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| Supporting
Our Priests
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Ideas that emerged from statements
such as:
- In what ways might we support our priests?
- In what ways might we encourage priests to share their duties?
- In what ways might we encourage vocations?
- In what ways might we promote a positive image of priesthood?
- Help our priests with travel - they cannot continue to be "circuit" riders
- Involve ourselves in assisting in whatever way we can
- Assist with ideas for homilies. Invite good guest speakers once a month
- Accept not having a priest per parish. Be flexible
- Should be released from other duties to teach us the gospel
- Let the priests be free to do pastoral services
- Delegation of activity and responsibility
- Lay people do administration
- Every parish should have a lay administrative assistant
- Priests have regular sabbaticals for rest and renewal of their theology
- Release priests to visit homes
- Pastors free to spend time with parishioners
- Free priests to look after youth
- Allow women to become priests or deaconesses
- Our clergy should be allowed to be married resulting in more priests
- Invite priests who have left the Church to get married to come back and serve
- Promote deacons - we need more deacons
- The role of the priest needs to be clearly defined and understood
- Perhaps our priests will oversee larger areas
- Acceptance of priests from other countries. Give them time to adjust. Care for them
- Engage older deacons; self-supporting deacons
- Petition Rome to allow priests to marry
- Screening for priesthood
- More support for retired priests - allow them to retire
- Support our Bishop - have competent lay people assist with writing, researching, preparing speeches, etc.
- Our priests should be rotated from urban to rural, rural to urban
- Explain some theology during Mass. Explain the why's
- Need a review of priests, training, shortening what is involved
- Encourage priests to be more flexible in liturgy
- There are too many rules in our Church
- Decisions are often made without input from people. The hierarchal structure hinders our risk taking
- Present our Gospel in creative, dramatic, and visual ways
- We need a serious review of doctrines of our church
- Clergy to continue their education so they can truly be prophets
- Hold a diocesan conference on the priesthood
- Accept zero tolerance for aberrant behaviour of our priests or church employees
- Have workshops for priests to learn how to work together in clusters, not domains
- Avoid power struggles
- Our priests involved with youth, Mass, youth groups, activities
- Encourage flexibility among all priests. Encourage priests to be aware of all age needs, not just the middle aged and elderly, who are dedicated.
- Have public speaking training for priests
- Encourage consistency among priests so people would not "parish hop"
- Encourage First Nations to become priests - perhaps flexible training period
- Encourage older people vocations
- Archdiocese direct parishes to have a regular communal form of Reconciliation - General Absolution is good
- Find out what other dioceses are doing to recruit priests
- Publicize good things
- Allow priests to marry - perhaps attract more vocations
- Priests remain celibate
- Make celibacy optional
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