Photo courtesy of the Diocesan Pastoral Council
Diocesan Pastoral Council members pose for a photo at St. Stephen Diocesan Center. In the back row: Gabriel Ganibe, chairwoman Elizabeth Freitas, Tracy Hoevel, Dallas Carter, Brother John Campbell, Father Eric Castro, Joe Mitchell and Deacon Jerry Tokars. Front Row: Sister Eva Mesina, Kristine Cabudol, Marjorie Fujimoto, Tom Pangilinan, Father Marc Alexander, Bishop Larry Silva, Maureen Saturnio and Janeel Hew. Missing members are Father Alapaki Kim and Kim Dung Nguyen.
Schools, new pastors, youth topics enliven pastoral council agenda
By Maureen Saturnio | Special to the Herald
What can be done to help Catholic schools in Hawaii? How can we help a new pastor adjust to his new parish? Does the bishop know how involved Catholic youth are in church activities?
Those were some of the major questions addressed by the agenda for the Diocesan Pastoral Council’s July 9-10 meeting at St. Stephen Diocesan Center. The council is one of Bishop Larry Silva’s main advisory groups, assisting him in the pastoral mission of the diocese.
The first question — on schools — was presented to the council by the six-member School Planning Task Force, a new group created by the bishop that is examining past school planning studies to determine what may be applicable for the future. The task force discussed the threat of decreased enrollment, the condition of school facilities, the financial stability of schools and the need for collaboration among schools. The task force will complete its first report in September and put it in action throughout the diocese in January.
The Diocesan Pastoral Council discussed the strengths and weaknesses of Hawaii’s Catholic schools and made some recommendations for action.
The council found schools to have strong administrative offices and dedicated staffs, with a good emphasis on community awareness, faith formation and academic excellence.
The council saw as the schools’ negative traits a resistance to the consolidation of schools, school boards that are advisory-only, competition between schools, a lack of standards and poor fiscal management.
It recommended the promotion of talent from within the school system, the sharing of resources among schools, increasing scholarships, encouraging parishes and schools to work together, developing effective branding/advertising and opening boarding schools.
The council’s Parish Transitions Committee presented a new handbook, “Transitional Services for Parishes,” that it prepared to help parishes with difficulties associated with the arrival of a new pastor, including the loss of the outgoing pastor, adjusting to changes initiated by the new pastor, and communication between the parish and the diocese. The handbook also suggests ways to show appreciation for the priest who is leaving and a welcome and initiation for the incoming one.
Bishop Silva and the Diocesan Pastoral Council both thought they could benefit from more input from young people and decided to create a Facebook page where the council can ask questions of the youth.
It was the first council meeting of the fiscal year. The group welcomed six new members. Bishop Silva celebrated an opening Mass in the St. Stephen Diocesan Center chapel.
At the meeting, Bishop Silva explained the reasoning behind Pope Benedict XVI’s new Vatican Office of New Evangelization, to preach to those who already know Jesus. The bishop said that all Catholics need to be new evangelizers, to bring home to the church those who have left.
The bishop also reported on the success of his “Witness to Jesus” tour of the islands, an upcoming workshop which will introduce the new Roman Missal and a pilgrimage to Molokai.
If you have any questions about the work of the Diocesan Pastoral Council, ask your pastor to put you in touch with your vicariate representative. The representatives are your voices on the council.