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DISCIPLES in ACTION
Why Not Elect Our Bishops?
Catholic Christian communities interpret the fourth “mark” of
the church -- apostolicity -- sacramentally as well as conceptually. In other
words, that the church is one, holy, catholic and apostolic refers as much
to certain sacramental behaviors attaching to ordination as to the content
of the message proclaimed by the ordained.
Dr. Joseph O’Callahan told a packed room of more than 100 people, that
the fact of apostolic succession still left open the question of how candidates
for bishops were selected. Throughout the early history of the Catholic Church,
in fact, the bishops were elected rather than appointed by the Pope as they
are today. Also in contrast with such early elections, today’s process
in the Roman and Orthodox Catholic churches leaves the selection up to the
hierarchy. Other bishops first identify the candidates for prospective bishops
and then propose them for consecration. Sometimes those bishops assessing candidates
are higher up the hierarchical ladder -- archbishops, metropolitans, cardinals,
the Pope -- but no one lower than a bishop is a direct participant in the process
either of candidate identification or of actual selection.
Dr. Kern Trembath shared his first hand knowledge of how Anglican Catholics
in the United States are distinctive in that they hold firmly both to the sacramental
nature of apostolic succession on the one hand, and to full ecclesial participation
in the selection of bishops on the other. He summarized the rigorous process
by which Anglican dioceses identify aspirants and candidates for the episcopacy,
one of whom is then elected with the full participation of laity and ordained.
Recalling and Enlivening What Vatican II Asks of Us
In "Recalling and Enlivening What Vatican II Asks of Us," Anne Southwood,
a chair of Voice of Renewal/Lay Education working group, suggested a Johnny
Appleseed approach in searching the call of Vatican Council II. Workshop participants
sifted the documents produced by the Council through a lay lens. Seeding action
in our own and other fertile Catholic hearts was the focus. The goal was to
recapture and employ the mission-oriented self-understanding of Church pulsing
through the documents. The overarching goal is to continue seeding mission
for baptized Catholics. Handouts were given those attending.
After highlighting the importance of understanding and “owning” the
only Ecumenical Church Council likely in our lifetime, the workshop moved to
the operational phase through discernment. The method: “How does it speak
to me” and then “What does it ask of me?” Methodology and
results from a model created and presented in Southern Massachusetts were used.
Documents chosen included “The Constitution on the Church”; “The
Constitution on the Church in the World”; the “Apostolate of the
Laity”; and the popular document of American contribution, “Religious
Freedom”.
Other parish workshop participants had created document outlines which were
distilled into “trigger” lists of mandates or concepts that spoke
to them. Previous ideas for adoption or action prompted further ideas in Providence
from creative VOTF members, who don’t need a coaxing "Speak to me
- it's ok!" plea. One participant later said it was a pleasure to focus
on what it really means to be a baptized Christian, to interact and generate
ideas with like-minded Catholics.
Called to BE Church: A participatory pastoral planning process
“To provide a prayerful voice, attentive to the Spirit, through
which the Faithful can actively participate in the governance and guidance
of the Catholic
Church.”
This mission statement of VOTF could also serve as description for the ongoing
pastoral planning process which the Diocese of Albany, New York has undertaken. “Called
to BE Church” is a two-year process which Bishop Hubbard calls “an
opportunity for imagining and creating our future…focused not on structure,
not on buildings, not in personnel statistics but on mission.”
The process began with diocesan-wide town meetings held in every parish last
year in October and November. “Loosening the soil” conversations
on the broad topics of “Mission” (October) and “Ministry” (November)
encouraged thoughtful and collaborative initial identification of issues
and sensitivities.
Following these large meetings of all parishioners, core teams were formed
in each parish and the Local Planning Groups (3-5 parishes in each group) began
to meet with facilitators in a carefully planned series of monthly two-hour
meetings. Each meeting begins and ends with prayer and has a carefully scripted
focus on an aspect of parish life and ministry: evangelization, life-long faith
formation, service ministries, sacramental life of the church and models of
leadership. Delving into these topics in depth not only elicited many ideas
for ongoing change and implementation, but also helped all the core team members
develop skills of collaboration and consensus.
In the last phase of the process, from January to June of 2008, the conversations
will shift to more practical items of Church administration and then actually
preparing a detailed recommendation for the Pastoral Planning office.
Concurrent with the monthly facilitated core-team discussions, the general
parishioners were kept informed about the ongoing conversations through bulletin
inserts, some further “town” meetings, and extensive coverage in
the diocesan newspaper, The Evangelist.
While no process involving so many issues and people could be free of flaws
and frustrations, the “Called to BE Church” undertaking is a model
of participatory pastoral planning that encourages the kind of active lay involvement
which VOTF’s mission statement calls for. Throughout the diocese, dedicated
lay people have sat down once a month without fail to ask themselves, “What
do we need to do to ensure that the mission and ministry of Jesus is a lived
reality here, now and in the future?”
The presentation at the Convention workshop gave an overview of “Called
to BE Church” and provided examples of both the subjects and process
that was used at meetings. Additional details are available to all on the Albany
Diocese website: www.rcda.org.
Presented by Sheila Peiffer, Campus Minister at Academy of the Holy Names,
Albany, NY and facilitator for the Called to BE Church process. She is also
a member of the VOTF National Representative Council from Region 2.
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