Word Magazine
March 1997 Page 6-9
WHAT
IT TAKES TO MAKE
A
PARISH COUNCIL “WORK”
BY
RON NICOLA
“…one
of the main functions of the parish council, along with the pastor; is to
maintain the unity of the community. The pastor and parish council must work
harmoniously together. They reflect
the unity that exists between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Where this is not reflected, there is division, hatred, pride, and
jealousy. In the words of scripture, ‘A house divided against itself cannot
stand!’ It behooves us, therefore, to cooperate with each other as
co—workers in our Holy Orthodox Church. Where there is a common vision, along
with cooperation and respect for each other, parishes flourish and grow.”
Who
among us would disagree with such wise words? Considering these observations
were made by Bishop ANTOUN, they carry even more significance. Bishop ANTOUN, as
one of the great leaders of our Archdiocese, has more intimate knowledge about
what it takes to establish and maintain successful parishes than just about
anyone. He has spent virtually his
entire career working closely with clergy and laity alike in the ongoing
struggle to do God’s work in his earthly vineyard. We would do well to heed
his observations and to consider seriously what it takes to achieve the level of
cooperation he refers to in this statement.
During
a recent gathering at the Antiochian Village Heritage and Learning Center,
sixty-five (65) faithful from this Archdiocese representing twenty-nine (29)
parishes and missions met with Bishop ANTOUN for two and one-half days to ponder
his words of guidance and to consider ways to make them a reality in the
everyday operation of our local communities. Working to achieve these concepts
of cooperation and common vision which Bishop ANTOUN addressed oftentimes falls
under the jurisdiction of the parish councils which exist in each and every one
of the parishes and missions in the Antiochian Archdiocese. What it means to be
a parish council member and what the council’s proper scope of responsibility
should be became a principle focus of this gathering.
It
is unfortunate that all too often faithful and dedicated servants, who give of
their time and talents to serve on a parish council, fall into the trap of
viewing their responsibilities from a narrow perspective. This narrow
perspective suggests that maintaining the routine, worldly, and secular aspects
of parish life is and should be the council’s primary focus. While practical
concerns such as paying hills, budgeting parish resources, and maintaining
parish property and buildings, certainly are what parish councils do, they are
not the only things a council should concern itself with when it gathers for its
monthly meetings. A parish council, when it is operating in a wider
realm, takes care of these daily needs of the parish while also focusing its
attention on the spiritual well-being of the parish. Councils are, after all,
made up of the pastor and the elected and appointed lay representatives of all
parishioners and parish organizations. From this perspective, parish councils
must continually remind themselves that they have a responsibility to shepherd
the growth and development of all aspects of parish life.
Bishop
ANTOUN, in his further involvement with the sixty-four (64) participants at the
third biennial Parish Council Symposium, spoke about this danger of parish
council members taking too narrow a view of their work. Speaking about council
members, Bishop ANTOUN said:
“You
are called by God and those who elected you to serve in the best interest of the
Church. In every decision that you are asked to make, the first question that
should enter your mind is .. . What would God have me to do in this
situation?’ Did I pray about it first? Did I weigh the pros and cons? How will
my decision affect the Parish and its members? Am 1 being fair and Christian?
Will our decision hurt our parish, our priest, others in our local community, or
the Metropolitan, our Archdiocese, our Holy Orthodox Church? Will my decision be
an affront to Jesus Christ?”
His
point in making these observations was that if a council does not routinely ask
these questions, it runs the risk of gradually forgetting that its
responsibility is, first and foremost, to let its deliberations be guided by the
wisdom of our Lord and the teachings of the Holy Orthodox Church. In this same
vain, all council members must view their area of responsibility to include all
aspects of parish life ... the spiritual as well as the secular realms of parish
life. This is where the spirit and reality of cooperation between pastor and
council members becomes most valuable. The work done by participants at the
Parish Council Symposium quickly revealed that nothing insures a healthy parish
and a properly functioning parish council more than a positive relationship
between the council and the pastor. While all in attendance recognize the
validity of this statement, questions often arose concerning how to achieve and
how to maintain this desired state of affairs.
