’S STAFF
Following lunch,
Fr. O’Donovan’s gave a brief presentation on the role of the archbishop’s
staff.
He explained his
title, “Moderator of the Curia”. It is
his responsibility to oversee the archbishop’s curia, (or staff). The primary duty of the staff is to help the
archbishop carry out his mission of spreading the gospel in Western
Oregon. The staff can rightly be
understood as the implementation arm of the archbishop.
Fr. O’Donovan
noted that the staff is made primarily of laypersons. Of the ninety-two staff members working for
the archbishop, there are only 7 priests.
He said that the Pastoral Center (or Chancery Office), is the building
where most of the staff members work.
The archdiocese also has offices in the Paulist Center at St. Philip
Neri Church.
There can be a
tendency for some who are outside of the “archdiocese” (those not part of the
archbishop’s direct staff) to view the archdiocesan offices as “the
enemy”. The Pastoral Center is truly a
place of service, however, where the staff is working to extend the mission of
the archbishop. The archbishop’s staff
serves as a resource for the parishes throughout the diocese.
Archbishop’s follow-up remarks about his
pastoral staff
The archbishop
thanked Fr. O’Donovan for his presentation and referred to the organizational
chart on pg. 14 of the 2001 Oregon Catholic Directory (See Exhibit B
“Organizational Chart of Archdiocesan Operations”). The chart lists the seven departments and
various offices in the archdiocese.
In addition to
pastoral staff, there is also the business staff that deals with things such as
property management and risk management.
As a whole, the entire staff works together to advance the mission of
the Church and to ensure that the business affairs of the Church are handled
appropriately.
The archbishop
noted that the archdiocese has a union staff to support the department heads
and office directors. He also pointed
out that the staff includes non-Catholics who are very dedicated to their work.
The archbishop
explained to the council that parishes, along with their priests and parish
staffs are considered part of the larger archdiocese. For example, if someone wants to sue over an
incident that occurred at one of the parishes, that person would sue the
archdiocese.
The archbishop
mentioned that there are also relationships between the archdiocese and various
other entities within the archdiocese such as Catholic universities, Catholic
hospitals, and groups like St. Vincent de Paul and Catholic Charities.
He noted that
since Vatican II, a bishop is seen more like a pastor than a CEO. The office of bishop is no longer identified
so much with an individual person, but now it is understood more as an office
in which many participate and collaborate.
PASTORAL CONCERNS OF THE ARCHBISHOP
The archbishop
shared some of his pastoral concerns for the archdiocese with the APC. He noted some issues that were uppermost in
his mind:
1.
Enhance
ministry to Youth
2.
Campus
ministry
3.
Hispanic
ministry
These three areas
have been the recent focus for archdiocesan leadership. The archbishop adopted these priorities after
having consulted with various groups in the diocese (this occurred prior to the
formation of the APC).
The archdiocese
has already taken some practical steps to address these areas. To enhance youth ministry, the archdiocese
has hired a new, experienced director, and has allocated resources to provide a
full-time assistant and secretary for the office. On the campus ministry front, the archbishop
is hoping to be able to assign a priest to the OSU campus, and in addition,
work is being done to try to get a decent Catholic facility on campus. A part-time campus ministry position has also
been added to Lewis and Clark University.
For Hispanic ministries, the Presbyteral Council has been working on
ways to expand services in more areas.
With the influx of Hispanics into the area, we need to welcome their
presence with open arms and provide appropriate Catholic services for them.
Archbishop noted
that the establishment of the Southeast Asian Vicariate was a pastoral priority
for the archdiocese about 25 years ago.
The efforts then have continued to bear fruit, even to the point that we
are receiving vocations from the Southeast Asian Vicariate as a result.
The archbishop recommended
that the APC consider the following list of pastoral priorities as a focus for
the archdiocese in the coming years:
1.
