Table Discussion

Themes from Table Discussion Question #1

From this session and the day’s conversations, what are the major trends you identify that we face in the Church that will impact the mission of leadership and managerial excellence?

Need for feedback system for bishops, pastors and priests

Human resource development, in broadest sense, continues to be an area of question and need for education and focus

Difference between old and young priests in utilizing lay people

How to structure pastoral and finance councils most effectively

Multi-parish pastoring

Trends of transparency and openness

Multicultural environment

Societal questions of race, immigration, poverty, etc.

Growing sense of “ownership” of the Church by laity

Secularism may be a spent force; there is a search for meaning that transcends secularism. This means there is an increased need for marketing and advertising.

Parishioners are demanding improved accountability and transparency and in a lot of places parishes are rising to the challenge

Increased accountability for the management of sex abuse in the Church. Can’t get into the mindset of “it’s all behind us now.”

What’s behind us still matters.

The importance of a theology of management

Understanding that leaders in other cultural backgrounds are identified and raised up in ways that are different from the Anglo culture

Chanceries are often bastions of Eurocentric thought

Naming the “culture of mediocrity” that exists in our workplaces because of lack of training in performance reviews and a lack of incentives for workers who excel

Decline in number of sacraments administered is strong trend

Developing Latino ways of ministry, not merely translating Anglo ministry into Latino words

We no longer have much time to apprentice new priests before they become pastors; not all priests can be good pastors

Is seminary selection and formation doing its job to identify future successful candidates?

Trend of “church shopping” may be fueled by consumerism and sense of entitlement. Also losing people to evangelical communities.

Can’t form people with such a rigid ideology that can’t accommodate their lives

Consequences to poor evangelization

Need to put more energy into formation of people in the pews. Problem isn’t that the message isn’t true; it’s that it isn’t attractive.

Themes from Table Discussion Question #2

Issues we now face are too complex for any one sector to address. Church has an important role to play to partner with other sectors to address these challenges. These are win-win opportunities.

Example of partnership: eg Jubilee Schools in Memphis

Pope Francis’ encyclical, Laudato Si, provides opportunity for collaboration on the environment

Increased enrollment in Catholic schools in many places

Pope Francis

The second careers of the people from the business world, who are bringing business practices into the Church

They are not walking away; they are trying to push from the bottom up

Seeing people who are “at the top” willing to stick their necks out and be embarrassed, and say that there are things they don’t know, or that they are willing to be assessed

Bishops supporting communities that have traditionally been excluded

Grassroots movements responding to Francis’ messagw who is saying the message of the Church but in a different way

Younger bishops

Growth of Hispanic population and leaders from other cultures, including young Catholics

We’re doing a better job of including and mentoring international priests

Young people are developing a relationship with Christ in more personal, albeit unfortunately less institutional, ways

Shift from autocratic leadership to servant leadership

Foundations (like Lilly Endowment) are showing innovative, creative ways of catalyzing cultural change

Emerging models of pastoral leadership are challenging. Not always an improvement (eg., one pastor, four parishes) but creativity is a good sign.

We’re increasingly aware of deep pockets of pain. Change is most often experienced as a loss. But Leadership Roundtable is helping with messaging, change management, conveying hope.

Themes from Table Discussion Question #3

Is it time for Leadership Roundtable to do more promotion of examples rather than keep teaching?

Leadership Roundtable needs to tell their story in writing and in digital media and help us explore our own media strategies

Leadership Roundtable agenda is now in a context that lacks urgency like it did 10 years ago, yet a crisis clearly looms

There is an important role for Leadership Roundtable to support Roundtable-like organizations in other countries

Do more to disseminate best practices to various parishes and dioceses

Increase formal partnership opportunities - attending meetings, sharing resources, broad-based conversation, including personnel from the Church in the conversation

Help pastors in outreach ministries

How to really instill accountability at every level in the Church?