At a meeting on March 5, diocesan staff members got a chance to review the final components of the diocesan “Road Map.” In response to a question posed to everyone (“What can you do to help move our diocesan plan forward?”), one staffer wrote on a feedback card, “Learn more about it myself and be open to helping.”

What better way to help our community learn more about our diocesan plan, keep attention focused on it, encourage participation in the implementation process, and report our progress than through a column in our diocesan newspaper? Postings on the diocesan website (www.catholichawaii.org) will also aid this effort.

We begin by responding to the question: How did the “Diocesan Road Map for Pastoral, Program, and Facility Needs 2008-2013” come about? Bishop Larry Silva’s vision and leadership initiated the planning process. In proclaiming his motto and our diocesan mission to “Witness to Jesus,” Bishop Silva pointed the way. In fall 2006, he appointed a core planning committee and his wisdom guided the process throughout. He stressed that knowing our mission — where we want to go — requires taking actions to get there. As the plan took shape, Bishop Silva focused on our “journey to accomplish a mission” and incorporated into the plan’s official title the concept of a road map. A foldout poster was shared with all parishioners of the diocese the weekend of Feb. 9 and 10. It opened with a statement from Bishop Silva that focused on the plan’s role as a road map that will guide our diocese into the future:

“We are on a journey to accomplish a mission. What is our mission? To give WITNESS TO JESUS! We, who encounter the risen Lord Jesus himself in the Eucharist, are sent out by him, in the power of his Spirit, to give flesh and bone to the Eternal Word of God, the God who is love. We are members of his Body — his hands, his feet, his mouth, his heart. We proclaim him when we gather to worship. We praise him when we reach out to the poor and the needy. We express our love for him when yearning to know more about him and his wonderful way in faith formation. We courageously follow him when we take up the crosses that come with living in the truth. What route is God calling us to take at this time to accomplish this mission?”

The steps taken to prepare the road map involved meetings and workshops with parishioners in all 66 parishes and the missions of the diocese. Additional meetings took place with focus groups, including youth and young adults and inactive Catholics. Follow-up vicariate workshops allowed parishioners to provide input on the findings and to assist the core planning team with identifying and prioritizing recommendations. These sessions were led by vicar general Father Marc Alexander and diocesan director of planning Tom Papandrew and spanned more than seven months.

Findings from the parish visits, vicariates and other sessions formed the basis for a draft plan. It was shared with Bishop Silva, priests of the diocese, the Presbyteral Council, the Diocesan Pastoral Council and diocesan department heads. Additional consultations with the bishop and diocesan leadership groups — including a group of Hawaii community leaders — resulted in a final draft plan that was unveiled in the fall of 2007. Review and refinement took the process to the end of the calendar year. On Jan. 25, Bishop Silva promulgated “Witness to Jesus, Diocesan Road Map for Pastoral, Program and Facility Need 2008-2013.”

In future Herald issues we will discuss the components of the plan. Your comments are welcomed. Please send them to planning@rcchawaii.org.