This
question of how to maintain a healthy and positive relationship between pastors
and parish councils was not only on the minds of those who attended the
symposium. Prior to the October, 1996, gathering, a survey was mailed to all
parishes and missions in the Antiochian Archdiocese. Sixty-four of the 205
parishes and missions in the Archdiocese completed and returned the survey. One
section of the form asked respondents to list three issues they would like to
see discussed at the symposium. This question generated 119 different responses.
While these responses spanned a wide range of topics, the most common area of
concern had to do with relationships. Relationships between council members,
between the council and the parish priest, between the parish and the
Archdiocese. Clearly, many among us want to solve the puzzle of good relations
among our fellow Christian brothers and sisters as one of the important keys to
the establishment of successful parish councils and a healthy parish life in
general.
Three
moments which took place during the Parish Council Symposium offer clues
concerning how councils can and do play a positive role in establishing and
maintaining these good relationships in the local community and throughout the
Archdiocese.
What
symbol or shape reminds you of your parish? Parish
Council Symposium participants were asked to think about this question and then,
using scissors and a piece of card stock paper, to cut out a shape which
reminded them of their home parish. They then wrote the name and location of
their parish and a key phrase which described what they created with the paper
and scissors. This simple exercise provided significant insight, and a certain
amount of enjoyment. If you have ever served on a parish council, you know how
easy it is to become involved in the repetitive routine of daily, weekly, and
monthly parish operations. Often there seems little time to step back and
reflect on the overall health and well—being of the parish. An activity like
the one described above can provide the perspective often needed to identify key
parish needs and to then focus on programs which can best address those needs. A
parish council that takes the time to consider the overall character of
their community enhances the possibility that it will communicate effectively
with each other, with their pastor, and with the parish at-large.
Has
your parish ever seriously considered the role leadership plays in the life of a
successful parish? Probably most of us have talked
about leadership in the context of our pastors perceived effectiveness as a
leader, but leadership is not only the job of the pastor and leadership is not
an accident of fate. We hear about leadership training all the time in the
context of our jobs and careers, but rarely do we encounter leadership training
in our churches. During the Parish Council Symposium, Fr. David Randolph, pastor
of St. Andrew Church in Eustis, Florida, made a stirring and effective
presentation on the subject of leadership as a necessary element in the life of
any successful parish. His participation in the symposium was made possible, by
the North American Council of the Fellowship of St. John the Divine. The current
president of this organization, Kathy Abraham of Grand Rapids, Michigan,
contacted Fr. David and worked with him in the planning of this particular workshop
session. The work done by the Fellowship in the area of parish ministry teams
created the perfect match with the topic of how to recruit and train effective
parish leaders. To say that Fr. David’s presentation was well received would
be a major understatement. What seemed to attract the attention of the symposium
participants, besides the fact that Fr. David is a very effective speaker and
presenter, was the convincing fact that leadership training of the laity of a
parish can reap huge dividends when it comes to planning successful parish
programs. Fr. David pointed out that a truly effective leader is a servant in
the purest sense of the term. As such, a leader directs a group with wisdom and
guidance in a manner which allows all to feel equally involved. Materials were
presented which provided excellent ideas about, in Fr. David’s words,
“equipping members for ministry.” Good leadership training and technique,
for example, stresses the issue of consensus building as means of effective
decision making. Fr. David talked about how to make all decisions at parish
council meetings using the consensus process. “Don’t leave a parish council
meeting until consensus is reached,” he suggested. “If a crossroads is
faced, take time to pray.” It takes training and practice to learn the skill
of consensus building, but the rewards are worth the effort. Fr. David left
symposium participants with materials and ideas specifically related to this and
many other aspects of effective and realistic leadership training. One of the
surest signs of an effective church is the constant flow of new parishioners
into and out of key positions of leadership within the parish. The materials
shared by Fr. David stressed this point and offered ideas concerning how to
recruit and train a steady stream of people willing and prepared to assume
leadership within all segments of a parish organizational structure.