EVANGELIZATION. He mentioned that when he came to the
Archdiocese of Portland that he changed his bishop’s motto to “Go and Make
Disciples.” He spoke at length about the
U.S. bishop’s national plan and strategy for evangelization outlined in the
document “Go and Make Disciples”. The
document presents three goals. It is the
aim of the Disciples in Mission experience to help the diocese achieve the
three goals.
The archbishop spoke enthusiastically of the Disciples in Mission
experience underway in the archdiocese.
He was pleased with the large number of parishes that chose to
participate. He asked the APC to help
him monitor the progress of Disciples in Mission. He said, “Evangelization is the
underlying theme of all we do.” Our
next pastoral assembly will evaluate the effectiveness of Disciples in Mission.
2.
STEWARDSHIP. The archbishop spoke about the important work
of directing and handling our resources.
Our most valuable resource is our people. He noted that the archdiocese is in need of
five new parishes. Because our resources
are limited, we cannot build them all at once, therefore we must establish a
plan and prioritize the projects. The financial resources of the archdiocese
come from three primary sources:
a. An endowment.
A large endowment, established by Archbishop Howard provides 35-40% of
our yearly operating income.
b. A parish tax.
A parish tax of 5% provides about 1.4 million dollars per year (about
25% of the operating budget). Due to the
endowment, we do not tax our parishes very heavily. Indianapolis, for example taxes its parishes
at a rate of 15%.
c. The Annual Catholic Appeal (ACA). The remainder of the operating budget comes
from the Annual Catholic Appeal. The
goal for the ACA this year (up 10% from last year) is 2.4 million dollars. Compared to many dioceses, our annual appeal
income is low. Seattle, for example, has
twice as many Catholics, but they raise nearly four times as much money (8
million dollars per year) from their appeal.
Stewardship of resources is an important activity. We should keep in mind that money is raised
for the purpose of supporting the various ministries in the Church. We don’t raise money simply to have it.
3.
VOCATIONS
MINISTRY. Religious and priests are much
needed. Lay ministers and others must be
served by the Church. As a diocese, we
have a disproportionate number of religious priests. We welcome them and deeply appreciate their
good service here, but we should not rely too heavily upon their services. Many religious communities are finding their
own numbers dwindling. As a result, they
are pulling out of areas where they have served for many years. Last year religious communities withdrew from
five parishes in the Portland Archdiocese.
We need to build a stronger core of diocesan priests to meet our growing
needs. This year, we have had nine new
seminarians. This is good, but we want to strive to do even
better.
The bishop also listed some second tier
priorities for consideration by the APC:
4.
Catholic
Schools. We need to continue to support our schools
and look at expanding our facilities.
Normally, this is done on the parish level, but we have been finding
that a cooperative effort between parishes and the diocese can lead to some
good results.
5.
“Built
of Living Stones: Art, Architecture, and Worship.” The archbishop mentioned the recent document
by the NCCB Committee on the Liturgy. He
noted the importance of promoting good Liturgy.
6.
Columbia
River Pastoral Letter. Everyone was given a copy of “The Columbia
River Watershed: Caring for Creation and the Common Good.” The archbishop asked the APC to read the
document before the next meeting. This
document is an evangelizing opportunity for the Catholic community. As people who live in the Northwest, we are
concerned for the environment. Catholic
involvement and positive input about an issue that so many non-Catholics are
concerned about gives us some common ground and an opportunity to
evangelize. This is a faith based
document that speaks to an issue that touches all of us.
The archbishop
concluded by saying that these are some of his own thoughts about the pastoral
priorities of the diocese. He encouraged
the APC to bring other ideas to the table as well.
The archbishop
reminded the APC that evangelization is the leit motif of all that we are about as Church.
Vicariate Discussion
Reports
Before discussing
the vicariate reports, the APC took several minutes to review them.
One member noted
the importance of youth ministry and Hispanic ministry.
Another commented
that youth ministry should include young adults (18-35) and not just teens.
One person felt
the three strongest themes from the reports were communication, education, and
liturgy.
