A Vision For The Diocese of Prince George

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Presented to the Council of Priests in 1994
by Bishop Gerald Wiesner, O.M.I.

Basic Vision is Based on Four Realities:

  • Proclamation of the Word (teaching)
  • Formation of Community
  • Celebration of the Community (liturgy)
  • Service (to the community and reaching out beyond)

To achieve and advance these realities the involvement of everyone is necessary; the involvement of the ordained is essential.

  1. TEACHING
    • The first task that needs to be done, and constantly improved and intensified, is the ministry of teaching – and this in all of its dimensions
    • Before we are able to accomplish the formation of community, celebrate good and meaningful liturgy and exercise service in the right manner and for the proper motives, the Gospel must be proclaimed.
      Without wanting to beat this to death it is my conviction that our primary need is for adult faith education.
    • Clearly to achieve this, priests need to be constantly working to improve themselves as teachers. More than this, the entire community needs to be engaged in different ways.
      In order that the community members be able to exercise the ministry that is proper to them they need to be (and have the RIGHT to be) properly educated.

    Some Concrete Applications:

    • Homilies
    • Catholic schools and religious education
    • Adult faith education
    • Good sacramental preparation programs
  2. FORMATION OF COMMUNITY
    • The quality of community that we have to strive for is that which is described in the Acts of the Apostles and the letters of St. Paul.
    • Leaders of community have as their number one task the formation of alive, faith communities.
    • To bring this about it is once again important, and in some ways essential, that we call forth the members of the community to exercise their rightful and responsible place. Experience indicates that often it would be simpler and perhaps more expeditious for priests to do things by themselves, but this is not community.

    Some Concrete Applications:

    • The Christian family
    • The parish community (effective Pastoral Councils)
    • The school community (effective School Councils)
    • The Catholic Independent Schools of the Diocese
    • Teachers
    • Religious
    • Priests
    • The Diocesan Family (Diocesan/Regional celebrations, pilgrimages, Chrism Mass, Diocesan Assembly, Pastoral Study Days, Northern Catholic News, etc.)
    • A Diocesan Pastoral Council
  3. CELEBRATION
    • Liturgy is the culmination of the previous two ministries. It is only when the Word has been adequately proclaimed and a community formed around this Word that we can have proper celebration of liturgy.
    • Liturgy is the most accurate gage of the quality of faith life in a given community.
    • By its very nature liturgy is the celebration of the community and by the community. Hence the key to good liturgy is preparation and participation.
    • Universal experience has borne out that there exist three important (essential) elements for good liturgy: the presider, the homily and the music.

    Some Concrete Applications:

    • Constant effort to improve our celebrations
    • Education workshops for laity
    • Establishing a Diocesan Liturgy Committee
  4. SERVICE
    • Good service must begin within the community itself, however, the service must extend beyond the community. As church we exist for others, and we need to be eaten up by others.

    Some Concrete Applications:

    • The central point to be kept in mind is that the church is to be the Sacrament of Christ in the world. For this to be more of a reality it calls for the holiness of its members and all that is implied in its members

Further considerations:

  1. MINISTRY WITHIN THE NATIVE COMMUNITY
    • Establishing a Native Pastoral Council to work with us in order that we might:
      • better respond to their needs
      • involve them more in the ministry
      • prepare them for this involvement
  2. THE MINISTRY OF ECUMENISM
    • Sensitizing our Catholic people to the need of having ecumenism as a key concern
    • Reaching out in a positive and active manner to other Christian groups and making a special effort to relate to the more fundamentalist groups
  3. CENTRE OF RENEWAL AND PRAYER
    • Greater emphasis on prayer
    • Spiritual direction and guidance
  4. GREATER EMPHASIS ON VOCATIONS
    • Sensitizing the diocese to this need
    • Setting up a Vocation Committee