Do
the organizations of your parish function effectively and are the fund raising
efforts sponsored by your parish successful? These
issues were also identified as crucial areas of responsibility for all parish
councils. Symposium participants had the opportunity to consider each of these
topics, parish organizations and fund raising, through presentations made by Dan
Abraham and Mike Hamwey. Dan, an active member of the Order of St. Ignatius and
chairperson of its current membership drive, shared a newly developed brochure
called, “We Are What We Do.” He emphasized in his remarks the integrated
nature of the work done by the Order and the work done by the organizations in
every local parish. Dan cited numerous examples, including the clergy retirement
program, the summer camp scholarship program, and the Order’s funding of most
expenses for this parish council symposium, as areas where the Order does work
which directly supports work being done by our parish councils. Dan’s
presentation made it clear that the Order is very much a parish centered
organization. Its members are active in their local parishes and many of the
projects it sponsors directly impact the life of churches throughout the
Archdiocese. Mike, the Director of
the Department of Planning and Future Development for the Archdiocese, offered
numerous tips on how to plan and executive successful parish fund raising programs.
He illustrated, for example, practices parish councils could follow based on the
principle that, “fund raising is not about raising funds, but rather fund
raising is about dream fulfillment.” While this may sound idealistic Mike
showed how the idealism of this concept can be realized in the projects and
activities our parish sponsor. Since Mike is a full-time employee of the
Archdiocese, he is available to visit parishes to make presentations like the
one he offered to the symposium participants. Communities throughout the
Archdiocese would be wise to contact him to discuss the many ways he could offer
assistance in the area of planning effective fund raising programs and
campaigns.
The
symposium schedule afforded plenty of time for participants to dialogue with
each other about the work being done in our local parish communities. These
opportunities for intimate conversation, plus the excellent group presentations
offered during the two-and-one-half day meeting at the Heritage and Learning
Center, produced consensus among the group that the work being done by our
parish councils throughout the Archdiocese could be enhanced by a manual which
offered ideas and suggestions on the role and function of parish councils in the
Antiochian Archdiocese. By the time the Symposium ended, an outline for such a
document was produced and reviewed by all participants. One section of the proposed
manual would include brief descriptions of programs which are already successful
in our parishes and missions. The survey sent to all parishes and missions prior
to the symposium asked for summaries of this type, and twenty-eight (28) such
descriptions were submitted. The other section of the manual would include brief
“how-to” articles on various subjects related to the issue of the parish
council member training and the role of parish councils in the life of their
communities. A list of possible topics was developed by symposium participants
and they will be refined and developed into a rough draft prior to the
Archdiocese Convention this summer in Toronto.
The
sixty-five (65) participants in the Third Biennial Parish Council
Symposium left for home feeling renewed and enthused about the important work
they do as parish council members. All were grateful to Metropolitan PHILIP for
the opportunity he gave us to host and participate in this important gathering.
While travel to the Middle East for a meeting of the Holy Synod prevented him
from attending the symposium, his support for this event contributed
significantly to its success. Symposium participants wish to thank Bishop ANTOUN
for the vital role he played during the various meetings and presentations. The
wisdom he brought to the sessions gave all participants hope that the work being
done by our parish councils is indeed important and can be enhanced by continued
commitment to the teachings of the Holy Orthodox Church. Funding for the
symposium, provided once again by the Order of
St. Ignatius, and the excellent support provided by the Rt. Rev. George
Geha and the entire staff at the Heritage and Learning Center, made this
gathering both memorable and productive for all of the participants. At the
closing dinner on Saturday evening and during Divine Liturgy Sunday morning,
those in attendance felt they had truly established new bonds with faithful
Orthodox Christians involved in the common struggle to fulfill our mission here
on earth. All left with the humble prayer that we could return home to share
newly acquired knowledge with fellow parish council members.
Ron
Nicola is co-chairman of the Department of Stewardship of the Archdiocese. He is
a member of the Editorial Board for THE WORD.