Led by the Spirit - Pastoral Priorities
These seven pastoral priorities must receive the best of our energy and resources. To that end, the Diocesan Pastoral Plan names goals and objectives to guide our work.
Sunday Mass
Goal: Increase Full, Conscious, and Active Participation in Sunday Mass
Objectives
- To evaluate evangelization efforts across the diocese and in each parish, and to provide training and resources to improve effectiveness
- To enhance teaching about and build the practice of prayer and liturgy in our Catholic schools, religious education programs, adult faith formation efforts, and all forms of sacramental preparation
- To provide resources for the ongoing liturgical formation of the assembly
- To implement a diocesan-wide media strategy for inviting people to gather each week for the celebration of the Eucharist
- To cultivate attitudes and practices of inclusivity and hospitality toward all
- To improve the skills of clergy, parish liturgy committees and liturgical ministers for preparing and celebrating the liturgy in ways which facilitate an encounter with Christ in the Eucharistic elements, in the Word, in the priest-celebrant and in the assembly when it sings and prays
- To strengthen the ability of clergy to preach effectively and in ways that are relevant to their parish communities
- To make explicit the connection between Eucharist and mission
Growing in Faith
Goal: Nurture Growth in Faith from Childhood through Every Stage of Life
Objectives
- To develop cordial and welcoming patterns of relating to people that reflect the Gospel message we proclaim
- To equip and support parents in their role as the primary educators of their children in faith
- To implement the current Catechetical Plan of the Diocese of Trenton with its emphasis on:
- Placing adult faith formation at the center of our catechetical efforts
- Having professionally formed and competent Parish Catechetical Leaders
- Working toward a majority of each parish's catechists holding full diocesan Catechist Certification
- Developing within parishes the resources and qualified personnel to respond to persons with special needs and their families
- Having systematic and comprehensive adolescent catechesis at the parish level
- Developing long-range catechetical plans for schools and parishes
- Evaluating and updating catechetical ministry on a continual basis
- Having the catechumenal model inspire all catechesis
- To implement the Strategic Plan for Catholic Schools in the Diocese of Trenton in order that our schools be strong in their Catholic identity, academically competitive and financially viable
- To improve the coordination of efforts among ministries engaged in faith formation
- To develop the proficiency of those who teach and preach to utilize the experiences of life as "teachable moments"
- To ensure that faith formation of adults in the diocese meets the unique needs of adult learners
- To make choices about the life and action of the parish community that give witness to what we believe
Living as Disciples
Goal: Equip Each Catholic to Live as a Disciple of Jesus Christ in his/her Daily Life
Objectives
- To affirm and challenge disciples to connect their faith with all the aspects of their lives in the home, the marketplace, and the wider community
- To provide resources and ministry which strengthen families as the "domestic church" of the home
- To work to fully include all people with disabilities or special needs as vital members of the parish community
- To stimulate greater participation in the life of the parish community and in the mission of the Church
- To adopt an integrated approach to the stewardship of time, talent and treasure
- To promote spiritual direction, retreat programs, and participation in faith-sharing communities as avenues of spiritual growth
- To undertake specific outreach to inactive Catholics
- To strengthen the willingness and ability of Catholics to evangelize – to share their faith in Jesus Christ
Leadership
Goal: Ensure Quality Pastoral Leadership for Parishes
Objectives
- To engage all members of the diocese in inviting, praying for, and supporting those who are discerning a call to the priesthood
- To build up the practice of fraternal care and support among priests
- To direct the ongoing formation of parochial vicars in order to prepare them to serve as pastors in the future
- To initiate training and support for priests, deacons and parish staff persons serving in multiple-parish and merged parish situations
- To facilitate a shared approach to the continuing education/formation of priests, deacons, religious, and lay ecclesial ministers
- To explore cooperative arrangements among parishes and among priests in the areas of ministries, staff, and shared use of facilities and other resources
- To assemble and support collaborative pastoral teams in parishes
- To encourage the hiring and training of competent Parish Business Administrators in parishes
- "The Parish Business Administrator serves as a staff resource in support of the pastor, fulfilling parish administrative needs in finance, buildings and grounds, and personnel. The Parish Business Administrator directs these efforts with technical and legal expertise within a framework of shared ministry in Christian and Catholic values."
- To make Lay Ecclesial Ministry formation more accessible and share the expertise of lay ecclesial ministers throughout the diocese, especially in underserved populations
- To establish and form a Parish Pastoral Council in every parish of the diocese by November 2010 to engage in visioning and pastoral planning
Charity and Justice
Goal: Act with Charity and Promote Social Justice in our Society and in our World
Objectives
- To integrate the principles of Catholic Social Teaching, which all have the life and dignity of the human person at their foundation, in diocesan processes of ministerial formation
- To raise awareness among all Catholics about the social mission of the Church and develop a sense of shared responsibility
- To speak out consistently and explicitly about the dignity of the human person and protect life from the moment of conception to natural death
- To organize for effective legislative advocacy within the diocese
- To collaborate more effectively with Catholic, ecumenical, interfaith and secular partners in pursuit of the common good
- To consider all temporal decisions through the lens of Catholic Social Teaching
- To make appropriate and timely responses to needs in the global community
Youth & Young Adults
Goal: Engage Youth (13-18 yrs) and Young Adults (19-35 yrs) More Deeply in a Relationship with Jesus Christ and the Catholic Community
Objectives
- To form leaders and provide resources for comprehensive youth ministry at the parish level
- To initiate efforts for leadership development of youth and young adults
- To form youth and young adults in discernment in order to help them seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit in vocational and career choices
- To focus increased attention and resources on ministry to and with young adults at the diocesan, county or deanery, and parish levels
- To invest in and broaden the use of media, technology; and strengthen our web presence
- To encourage collaboration between college campus ministers
- To strengthen the Catholic identity of our high schools by supporting the interface between campus ministry, religion departments, and the entire school community
- To promote enrollment in Catholic high schools and colleges
Ethnic Diversity
Goal: Minister Effectively within Ethnically-Diverse Parish Communities
Objectives
- To challenge the Catholic community to confront prejudices, intolerance, and misconceptions through prayer, preaching, catechesis and communications
- To consistently include those to be served in identifying the needs of the community and the ways to meet those needs
- To increase the ability of diocesan offices, agencies and individual parishes to minister to the growing Spanish-speaking population
- To actively foster vocations to the priesthood arising from within ethnic communities
- To identify, develop and equip bi-lingual leaders at the parish and diocesan level
- To expand outreach services to new immigrant populations and monitor the growth of those populations within the diocese
- To begin a practical dialogue between parishes about the "best practices" of ministering among a variety of ethnic communities in a single parish