What is a Pastoral Council?
“Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature…” (Mark 16:15)
This command of Christ has inspired countless men and women throughout the Church’s history to give themselves to the work of spreading the Good News. The Second Vatican Council has repeated and renewed this mandate of the Lord, calling all members of the Church to involve themselves in witnessing to the Gospel.
As part of its renewal to the Church, the Council called for a number of new structures to promote active involvement and collaboration in the mission of the Church. After the Council, a new structure was proposed by the Church to call forth in an orderly fashion the insights and cooperation of persons at the level of the local community. That structure is the parish pastoral council.
Promulgated at the Eighth Synod of the Archdiocese of Boston, November 27, 1988
The St. John-St. Paul Collaborative, like all collaboratives in the Archdiocese of Boston made up of two or more parishes, has a single Collaborative Pastoral Council (the “CPC”) comprised of parishioners from each parish.
The CPC is a consultative body whose role is to offer advice and assistance to the Pastor through the promotion of active involvement and participation by parishioners. Specifically, the CPC shall assist the Pastor in his leadership role of planning, organizing, initiating, promoting, coordinating and reviewing the evangelization, worship, religious education and service activities within the Collaborative and within each parish, particularly in the area of long-range, strategic planning.
The CPC will be an important means by which the Pastor will hear the voice of each parish. The Pastor and CPC will discern the pastoral needs of the Collaborative and the individual parishes and seek ways in which those needs can be addressed.
The council members represent the entire Collaborative community and exercise their responsibility with a concern that includes all parishioners.
To contact the CPC, please e-mail CPC@sjspwellesley.org or call St. John the Evangelist Parish at (781) 235-0045 or St. Paul Parish at (781) 235-1060 and a member will contact you.