Parish Council

The parish pastoral council is a consultative body to the pastor. The purpose of the pastoral council is to examine, consider, and draw conclusions concerning matters under discussion in order to recommend a course of action to the pastor. Through pastoral planning, the pastoral council assists the pastor in:

• Developing and living out of the mission of the parish;
• Forming community as a sign and witness of unity for the larger parish community;
• Providing recommendations for parish priorities, directions, and policies;
• Promoting communication and understanding among parish organizations and between the parish, the Archdiocese, and the universal Church (CIC, c. 536 §1).

Members of the pastoral council must be:

• Baptized and confirmed Roman Catholics in good standing with the Church;
• Registered and supporting members of the parish;
• Grounded in and committed to an understanding of the Church in accord with the principles of Vatican II;
• Committed to prayer, study, listening, and dialogue; Committed to stewardship of time, talent and treasure;
• Not currently employed by the parish or parish school or a close relative or in-law of or living in the same household as a parish or school employee;
• Not simultaneously a member of the parish finance council.

Finance Council

The finance council is a consultative body that provides the pastor with advice concerning the stewardship of the parish’s fiscal resources. It assists the pastor by:

• Conducting long-range financial planning with regard to funding operational and capital needs in the parish;
• Developing and overseeing a parish budget process which results in an annual parish budget. This process should involve the participation of those responsible for parish programs. It should be so designed that it addresses the parish’s priorities and goals as determined by the pastor and parish pastoral council;
• Providing financial analysis of current fiscal status reports;
• Providing fiscal analysis of proposed goals, strategies, programs and administrative aspects of parish life.

While the finance council has significant responsibility for the stewardship of parish financial resources, it is not the role of the finance council to recommend directions, priorities, or programs other than those related to its delegation: namely, fiscal stewardship. For this reason, the other consultative structures must be in place for the finance council to fulfill its role responsibly and effectively.

The purpose of the finance council is to provide the pastor, the parish pastoral council, and other leadership bodies with professional financial analysis. For this reason, it is important that the finance council membership should be as balanced as possible (e.g., by gender, age, race, and ethnicity) and composed of people who have had experience in the areas of business, finance, administration and accounting. Staff members appointed by the pastor to the council are ex officio members of the council.

Members of the finance council must be:

• Baptized and confirmed Roman Catholics in good standing with the Church;
• Registered and supporting members of the parish; • Grounded in and committed to an understanding of the Church in accord with the principles of Vatican II; • Committed to prayer, study, listening, and dialogue;
• Committed to stewardship of time, talent and treasure;
• Not currently employed by the parish or parish school or a close relative or in-law of or living in the same household as a parish or school employee;
• Not simultaneously a member of the parish pastoral council.

School Commission

The overall purpose of the school commission is to advise and support the pastor and principal in the operation of the parish school. School Commissions may be responsible for the following:

• Assessing the needs of the school community;
• Evaluating the effectiveness of the school in performing its educational and formational missions;
• Recommending policies and conducting strategic planning for school operations;
• Collaborating with the pastor and principal in educating the parish as a whole about the importance of the school, while building a sense of connection with the overall parish mission;
• Collaborating with the pastor and principal in educating other parishes about the school’s mission;
• Working collaboratively with the pastoral council and other consultative bodies.

Members cosists of

• A diverse group that reflects the composition of the parish and the school;
• A non Catholic parent may be eligible to serve.