One Baptismal People, Three Pastoral Faces, One Team, Five Communities
In 2019, following the resignation of Bishop Drennan, the parishes of Our Lady of Lourdes and St Mary’s Foxton began working with the Cathedral in closer collaboration.
Initially, the collaboration was a short-term fix or a workaround until a new bishop was appointed. In the intervening time, the Covid lockdown and later restrictions on gathering all worked to influence how we operate as three parishes in one collective.
Since 2019, the principle of Three Pastoral Faces, One Administration has guided our decision-making. Each parish is a “pastoral face,” and each is different. It is crucial that parishioners come to their “parish church” and “see themselves” in how things are done, in who does them and in the feel of the Liturgy or gathering.
Not everyone knows how our parishes work together and how decisions are made, and who makes them.
Some people still think the priest or the priests make all the decisions – this is not the case! I hope the following outline is of value to those who read the Pastor’s Desk.
Governance and Management
We use a structure of Governance and Management. Governance includes Pastoral Councils, Finance Committees and Liturgy Committees. At the same time, management is the task of the Parishes’ Pastoral Team of lay and ordained members.
The Pastoral Team has two parts, the Administration Team and the Pastoral Care Team.
Decisions are made at different levels depending on the question. Sometimes the Pastoral Councils make decisions, the Finance Committees, and the Pastoral Team.
Governance
Governance is led by active parish members representing a cross-section of people and age groups. Governance groups include Pastoral Councils and Finance Committees. Decisions are taken collaboratively and after consultation, but none of this is new; it has been happening in the diocese for over forty years.
At St Mary’s Foxton and Our Lady of Lourdes, we have combined the Parish Council and Finance Committee functions into one Parish-Finance Council. At the Cathedral, we have retained the separate Finance Committee and Pastoral Council because the Administration of the parish rental properties requires this structure. We also have the Liturgy Committee at Our Lady of Lourdes.
Our Governance structure evolved throughout Covid and changed to meet needs as they impacted us. It will continue to evolve as our situation changes and rely more heavily on lay ministry and leadership.
Management
Management is the role of the Pastoral Team. Together, we work across our three parishes sharing resources and information and collaborating on activities and pastoral outreach. The Administration Team is led by the Parishes Manager, the Pastoral Team by the Pastoral Coordinator, and the Parish Priest leads the Clergy Team. The Parish Priest, Parishes Manager and Pastoral Coordinator form the Senior Management Team in the Pastoral Team.
Our Theology of Governance and Management
One Baptismal People, Three Pastoral Faces, One Administration has guided our organisational management structure.
During Covid, we worked to align the Pastoral Care and Administration Teams and our team across the three parishes. We moved to use one central database, technology platform and accounting system. We use one website and one online Newsletter, Kotahi Ano.
Our Pastoral Team comprised ten full and part-time members. Below are our names and where we serve.
Pastoral Team Members
Parishes Manager Steph Grantham (All Parishes)
Pastoral Coordinator Donna Brown (Lourdes/Cathedral)
Parishes Administrator Claire Jacobs (All Parishes)
Music Director Julie Randall (Cathedral)
Pastoral Assistant Meg de Joux (Cathedral)
Parishes Accounts Wendy Brock (All Parishes)
Pastoral Coordinator Eleanor Jacobs (Foxton Parish)
Priest Joe Grayland (All Parishes)
Priest David Bell (All Parishes)
Priest Vijay Dung Dung (All Parishes)
Communication – Kotahi Ano Newsletter
During Covid, communication became our central pastoral focus. Our flagship communication is our shared newsletter Kotahi Ano. It is published every Friday via the Cathedral website and emailed to subscribers (excluding January). We have more than six hundred subscribers.
Using this technology, we can also email parishioners funeral notices where appropriate. We can also email specific groups and invite them to meetings or events. Continuing to communicate is the single most crucial pastoral work we do each week. Our understanding of communication is derived from our theology of the Trinity. An educated Catholic population is important in a country like New Zealand, where ideologies run much of our public debates on health, welfare, education and so forth. A Christian and Catholic perspective is a critical balance and a vital voice in a sea of change. The Pastor’s Desk is an opportunity for a wider group of parishioners to have the opportunity to have their say and to pastor each other.
Working Together is the Key
Working across three very different parishes is challenging. Sometimes things that looked good in theory do not work in practice.
We should expect more changes as we move into the future and see the changes as steps along the way.