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St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church - Ansdell | |
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It's six months since we last produced a newssheet detailing developments in the parish. The development team has recently had a day of reflection with Dympna McGee from the Diocesan Education Centre during which she emphasised that the team is not just an added extra in the parish, but that it has responsibility and authority. Following the open meetings in autumn 2002, the team was formed with a blank sheet concerning its role, structure, responsibilities, etc. It has taken a long time to develop these, and the team has been very anxious not to appear to be an elite group. It has become personally involved in quite a lot of detail, and has to some extent avoided financial issues. The team has also had to develop its relationship with Fr Turner, mindful that he is in charge of the parish, yet we might also be preparing for a future without a priest in every parish.
As a result of our day with Dympna we now hope to develop a more strategic
and facilitative role. To do that we need to put some things in place:
Firstly we need to know who is in the parish (both churchgoers, and not), and
what gifts are open to our community. We have instigated a census of the entire
population of Ansdell and Fairhaven in collaboration with the other local Christian
churches. We will build on this with a skills audit amongst the Catholic Christians
- a small team is presently developing this using a model provided by Dympna
that has worked in other parishes.
The other current main task is to develop a relationship with all the groups in the parish and look at ways of enhancing communication. To this end, a meeting was held on 16th June with representatives from every parish group that we knew how to contact. (If any group was not invited, please make yourself known to the team.)
We agreed the following key issues concerning parish groups:
1. Groups must act on behalf of the parish, not themselves
2. Groups should feel empowered to generate and develop their own ideas in service
of the parish community
3. Groups need to tell the development team what they're doing and what they
plan, in order that the team can adopt a coordinating role, as well as make
constructive suggestions to the group
4. The team needs to be able to suggest new directions and developments to groups,
accepting that they may have valid reasons to choose not to adopt them.
5. Each group will provide a contact person who liaises regularly with a named
member of the development team.
6. Groups will provide regular updates about their activities and ideas to the
whole parish by means of a new periodic newsletter, which will be published
in addition to the weekly bulletin. This information will also feature on the
parish website, which is due to be redesigned for autumn this year.
the bishop has now approved our choice of Bill Cookson and Joan Peacock as the parish representatives. Having undertaken training, they are now collecting information about who is involved in organising any activity under the auspices of the parish. They will guide those responsible through the requirements of the diocesan protection commission. We are indebted to them for the large amount of work that this will entail, and whilst we all hope and pray that no one would join our community with the intention of committing abuse they are both adamant that if their work were to prevent a single episode of abuse or an unjust accusation it would be effort well spent. They will publish further details in the parish bulletin and church porch in due course.
there are four groups running in the parish, meeting fortnightly. Members share their own experience in the light of a passage from Scripture, and then have a chance to confidentially discuss issues and events in their lives, followed by bidding type prayers. If you would like to try out a group please contact Paul or Wanda.
now that thanks to the fantastic efforts of the social committee the church
hall refurbishment is complete, it's perhaps a good time to recall the strategy
for use of the hall, and how to make bookings:
In descending order of priority the hall is to be used as follows:-
1. to provide facilities for parish led activities
2. to allow individual members of the parish community to hold private functions
3. for community outreach: providing facilities for an agreed activity that
reaches out to the wider community e.g. playgroup, coffee morning's, young parents,
social services/learning disabled
4. to grow revenue from the lease of the facilities
Most parish led activities are in the evening or at weekends, so no bookings
will be taken at these times that prevent parish use. All bookings are made
through Cath Kelly on 725742 or e-mail:
hallbookings@St-JosephsAnsdell.net
as a not-for-profit organisation we do not have to register as data controllers under the data protection act. However, in common with all citizens we do need to adhere to the principles of the act. This means that any information kept about you in the parish should be adequate, relevant, and not excessive. It should be accurate, kept securely, and only for as long as necessary. All subjects are eligible to see and correct their data. We ask that all records are handled sensitively and in accordance with the act, but emphasise that the act does not prevent the proper sharing of information for parish pastoral purposes.
helping with clarity of function, you may be interested to read the job description
that has evolved in the development team:
· Team purpose
1. To work together as a team and with the Parish to develop the Parish vision
and turn it into a reality
2. To encourage parishioners to get involved and to participate
3. To discover and use the gifts in the Parish
4. To serve the Parish
· Team functions
1. To accept the authority given by the Parish
2. To enable, develop or implement ideas from any source including Parish "Days",
the diocese/deanery, individual or group suggestions, and team members
3. To give a sense of organisation and structure to Parish life
4. To lay foundations for developing spirituality, community and evangelisation
5. To co-ordinate and work with the existing parish groups on behalf of the
Parish
6. To encourage individuals and existing groups to keep the Parish informed
7. To be accountable to the Parish
8. To meet regularly - usually monthly
9. To be a team member for a maximum of 3 years
10. To discern a new chairperson annually
· Team behaviours
1. To pray together
2. To participate in the Eucharist
3. To use our gifts
4. To listen
5. To hear
6. To discern
7. To encourage
8. To invite
Don't forget you can contact a team member directly or by leaving a message
at the presbytery, putting a note on the collection basket or in the box at
the back of church, or by e-mail: comments@st-josephsansdell.net
notices for the weekly church bulletin, must be received at the presbytery
by noon on Thursdays, or by e-mail: bulletin@st-josephsansdell.net
(owing to problems with viruses, please do not use attachments, but include
the bulletin entry in the body of the e-mail).
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