The new Pastoral Plan 2020-2025 provides a glimpse of what the Archdiocese of Grouard-McLennan‘s foreseeable future activities looks like. Compared to the pastoral plan 2015-2020, the new one is on a single page with goals, actions, strategies, timelines, and who will accomplish it. With less than 60 seconds, you will figure out what will happen in the archdiocese of Grouard-McLennan in the next few years.
The focus of the Pastoral Plan 2020-2025
In the new pastoral plan, Archbishop Gerard Pettipas CSsR focuses on the archdiocese’s principal needs: outreach, youth ministry, faith formation, and indigenous ministry. The new plan includes Good Liturgy, Good Teaching, and Accountability strategies from the 2015-2020 Pastoral Plan. So, it like a combination of good ideas from the old plan and a renewed focus into the next five years.
What will you see immediately?
Archdiocesan Liturgy Committee Workshops
Agreed! We live in an instantaneous world. What will you see immediately? The Archdiocesan Liturgy Committee (ALC) will conduct workshops on critical topics in the deaneries within the next two years. The pandemic may have delayed the timeline, but a focus on liturgy remains. Oh, yes, the ALC has already launched a survey to study the impact of COVID on sacramental celebrations. The priests must have submitted their responses to the questionnaire. We await the findings.
Glass Door Project Updates
The archdiocese launched the Glass Door Project to reach out to people during the disruptive pandemic in May 2020. It’s a new engagement level – more than census – collect contact information, update databases, and send out communications to every possible parishioner. There is a special mention of the word, “nones” – those who identify belonging to no religion, but some among them were baptized Christians.
New adventures from the Youth Committee
Archdiocesan level Youth Committee. What to expect next? You will see a calendar of archdiocesan youth events, and soon you will start talking about an annual youth rally in the archdiocese. That’s a kind of first. Maybe an annual youth retreat, in addition to Camp St. Martin? The Youth Ministry will engage in fostering school/parish relationships to reach out to the young people. The pastoral plan introduces new synergy to witness Christ. Youth ministry will foster discernment of the Word of missionaries – lay people set out on a mission to proclaim christ in an area other than their home town.
What is OCIA, not RCIA?
Adult Faith Formation will create awareness of the Order of Christian Initiation of Adult (OCIA). You may have it known as Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA). The Office of Evangelisation and Catechesis will set guidelines for OCIA programs and look into OCIA, focusing on teachers. What’s new? You may notice a faith-based theme for each pastoral year.
Increasing participation through Indigenous Ministries
Indigenous ministries will develop native pastoral councils with listening circles in each First Nations and Metis settlements. As part of the ongoing healing and reconciliation process, the resource person will guide priests on indigenous issues during their clergy meeting. The priests will also be encouraged to incorporate mass parts in the indigenous language, wherever applicable. Also, each parish will have an opportunity to experience the blanket exercise by 2023.
Who are the “nones”?
It’s a plan – a road map. As with any successful program, the new plan will align with new opportunities concerning the archdiocese’s principal needs. The Archdiocesan Pastoral Council foresee a need to reach out to the “nones” mainly youth and young adults who profess no religious belief – those who choose no religious affliction in the census. It’s a growing number.
New Appointments to accomplish the plan
Archbishop Pettipas envisions that the youth and faith formation committee has a significant role in implementing the new pastoral plan’s goals. Archbishop Pettipas provided a boost to implement the pastoral plan by assigning Father Emmanuel Ekanen to the Office of Evangelization and Catechesis and Youth Ministry coordinator. Archbishop Pettipas appointed Father Bernard Akum as episcopal vicar for indigenous people to meet the pastoral needs of native and Metis communities.
People behind the scene of the Pastoral Plan 2020-2025
Lots of work goes behind the scene to formulate an ambitious yet practical plan. It’s a process that kicked off with Archbishop Pettipas initiating a working document, “With 2020 in Sight,” in September 2019. The ideas are shared, suggestions are incorporated, and a writing committee finally drafts a new plan. It’s a list of bodies that makes wonder happen. The Archdiocesan Curia, Archdiocesan Pastoral Council, The Council of Priest, the Deaneries, the Parish Pastoral Council, and parishioners put their minds and heart into the making of a pastoral plan. There is an active representation of the Catholic Schools Boards, Cursillo, Catholic Women’s League, Knights of Columbus, and other subcommittees of the archdiocese giving birth to the above plan.
Something for you …
Need funny and thought-provoking stories about priests, buy on amazon The Uncommon Priest: Incredible Stories You Never Read
Check out my spiritual videos on YouTube: Feroz Fernandes
ferozfernandes.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
We have a lot of work ahead of us, it should be an interesting next couple of years.
Yes, it is interesting. Plan like these give direction and keep us committed as faithful Christians – open for God’s interventions.