December 2000: In his Apostolic Letter at the close of the Jubilee Year 2000, Novo Millennio Ineunte, Pope John Paul II calls on each local Church to assess its fervor, to find fresh enthusiasm for its spiritual and pastoral responsibilities and to draw up “an effective post-Jubilee pastoral plan.”
Spring 2005-Spring 2006: Over a fifteen month period, Bishop Joseph Galante consults with the faithful of the Diocese at listening sessions (“Speak Ups”). More than 8,000 Catholics give feedback to the question, “Looking to the future, what are the three most important areas of concern for the Church in South Jersey?” Six Pastoral Priorities are identified through the Speak Up Sessions: Lifelong Faith Formation, Compassionate Outreach, Youth & Young Adults, Priestly Vocations, Liturgy, and Lay Ministry.
January 8, 2006: On the Feast of the Epiphany, the “Vision for the Future of Our Church” is proclaimed in parishes across the diocese. Rooted in the themes of Vatican II’s Lumen Gentium, the 135-word vision sees the Church growing ever-more into a dynamic community of faith, hope and love, stressing the importance of the sacramental life, especially Baptism and Eucharist, and identifies seven concrete ways for Catholics to live out their baptismal call.
February 8, 2006: Bishop Galante creates a Diocesan Planning Commission of priests, religious and laity as a consultative resource to advise him on parish planning matters. In opening the first meeting, Bishop Galante says, “Planning cannot be done by anecdote. There must be collaboration at all levels. Decisions will not be made by me alone, but through a process in which the people of the diocese share their wisdom, experience and their sense of what can be.”
August 26, 2006: In a mailing to all 135,000 households in the diocese, Bishop Galante reports to parishioners on the six pastoral priorities identified at the Speak Up sessions. Parishioners are informed that the priorities will be integral to future planning in the diocese.
September 5-7, 2006: Bishop presents to priests the framework of the pastoral planning process for the diocese. Priests are asked to select parishioners to assist them at the parish and region level to develop planning recommendations together.
September 22, 2006: The diocese publishes in the Catholic Star Herald a 12-page report entitled “Demographic Factors Impacting the Diocese of Camden,” showing population trends, changes in demographics, declining Mass attendance, the numbers of diocesan priests available for ministry, and other data related to parish planning.
Fall 2006: Parishes begin preparing to plan together by gathering and studying data and trends of parishes in each area of the diocese.
December 2006: A diocesan assembly of clergy, religious and laity approves goals and strategies to advance the pastoral priorities identified through the parish Speak Up sessions.
January 6, 2007: More than 700 clergy, religious and lay people, with representatives from each parish, gather for a daylong in-service day to launch the planning phase of “Gathering God’s Gifts,” the multi-phased initiative to address challenges facing the Church and to bring about stronger parishes. Planning will involve an initial period of study at the parish level before moving to the regional and deanery level. Planners will consider a number of models for parish configuration, including clusters and mergers of parishes. Preliminary planning recommendations will be made to the diocese by May 15.
Winter/Spring 2007: Parish Planning Teams study data from other parishes in their region/groups within the deanery. Representatives from Parish Planning Teams work with planning partners in deaneries to formulate planning recommendations.
May 15, 2007: Preliminary Planning Recommendations developed and forwarded to the Diocesan Planning Commission for review.
June/July 2007: Diocesan Planning Commission reviews deanery recommendations.
September-October, 2007: Bishop Galante, accompanied by members of the Diocesan Planning Commission, returns to parishes for twelve deanery meetings to report the results of the Diocesan Planning Commission assessment of preliminary deanery planning recommendations and to pose further discernment questions. Deans have been asked to lead the process of developing planning recommendations for the entire deanery.
January, 2008: Revised recommendations are received from deanery planners.
February 25-27, 2008: Members of the Diocesan Planning Commission meet to assess the recommendations on parish configuration made by deanery planners. The Commission in its assessment considers whether the recommendations will serve parishioners well, whether parishioners will have easy access to Mass and the sacraments, whether there will be adequate provision for volunteer and paid personnel to carry out needed ministries, whether the priest workload will be realistic, whether the recommendations will be financially viable, and whether the recommendations will serve the common good of the diocese.
March 2008: Bishop Galante consults with his planning advisors on the work of the deanery planners and the Diocesan Planning Commission and holds a formal canonical consultation with the Presbyteral Council on March 12 -13 to ensure that the presbyterate has been fully consulted. He brings them back for an additional consultation on March 27.
April 3, 2008: After more than a year of study and consultation, and two years after the conclusion of parish Speak Up sessions, and after reviewing deanery planning recommendations, hearing from his Diocesan Planning Commission and a formal consultation with the Presbyteral Council, Bishop Galante announces his intentions for a reconfiguration of parishes in the diocese. The reconfiguration addresses a decline in the number of priests available for ministry, shifting populations, changing demographics, a decline in religious practice and the need to strengthen parishes. Bishop says the new configurations will not occur immediately, but over a period of 12-24 months. He says, “Our objective is not to scale back the work of the Church or to reduce the scope of its mission, but to expand it and to grow it, to do more and reach more people.”
