What is a Pastoral Plan?
Every organization plans for the future. At Good Shepherd , we too are planning for the future. We have developed our pastoral plan for what we hope to accomplish in our community over the next 5 years.
How was it developed?
Pope John Paul II instructed each diocese to develop a pastoral plan, so that the Gospel would take root in the life of the Church in a practical way. Our Pastoral Plan is the local adaptation of the Diocese of London’s Pastoral Plan. With this context, and stemming from our mission and vision statements, the basis of this plan was informed by a survey conducted at Good Shepherd Parish in 2018. Through prayerful discernment and discussion, the Parish Pastoral Council has developed these objectives.
To provide opportunities to encounter Christ and grow in holiness through encouragement, prayerful support and to nurture a deeper personal relationship with Jesus.
Meeting people where they are at on their spiritual journey we will ensure our parish is relevant to the life experience of the community, bringing them to a closer relationship with Jesus Christ.
Meeting people where they are at on their spiritual journey, we will embrace opportunities to give witness and evangelize our Catholic faith, in our actions and words.
Meeting people where they are at on their spiritual journey, we will use a variety of resources to make our parish progressively accessible.
To continue to support the work of our parish and community outreach groups and ensure visibility to encourage participation.
Through our parish efforts we will seek to meet the spiritual, emotional and material needs of all and be a community that is supportive and welcoming.
To provide opportunities for parishioners to be engaged in meaningful participation and leadership roles in liturgical celebrations.
Recognizing the importance music plays in liturgy, we will strive to incorporate a mixture of traditional, contemporary, praise and worship music during liturgical celebrations..
Support the Church’s mission by affording formational opportunities to the laity and parish staff through education and faith encounters.
Encourage and foster all to continually journey in their personal relationship with Jesus Christ, by actively participating in our ongoing formation efforts.
Maintain active committees in pastoral planning, stewardship, finance and building and will communicate their good work to the larger parish regularly.
Promote accountability, transparency and communication of all parish groups, through the use of a variety of tools.
Review this plan annually to ensure goals are being achieved through the objectives set and make adjustments as necessary.
The Diocese of London also has a Pastoral Plan origionally issued in 2004. This sets the stage for each parish to develop their own local adapation that meets the needs of their community.
Called by Jesus through baptism into his passion, death and resurrection and anointed by the Spirit, we, the people of God in the Diocese of London, are to be living signs of Christ’s presence in the world today. United in Christ, the Bread of Life, we commit ourselves to carrying out the mission of proclaiming the coming of the kingdom of God in our time. We embrace the Gospel – believing what we read, preaching what we believe, and practicing what we preach.
(Preamble - Pastoral Plan for the Diocese of London)
You can read the entire Diocese of London Pastoral Plan here: https://dol.ca/pastoral-plan