News

Priests promise to collaborate

By Renae Bauer and Jeff Kurowski

Related articles: from Dec. 8, 2006 issue: • Letter from Bishop Zubik --     Bishop: New vision of shared parish ministry     Faith Alive Project discussions continue from Nov. 17, 2006 issue: • Faith Alive forum draws crowd     Proposal seeks parish collaboration in nine different ministries from Nov. 3, 2006 issue: • Catholics invited to Faith Alive town meeting     Consultants and diocesan officials will be at the Nov. 9 session from Oct. 20, 2006 issue: • Faith Alive process continues     Consulting firm seeks response to recommendations • Editorial -- Take time to comment on Faith Alive     Still time to comment on the proposal from Sept. 22, 2006 issue: • Faith Alive taps support for working together     Listening sessions show that parish leaders want to work     together on schools, ministry from Sept. 15, 2006 issue: • Faith Alive calls for more education, ministry collaboration     Green Bay parishes and schools would work together more     Sidebar: Faith Alive Feedback     Sidebar: Parishes in the Faith Alive Project from Mar. 17, 2006 issue: • Cooperation plan work begins     Parishes, schools, diocesan agencies join in the effort from Feb. 3, 2006 issue: • Life after GRACE: Work starts soon     Work will begin on finding ways to cooperate on efforts     Sidebar: Bishop outlines future actions • Positive reaction greets decision     Bishop heartened by the sheer number who got     involved in discussion from Jan. 27, 2006 issue (article posted 1/30/2006): • Unified Green Bay school system plan delayed     No schools to close for 2006-07 unless parishes ask from Jan. 6, 2006 issue: • GRACE comments from individuals, parishes compiled     Process continues this week from Dec. 9, 2005 issue: • Bridging the Gap by Bishop David Zubik --     Bridging the Gap: G-R-A-C-E     This is a time for exploration and for collaboration from Nov. 25, 2005 issue: • Plan released for unified Green Bay system     Proposal would close three schools, consolidate two     and form one K-8 school system     Sidebar: Green Bay school proposal     Sidebar: Schedule for action from Nov. 4, 2005 issue: • Release delayed on school planning report     Proposal for consolidating the Green Bay area schools     into a system due after Thanksgiving from Sept. 2, 2005 issue: • GRACE subcommittees form     Proposed plan for a unified Green Bay Catholic school     system continues to advance from July 8, 2005 issue: • Unified Green Bay Catholic school system under study     No decisions have been made from June 24, 2005 issue: • Groups ponder schools' future     Proposal considers ways to guarantee the financial     solvency of Catholic schools

Bp. David Zubik announced on Tuesday that all Green Bay area pastors have pledged their support for a new approach to ministry involving collaboration among neighboring parishes.

"When I met with the Green Bay area priests on Friday, Dec. 1, we discussed the final recommendations from our consultants on the Faith Alive Project," Bp. Zubik said. "What came out of the meeting is a new and exciting shared vision for collaborative ministry in the Green Bay area."

The Faith Alive Project is the latest attempt to determine the feasibility of coordinated parish ministry in the metro area.

While previous plans focused solely on Catholic schools, the scope of Faith Alive is much broader.

It includes Catholic education but also ministries to people who are homebound, imprisoned, marginalized, and immigrants as well as ministries related to worship, evangelization, stewardship and catechesis.

Posted on website

The consultants' recommendations were submitted to Bp. Zubik on Nov. 17, and were posted on the diocese's website on Dec. 5 (www.gbdioc.org). The consultants' recommendations do not reflect Bp. Zubik's final decision on The Faith Alive Project. That decision will follow after consultation with the staffs and lay leaders from each of the 23 parishes together with their priests.

As a first step in the collaboration process, the priests of the Metro Green Bay area agreed that their parishes could work with one another in regional clusters of neighboring parishes. The four proposed clusters are:

• Allouez and De Pere - St. Matthew and Resurrection in Allouez, and St. Mary, St. Francis Xavier, Our Lady of Lourdes and Old St. Joseph (at St. Norbert College) in De Pere;

• Downtown - St. Francis Xavier Cathedral, St. John the Evangelist, St. Willebrord, Sts. Peter and Paul, and St. Mary of the Angels;

• East side - St. Philip, St. Bernard and Prince of Peace in Green Bay, and Holy Cross in Bay Settlement;

• West side - St. Jude, St. Joseph, Annunciation, St. Patrick, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton and St. Agnes in Green Bay; Nativity in Ashwaubenon; and St. John the Baptist in Howard;

Support for school system

In addition to the cluster approach, there was strong support among the pastors for Metro area collaboration in youth ministry, young adult ministry, ministry to immigrants, education, liturgy, outreach, pastoral care, peace and justice, and stewardship. Most particularly, the priests exercised strong support for the creation of a Metro Green Bay Area Catholic School System.

While the pastors affirmed this broad new vision, they also recognized that the specific recommendations of the consultants' report need to be tailored by parish leaders to better fit this new vision.

This process will continue on Thursday, Dec. 14, when Bp. Zubik will meet with the invited parish staffs, lay leaders (chairs of the parish councils, parish finance councils and boards of education, principals, directors of religious education, pastoral associates, youth ministers, business managers, and so on, as well as the Trustees) and the priests of the 23 parishes. Pastors will then hold consultations with their parishioners.

Focus on all the ministries

"What I want people to understand is the Faith Alive doesn't simply focus on schools. It focuses on all the ministries," said Bp. Zubik. "Second of all, all the particulars that are contained in the Faith Alive project are not a done deal."

"My anticipation is to make the final decision and announce it no later than the middle of January," added Bp. Zubik., who emphasized that Faith Alive is much different than last year's GRACE proposal.

"The work on GRACE focused simply on Catholic schools," he said. "The study that was done by a very competent steering committee was an intensive piece of work that really lasted from August of 2005 to January of 2006. The focal point was simply on schools, and the amount of consultation time was the course of those four or five months. One of the things we learned from the GRACE report was there wasn't enough time for discussion. And furthermore, we also learned that we really needed to broaden the vision."

No school closures planned

With regard to Catholic schools within the regional clusters, Bp. Zubik said there are no current plans for school closings or consolidations.

"I think that you have to be very honest to say that once the system unfolds, certain decisions are going to have to be made," he said, "but it's far too premature to predict what may happen."

"I'm a product of 37 years of Catholic education, 24 as a student and 13 years as an administrator and teacher," he added. "I see the great value of Catholic schools. I believe the vision of the Faith Alive project does relative for the schools what it does for the parishes, to provide longevity and creativity. People are able to take their greatest strengths and pool them together for the benefit of the faithful in all the 23 parishes."

The Bishop pointed to July 1, 2007, as a possible date for the establishment of a Faith Alive board and the beginning of the formation of a Metro Catholic School System. He said the full development of the system will take three to five years.

"This vision of collaborative ministry has just begun," he said. "It is my firm hope that we all engage in a grass roots effort to identify needs, develop solutions and implement ministries. This is an exciting time for Catholics in the Green Bay area as we are about to reshape how we minister."

(Bauer is the diocese's assistant director of communications; Kurowski is assistant editor of The Compass.)