3. LEAVING SAFE HARBOURS  - NEW PASTORAL AREAS

The most obvious change initiated so far is the creation of new geographical units within the Diocese. Each unit we are calling a “Pastoral Area”. In September 2006, twenty-four new Pastoral Areas replaced the previous deaneries. Covering approximately 8 present parishes they are all of a similar size with about 20,000 Catholics. The expectation is that in the future each one will be served by one priest to every 5,000 parishioners. In many places the change from Deanery to Pastoral Area might look nothing more than a change in name. This would be a serious mistake. This change points to a whole new set of relationships, attitudes and ways of working.

Teams of Priests        In the foreseeable future priests will continue to be assigned to particular parishes within the Pastoral Area with most of their time spent in direct contact with a particular congregation. But the situation requires a new sense of partnership and collaboration between priests. Working as a team, under a Team Leader, they will work out their specific roles and personal responsibilities in the light of local needs and conditions.

Lay Collaboration and Involvement Another characteristic of the future I envisage is a new sense of collaboration between priests and people. Enshrined in new local structures the whole people of God will act together for the building up of the church in their locality. People from different parishes will learn to collaborate with each other, working together on matters of mutual concern. Sharing life and faith both with each other and the wider population we will create communities of life-giving conversation and encouragement.

Adult Formation The deepening of life in Christ for the diocese and increased readiness for evangelisation will only be accomplished through an on-going programme of adult education and formation. Supported by a new Pastoral Formation Team, this will be delivered within each pastoral area.

Schools and Colleges   Catholic schools are vitally important for the renewal of the local church. They are recognised as places of formation and education for our children, often outstanding in what they offer. But they are also the points of contact for many parents who have, for various reasons, become detached from their religious home, the Parish, and from the source and summit of our Christian identity, the Sunday Mass. These proposals hold out the opportunity of deepening the home-school ­parish partnership with the shared development of pastoral initiatives designed to encourage growth in love and faith. I will be encouraging team leaders to work closely with head teachers and chaplains.

Ecumenical Partnerships          In many places throughout the diocese there is a long tradition of ecumenical partnership. As each pastoral area plans its own development strategy, it will be important not to ignore this important aspect of our common life.

Implementation It is clear that the proper establishment of the pastoral areas will not happen overnight - there is a significant amount of preparation required. The newly established Vicariate for Evangelisation has been given the task of supporting the required changes. I have deliberately given it the name: Evangelisation: nothing has value which is not true to the call: "Go and make disciples."

Over a period of years each pastoral area will move through three stages: called Pastoral Areas in Preparation, Pastoral Areas in Transition and Pastoral Areas in Development. Let us look briefly at each stage:

1. Pastoral Areas in Preparation        

All our 24 pastoral areas are now Pastoral Areas in Preparation. The main intention during this stage is to enable people in the pastoral area to prepare themselves for the new arrangements and to begin to set up the structures necessary to work in a new way together. This first stage will take different amounts of time depending on local circumstances. Because of limited human resources at the level of the diocese, it is thought prudent to plan that every year five pastoral areas will move on to the transition stage. Five years from now I hope that every pastoral area will have moved in this direction.

2. Pastoral Areas in Transition

The central objective during this transition stage is for the pastoral area to draw up its own development plan - the implementation of this will only begin when the proposal has been considered by me and others, to make sure it is not at odds with what is happening across the whole diocese. An isolated plan would eventually collapse. We are asking each local area to shape its future but never in isolation from the overall picture and without consideration of our responsibility to the whole Church in this country and elsewhere. You will know the resources that you have and, together with me and others whose role is to keep aware of the whole picture, each local pastoral area will put forward its vision for the future. I am committed to this way of working. The transition stage may last as long as three years. It is important that this process is not rushed, but thoughtfully and prayerfully undertaken.

3. Pastoral Areas in Development   

In this third stage, the agreed development plan will start to be implemented. This is not the end of the process but the beginning of a new way of thinking, planning, relating and growing.

Help and Support       All that is envisaged will undoubtedly require on-going diocesan help and support. This assistance, particularly necessary as the pastoral areas move from one stage to the next, will be provided by:

The Vicariate for Evangelisation;

The Vicariate for Formation;

The Vicariate for Finance and Development.

Though, of course, other diocesan departments and agencies will also offer their own expertise and encouragement.

Closing Remarks       As I look now at the process of change we have embarked upon, informed by prayerful reflection and discernment, change in attitudes is our greatest challenge. Many of us are not used to working collaboratively and the journey we have begun may well expose areas of great sensitivity. Mistakes will be made and not all we hope for will be realised without significant personal cost. All I would ask is that we try to be patient with each other, listening carefully and responding gracefully in a spirit of resolved unity and communion one with another. We will go far beyond mere toleration of each other or any forms of compromise. The place we have reached is not the end - this is a work in progress and there is much that remains to be learned, both from one another and those we encounter in wider society. Nevertheless, we travel together in hope and expectation. The Lord is always with us, as He promised, calling us on to new and greater wonders. I invite you to work and prayer for the renewal of our diocese so that it may be a more authentic sign of God’s love in our fragmented world and I invite you to play your part locally in making suggestions for the right way forward.

Please join me in saying this prayer used at every meeting of 'Leaving Safe Harbours': Holy God, whose presence must be made known in any structures we build and renew, establish us as a community of hope, never seeking to contain your mystery, but willing to be led, by the Holy Spirit, beyond safe harbours into new and sacred waters, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Questions for Reflection and Discussion:

What advantages can you see in organising the local Church into Pastoral Areas rather than independent parishes?

How can you “shape the way things will develop in your own local area”?