The Pastoral Coordinating Team meeting was held on Tuesday night 22nd July. The night commenced with the recitation of the Litany of Blessed Mary MacKillop and then proceeded to the General Target which is to be found at the bottom of this Post. The Target, which was decided by the parishioners, was to be achieved by the end of 2009 and the next step we need to take is a census so we can make contact with:

“All the people of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish, Sunbury“

A sub-committee was setup to look at how best to implement this.

There was a discussion of the “Workers in the Vineyard” program and the formation that has already been done with the lectors and the extraordinary ministers of Communion. Rosters are under construction and will be communicated as completed.

August 26th will be a day when the Parish Leadership Team etc plan the calendar for the next year. It was requested that the full 12 month parish calendar be published on the parish websites and this will be done.

Fr Bert’s Golden jubilee will be celebrated on the 13th September with Mass at 10.30am followed by a morning tea.

The Youth Group Coordinators were starting on the night of the 26th July with a get-together an Pizzas kindly provided by the Sunbury Branch of the Knights of the Southern Cross.

Later in the year Jill Gibbs will hold a Parish Retreat on Communitarian Spirituality which will be a follow on from the retreat held to coincide with our recent Parish Evaluation.

The Centenary Committee asked for some funds for a deposit in order to book the venue for the Parish Ball to be held in October next year. This will cost $55 per head for drinks, meal and band. The timetable for the Parish Centenary events are on the History page of either website.

The Sacramental Program with parish integration is underway and we will be looking for wider neighbourhood support with practices etc.

A Neighbourhood map has been put up in the gathering space of St Anne’s Church and the program of sending a card to all Baptismal families from the pertinent Neighbourhood is about to get underway.

The next meeting will be held on the 9th Sept 2009

Our Parish Target

As resolved by the parishioners following the Parish Renewal Program

“By the end of 2009 all the people of Our Lady of Mt Carmel Parish Sunbury, through their experiences and through structures of communication and participation, are aware of the value of every person.”

Explanation of the terms used in the target.

all the people: all the Catholics and their families, the parish priest and the religious, those who live within the boundaries and those who live outside the boundaries who choose to make this their parish, different generations, those aspiring to become Catholics, non-Catholic students, staff, and their families who identify with the Catholic schools in the Parish, and all those who choose to associate with us.

through their experiences: not just through words but through what actually happens, e.g. neighbourhood gatherings, personal contact, greeting and smiling, making oneself known to, showing an interest in, remembering other people’s names, being friendly towards, expressing care for, offering practical assistance to, working together in some common action.

structures of communication: ways of decentralising the parish such as area teams, the parish Good News letter, visitation to families, mailings, internet, email, parish web site.

and participation: pastoral care, assemblies, and open parish gatherings,are aware of, have a sense of, get used to the idea of, are awakened to, have an initial realisation of, are conscious of.

the value of every person: respect for the dignity of a person, the worth of each, the uniqueness of each.

Reasons to justify the target.

From the situation: on the one hand we are fragmented, unknown to one another,many have little sense of belonging, there is a lack of confidence and a lack of self-esteem. On the other hand some of us in the parish really want others to feel involved but don’t always know how to go about it.

From the ideal: Through the word of God in St Paul’s letters we are reminded that we need every member of the Body of Christ. Every part of the Body has it’s own purpose in the whole.

The conversion or step of growth we want to help happen is: That we move from letting people remain anonymous and go towards helping them to be recognised, connected, accepted, and to have a sense of belonging in the parish.