CLUSTER 66 PASTORAL PLAN ACCEPTED!
Cluster 66 Pastoral Planning Committee
Delaware County Vicariate - May, 1999
Holy Saviour, Linwood
Saint John Fisher, Boothwyn
Immaculate Conception, Marcus Hook
Saint Joseph, Aston
Saint Francis de Sales, Lenni
Saint Thomas the Apostle, Chester Heights
Cardinal Bevilacqua, in his letter to the Regional Vicar dated April 29, 1999, stated that he "finds all six goals of the Cluster's Pastoral Plan acceptable and encourages their implementation." He made special note of the goals to: evangelize; increase enrollment in our schools; and initiate service projects addressing economic injustice, homelessness, and poverty. This Pastoral Plan is aimed at helping prepare Catholics in Cluster 66 to be even better witnesses of the Risen Lord in the new millennium. Complete copies of the Cluster 66 Pastoral Plan are available at your Parish Rectory.
WHY DO WE NEED A CLUSTER PASTORAL PLAN AT THIS TIME IN OUR HISTORY?
Through much of the twentieth century, the parish was the fundamental unit of Catholic Christian community. We didn't ask new acquaintances, "Where do you live?" Rather we asked, "What parish are you from?" The parish was the center of religious and often social life. We identified with parish, the priests, the religious, and the school. The parish was at the center of community, where we proclaimed in word and deed the Good News of Jesus Christ to all persons and where we met our sisters and brothers in the human community to celebrate and share our faith and our commitment to serve God and others. The spoken histories and rich traditions of the individual parishes that comprise Cluster 66 are replete with acts of charity, stories of sacrifice and service in the name of Jesus Christ, and celebrations of God's presence in the Eucharist.Now, as we look to the future, to the next millennium, and consider the many challenges that come with a rapidly changing society, we recognize a need to extend our reach beyond the parish if we are to fully realize our fundamental mission to spread the gospel message of Jesus Christ to all persons. External forces are pulling people away from the church. Mass attendance is declining. And, resources at the parish level are not always sufficient to address the needs of the people. Building on our common strengths and our united commitment toward renewal, we accept the premise that our individual parishes can be made stronger through cluster planning and welcome the opportunity to work together to overcome our limitations while responding effectively to the forces that challenge us. Together we can renew our faith, spread the word of God, and teach the saving message of Christ so that all believers may come to deeper understanding, conversion, and personal witness to Christ.
The Goals of the Cluster 66 Pastoral Plan are:
Reinvigorate Catholic faith in Cluster 66 and its parishes through programs aimed at children, teens and young adults.-Develop and implement an evangelization program to reinvigorate Catholics (active and inactive) in the parishes in our cluster.
-Encourage and educate parishioners to use their gifts for the betterment of their church in both liturgical and pastoral ministries.
-Encourage and seek to increase the number of children in our cluster attending our fine parish schools. Find ways to reach and convince those Catholic children not presently parochial school students and their parents of the value of Catholic schools.
-Provide continuing education opportunities for the adults of Cluster 66.
-Provide a Christian service program for Cluster 66.The Objectives and the Actions to reach our six Goals are:
For Goal #1, a Cluster Youth Council will be formed to identify the concerns and issues of that age group. A program for young adults will be developed to encourage them to become more active in church affairs.
For Goal #2, a Cluster Evangelization Committee will be established consisting of two members from each parish to develop a program to bring back inactive Catholics to the Church as active parishioners.
For Goal #3, a network of volunteers, who are willing to share their particular expertise in assisting our pastors in their liturgical and pastoral ministries, will be developed. Also, a database of current and prospective leaders within each parish will be compiled.
For Goal #4, a marketing group will be established to find ways to increase the number of children attending our fine parish schools. Also, a scholarship annuity fund for tuition aid will be established.
For Goal #5, an Adult Education Team will be formed to compile and publish a list of programs offered by each parish in the Cluster. Also, a "Cluster Corner" column, which will include Mass schedules of each of the cluster parishes, will be published in the parish bulletins.
For Goal #6, a Cluster Service Team will be formed to implement service projects addressing areas of economic injustice, homelessness and poverty.
An Implementation Committee has been established to monitor and assist the teams working on the Action Plans. The Committee consists of nine people as follows:
- One primary representative from each of the six Cluster parishes, preferably a current member of the Parish Pastoral Council.
- Two members of the Cluster Pastoral Planning Committee.
- One of the Pastors of the Cluster parishes.
LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD! Please join us to celebrate the acceptance of the Cluster 66 Pastoral Plan and to pray for its successful implementation. Our celebration will take place at Saint John Fisher Church on May 25, 1999, starting with Mass at 7:00 P.M. followed by a social.