Led By the Spirit

Breathing together — sharing responsibility for the mission

Cardinal John Henry Newman, the famed 19th century convert who was acclaimed as an inspired preacher and writer, used to describe the relationship between the people of God and the bishops as a conspiratio fedelium et pastorum, literally, a "breathing together" of the faithful and pastors. This is a startling image; an image that helps us to understand that all members of the church, whether clergy, religious or lay, have a critical role to play in the mission of the Church.

In the 1995 document Called and Gifted for the Third Millennium, the U.S. bishops stated it plainly. "Every Christian is called to participate actively and co-responsibly in the Church's mission of salvation in the world." This shared responsibility, it seems, is so essential to the nature of the Church that, according to the Second Vatican Council's Decree on the Apostolate of the Laity (1965), without the laity's part in the life and action of the Church "the apostolate of pastors will frequently be unable to obtain its full effect." The Council went on to say "the laity should develop the habit of working in the parish in close union with their priests."

Our diocese and parishes have structures of consultation that help us express this shared responsibility for the mission. There are many forms that consultation can take. Consultation deliberately seeks out the wide variety of experiences that different people bring to an issue or pastoral decision. Consultation enables wisdom to emerge from appreciating the various viewpoints. That communal insight is essential for making good decisions and carrying them out.

In the Diocese of Trenton, the 1991 Synod, called by Bishop John C. Reiss, eighth bishop of Trenton, to apply the Gospel message to our modern needs, concerns and aspirations and to adapt the laws of the Universal Church to our local Church, emphasized that consultative bodies are to be "established and maintained at the diocesan and parochial levels" in order to assist the diocesan bishop and pastors "in their care of the People of God" (#146).

Among the consultative bodies are:

The Diocesan Presbyteral Council – A body of priests whose role it is to assist the Bishop in the governance of the diocese in order that the care of the people entrusted to him be promoted as effectively as possible.

The Diocesan Pastoral Council – A body of laity, religious and clergy whose role it is to assist the Bishop in his care of the People of God. This group investigates, considers and proposes practical conclusions about the issues the diocesan Bishop places before it for counsel. It also serves as a conduit of communication between the Bishop and the lay faithful.

Parish Pastoral Councils – A body of parishioners that, with the Pastor, assist the community to prayerfully recognize the mission and live it out. Through ongoing pastoral planning, the council helps the parish to stay focused on its mission and on the goals and objectives related to it.

In addition to the above, there are many other examples of consultation that can be found on the diocesan and parish levels. Some of them are ongoing. Examples are the Council of Deacons, the Diocesan and Parish Finance Councils, the Educational Advisory Council, the Diocesan Liturgical Commission and Parish Stewardship Committees. Each group advises the Bishop or Pastor in some particular area of ministry or administration.

Other consultative bodies are called together to advise the Bishop or pastors on a particular issue and are limited in the time they serve. A good example of this kind of consultation is the Deanery Study led by the diocesan Office of Expansion and Restructuring that recently concluded in the Northern Burlington County Area. A similar consultation is underway in the Monmouth Central Deanery. Together, pastors and parish representatives work through the steps of the study and make recommendtiontions to the Bishop regarding how to most effectively plan for ministry in their area into the future.

Consultation invites Catholics to contribute their insights and their experiences to the process of decision-making. The decision rests with the Bishop or Pastor—but that decision is informed and implemented by the contributions of many to the process. In order to most fruitfully participate in consultation, Catholics are called to move beyond personal opinion and self-interest. It requires that we make a commitment to prayer and respectful listening, to approach the challenges of our day in the light of the Gospel, and to grow in our understanding of what it means to be Church and to serve the mission of Jesus. Finally, consultation involves a willingness to be open to the guidance of the Holy Spirit in the midst of God's people. Together, we accept responsibility for the mission and for the "breathing together" that accomplishing that mission will require.