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Reflections on the Quinquennial Report
by Bishop Raymond A. Lucker
I have been working with the members of the diocesan staff and with pastors throughout the diocese in preparing our report. It contains sections on the pastoral and administrative organization on the diocese, the general religious situation of the diocese, the ministry of the bishop, reports on Catholic worship and sacramental life, on Catholic education, catechesis, vocations, youth ministry, the life and ministry of priests, the laity, our work with the missions, ecumenism, Hispanic ministry, social concerns, social justice, the financial state of the diocese, and a general assessment and outlook for the future. In addition to that, I make available to the Holy Father and the offices in the Vatican all of the pastoral letters I have written, diocesan policy bulletins, and very importantly a report from each parish on significant activities during the last five years. The report will run over two hundred pages. As we have been putting this all together, I have been impressed by the many good things that are going on in the diocese, surprised by the complexity and extent of some of the reports, and I have a deeper awareness of the problems that we need to face together. I would just like to mention a few things that have especially come to mind. I am deeply grateful for the dedicated diocesan staff who work closely with me. It is a small but committed group, talented and well trained people whom I am very proud of. As I went through the reports of the different diocesan offices, I counted literally several hundred visits of diocesan staff to parishes to conduct training programs, workshops, to give adult education talks, meet with parish committees and councils, and in many other ways support parish efforts in carrying out the mission of Jesus. I have mentioned this many times before and I continue to be convinced that the renewal of the church continues to go forward under the guidance of the Holy Spirit in spite of many obstacles and difficulties. It will not be turned back. Evidence of this is clear in the staff reports and in the reports that come from the parishes of the diocese. It is heartwarming to see the numbers of people who have come forth in their parishes to participate actively in parish councils and parish committees. There are about two thousand people actively involved in the religious education of children and youth, and in youth ministry. Thousands of people have committed themselves to active participation in the renewal of the liturgy in their parishes through participation as lectors, extraordinary ministers of the Eucharist, people who bring Communion to the sick, organists, musicians, and song leaders, members of choirs, servers, people who decorate the altar and keep the sacristy. The commitment of people to Catholic schools in parishes that are privileged to have them is a wonder. Boards of education, principals, and teachers work to build a true community of faith where children can grow and learn in an atmosphere of faith and where Jesus and His teaching is the center of school life. It has been a joy to me to see the growth of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults and the efforts parishes are making to invite their neighbors to join the Catholic Church. A growing number of people are becoming aware of the social teaching of the church and that action on behalf of justice is constitutive of the gospel. In spite of the ongoing difficulties, the parishes and the diocese itself are in good financial condition. During the last five years, for example, thirty-six major building projects have been undertaken by parishes in the diocese including church renovations and decorating, building of gathering spaces, rectories and parish offices, installation of elevators and handicapped access, and installation of stained glass windows, plus innumerable church and school maintenance projects. With all of that, parish revenues in the five years from 1992 to 1996 increased from $16 million per year to $19.3 million (the quinquennium actually goes from 1993 to 1997, but the latest figures are not yet available). During that same period the accumulated savings of all of the parishes have increased from $8.7 million to $14.2 million, while the total debt of all the parishes of the diocese has gone down from $1 million to $393,000. All of that tells me that parishes are generally in good financial shape. As a diocese, our total assets have risen from $5.8 million to $7.2 million in the five years from 1993 to 1997. In addition to that, the Priests Pension Fund has risen from $1.5 million in 1993 to $2.3 million in 1997. This does not include most of the cash and pledges which have been made during the Capital Campaign for the Priests Pension Fund which will be reported in the next quinquennial report. Let me say a little bit more about the Capital Campaign. The campaign was entitled Work of Faith - Labor of Love and it indeed was that. We had as our goal to raise $2 million, a lot of money for our small diocese. In fact, $4.3 million has been pledged with already $1.4 million contributed in cash. It will take four and one half more years for the people of the diocese to fully redeem these pledges. I know from past experience that it will happen. What a remarkable tribute of the people of the diocese to their love and support for priests. I am proud of the priests of the diocese, their dedication and hard work. We have also a dedicated group of pastoral administrators, twenty of them, who serve our parishes. They do a splendid job in building up and supporting the community while a priest from a neighboring parish comes for the Mass and sacraments. We have just concluded our work for the diocesan budget for the next fiscal year. Here is what our diocesan budget looks like:
As you can see, about 36% of the diocesan budget comes from the Diocesan United Fund and about 35% from various other sources. All of this is used for the support of diocesan offices and programs. And 29%, or $962,000, goes immediately outside the diocese for purposes for which these funds were collected, a good deal of it to Guatemala. It is always a delight to write about the remarkable efforts that are being made in our mission in Guatemala, not only to celebrate the Mass and the sacraments and provide Catholic educational programs, but to build up the social and economic conditions in which the people live. During the last five years over $2 million has been contributed by dedicated people to the mission in Guatemala. Another $500,000 was sent to the Society for the Propagation of the Faith and other missionary groups. Last year alone the people of the diocese and other people from around the country contributed almost $600,000 to Guatemala. I think that is a remarkable achievement for a small diocese. During the last five years we have been involved in extensive diocesan pastoral planning, continuing the process that was begun twenty years ago. In 1995 we issued the diocesan Plan for Parishes, which outlines how we will use our resources and how we will organize our parishes during the next five years. That has brought about extensive discussions in our parishes about what is a viable parish and how can we work together to support one another in our ministries. As I look to the future there are three principle issues that I am especially concerned about: the shortage of priests; the evangelization of adults; and ongoing parish planning. I intend to write more about these issues in future pastoral letters. March, 1998
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