Living as Missionary Disciples

people to a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ, who in turn invites us into a fuller conversion and witness. 4. The content of services and ministries is rooted in the doctrine of the Church and supported by foundational pastoral practices (for exam ple, principles derived from the National Directory for Catechesis) that point parishioners toward and prepare them for discipleship. 5. The parish ministries effectively engage people through welcome, inspiration, and effective communication. Meeting people where they are at and listening to them is crucial in beginning a relationship for the missionary disciple process. 6. The parish commits itself to being a good steward of its human and financial resources, using its resources prudently and responsibly and continually assessing the effectiveness of its efforts. Six Dimensions to Consider During a Pastoral Planning Process This section can be used as a resource for the pastoral leadership team as it develops a pastoral plan. 1. Planning for Ministry Is Permeated with Prayer Fostering a culture of intentional missionary discipleship in the parish is clearly not a “one size fits all” approach. Each parish with its unique charisms manifests the Holy Spirit in different ways. Pope Francis reminds us, “The Holy Spirit also grants the courage to proclaim the newness of the Gospel with boldness ( parrhesía ) in every time and place, even when it meets with opposition. Let us call upon him today, firmly rooted in prayer, for without prayer all our activity risks being fruitless and our message empty. Jesus wants evangelizers who proclaim the good news not only with words, but above all by a life transfigured by God’s presence.” 67 Consider all of the people on the parish committees, councils, boards of education, etc., and the various groups and ministries active in our parishes. There are many parishioners from diverse backgrounds whom the parish leadership interacts with on a regular basis. Engagement and participation, however, do not necessarily equate to missionary disciple-

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