August 6-8, 2008: After a series of consultations in spring with parish leadership, and after hearing priest preferences, the diocese’s Priest Personnel Board recommends to Bishop the names of priests who will be named Priest Conveners, to help guide parishes toward the reconfiguration of parishes announced in April.
August 26, 2008: Bishop Galante announces the names of 41 Priest Conveners who will guide merging parishes through the reconfiguration of parishes announced in April. The Priest Conveners will become the likely pastors of the new parishes once they are formally established by decree.
October 17, 2008: With the objective of advancing the six pastoral priorities identified by the Catholic people at Speak Up sessions, the diocese announces the “Lay Ministry Formation Program,” a major initiative to help laity engaged in parish work obtain the educational credentials specific to their area of ministry so that they may collaborate with clergy, religious and volunteers in parishes to advance key pastoral priorities, provide expanded ministry and outreach, and serve the Catholic people more effectively.
Through agreements with the College of St. Elizabeth, Georgian Court University, the Center for Ministry Development, the Northeast Hispanic Catholic Center, St. Charles Seminary (Philadelphia), the University of Dayton and Neumann University (Philadelphia), college and university degree and certificate courses are offered at satellite locations in the diocese to parish leaders and staff in the diocese who serve in various pastoral ministries, including religious education, youth and young adult ministry, campus ministry, adult faith formation, Hispanic and Black Catholic ministry, parish life, family life, ministry to seniors, and liturgy. Programs are also offered for lay persons involved in pastoral administration, Catholic schools, and parish business management. Those accepted into the program l pay only a portion of the tuition cost, with the remaining portion paid by the parish and the diocese. By fall 2008, more than 280 South Jersey Catholics are enrolled in the program.
October 19, 2008: Bishop Galante presides at a commissioning ceremony for 41 Priest Conveners and nearly 400 Core Team members at St. Agnes Church in Blackwood. The Core Teams, with representation from each parish that will be merging, will work with Priest Conveners to prepare parishes to merge. In October and November, the Conveners and Core Teams meet at six deanery meetings to review the range of pastoral, canonical, civil and administrative work that must occur before mergers are established by decree. In November, each Core Team under the leadership of their Priest Convener begins the work holding meetings to prepare their parishes to come together.
February 2009: Meeting on February 14 with the Bishops of Nigeria following their “ad limina” visit, the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, stresses the importance of diocesan planning and formational training in order to promote “vibrant parishes” and “generous service to wider community.”
April 2009: As parishes continue to make progress in their preparations for merger, Bishop Joseph Galante appoints a Diocesan Merger Review Committee to assess the parishes’ readiness to merge. Fourteen members on the committee will review the preparations made by Priest Conveners and Core Teams. The Committee’s members have experience in key areas: canonical and civil issues, temporalities, clergy issues, liturgical preparation, ministry/formation, and pastoral planning.
June 26, 2009: Bishop Galante issues the formal decree establishing The Catholic Community of Christ Our Light from the merger of Queen of Heaven and St. Peter Celestine in Cherry Hill, the first decree issued in the diocesan-wide reconfiguration of parishes. The decree is effective July 29, 2009.
July 3, 2009: Bishop Joseph Galante formally decrees that the parishes of Saint Mary, Williamstown and St. John Neumann, Sicklerville will merge and the new parish resulting from the merger, Our Lady of Peace, will be established August 5, 2009.
September 18, 2009: Bishop Joseph Galante formally decrees that the parishes of Saint Francis of Assisi and Immaculate Heart of Mary, both in Vineland, will merge and the new parish resulting from the merger, Divine Mercy Parish, will be established October 21, 2009.
October 2, 2009: Bishop Galante issues formal decrees establishing Saint Simon Stock parish (through the merger of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish, Berlin and Saint Edward Parish, Pine Hill) and Mary, Queen of All Saints parish (through the merger of Saint Veronica, Delair and Saint Cecilia, Pennsauken) effective November 4, 2009.
November 6, 2009: Bishop Joseph Galante formally decrees that the parishes of Saint Luke (Stratford), St. Lawrence (Lindenwold) and Our Lady of Grace (Somerdale), will merge and the new parish resulting from the merger, Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish, will be established December 9, 2009.
November 18, 2009: Bishop Joseph Galante formally decrees that the parishes of St. Pius X and Holy Rosary, both in Cherry Hill, will merge and the new parish resulting from the merger, Holy Eucharist Parish, will be established December 23, 2009.
For more information see www.gatheringgodsgifts.org
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