It was noted that
education was a theme that was repeated continuously through the reports. He commented that many people have demanding
schedules and suggested a pastoral plan that might include a systematic review
of the creed in homilies. This person
also recommended trying to take better advantage of teachable moments such as
baptism and marriage.
A member spoke of
the self-doubt that can come as a result of lack of knowledge about the
faith. Forty years ago, it seemed that
most people had a basic understanding of their faith. Those numbers have dropped.
The archbishop
suggested that of the people who disagree with what the Church teaches, many
probably disagree because they do not understand a teaching. He gave the
example of inter-communion. For
Protestants, communion is a sign of hospitality. For Catholics, it is a sign of identity. Education that would lead to an understanding
the difference might help some to accept the teaching.
A member spoke of
the embarrassment that some may experience about sharing their faith – not an
embarrassment that comes from lack of knowledge of the faith, but one that
comes perhaps from fear of not being accepted by others.
Another commented
that this should not be used as an excuse not to live out or share the
faith.
One person
noticed that there was a concentration in the reports on goal one – perhaps
simply because of the time limit during the discussions. However, he pointed out that if we have good
news to share as Catholics then it is easier to share the faith. The obligation to share is not motive
enough. Knowing the good news and
experiencing it as good news for ourselves is the first step in being able to
share the faith. John Paul II has said
that our churches should be schools of prayer.
A member
commented on the experience of being a small group leader for Disciples in
Mission. We learn from each other. Fear will go away. We need to become a Church – a true community
of believers, before anything else. The
changes of Vatican II helped this person to understand the faith more deeply
and to become a better Christian.
Another member
suggested that the three goals of the U.S. bishops’ document “Go and Make
Disciples” be seen as one goal. This person
recommended looking at the goals holistically and seeing the thread of
connection from the first statement to the last. We should look at ourselves and see how we
can bring others to Christ.
The archbishop
explained that while the goals are indeed connected, they should be properly
viewed as three separate goals.
Historically, we have focused on ourselves. It is time to reach out. He used the analogy of the parish as a
campaign headquarters. If everyone stays
at the headquarters, who will promote the candidate? We have been at the headquarters and now it
is time to hit the campaign trail to promote our candidate, Jesus Christ.
A member said
that we need to be on fire with Christ.
Some of her friends lack enthusiasm for the faith. We need to help inspire them. Good worship is a way to do this.
The archbishop
pointed out that not everyone is inspired by good worship. We should promote other activities as well,
including activities such as faith sharing groups and social outreach
opportunities. We should take advantage
of evangelizing moments. For example,
when young parents have their first child.
Their sense of responsibility leads them to reflect on instilling good
values in their child. Catholic schools
are another good evangelizing tool.
Disciples in Mission Parish Reflection Day
and the APC
One of the APC
members asked about the connection between the APC and the Disciples in Mission
parish reflection day. The parish
reflection day is aimed at parish level planning. This is important to the APC, because each
parish will send a parish reflection day report and a parish evangelizing
profile report to the archdiocese. These
reports will be summarized and copies will be given to the APC so that it will
know what issues are priorities on the parish level. These reports will provide
good input to the APC as it recommends a diocesan level pastoral plan to the
archbishop.
Conclusion
The archbishop
noted that this meeting was primarily an orientation for the new council
members.
Todd handed out a
vicariate reference booklet containing contact names and telephone
numbers. He asked each person to review
the APC contact sheet to make sure that all the information was correct. He explained that mileage reimbursement would
be given to anyone who lived more than twenty-five miles away. APC members simply need to send him a signed
request noting the date of the meeting and how many total miles they had driven
to and from the meeting.
The archbishop
closed the meeting with a prayer.
AGENDA ITEMS FOR
NEXT MEETING
1.
Elect a
chairperson for the meetings
2.
Elect a
vice-chairperson for the meetings
ACTION ITEMS FOR
NEXT MEETING
1.
Read the
Columbia River Pastoral Letter
NEXT MEETING:
Saturday, June
23, 2001
10am to 3pm
at the Griffin Center
(11933 SE Fuller Rd, Milwaukie, 97222).