"Collaborative Ministry": what do you think it means?

[Lepanto]

I run into the term “Collaborative Ministry” all the time.

For example, my local diocesan paper has had advertisements recently seeking to hire Catholic school principals, music “ministers,” “lay pastoral administrators,” parish business managers, and even part-time “sacramental ministers.” (Sorry for all of the quotation marks!) All of the advertisements require the candidates to be participants in “Collborative Ministry.”

“Collaborative Ministry”: what do you think it means?

I see the term as yet another way to emasculate our priests and to blur the distinction between the ordained the the laity. In other words, our priests become mere functionaries to fulfill certain roles within a parish, and not as true pastors and parish fathers.

 

[Jennifer_J]

I had to look up what it meant I think, unfortuantly, it’s necessary in this day and age because there just aren’t enough priests to go around. Our parish is clustered with 2 others and we have 2 priests to cover them all. The priests just can’t do it all and the laity have to step up and help. I wish this weren’t the case, but it is and in some ways it can be good–if the laity are in line with Church teaching.

I found this when I looked up collaborative ministry (and I don’t know who Bishop Hubbard is at all):
jknirp.com/hubbard.htm

We should all be praying for priestly vocations!!

 

[SuscipeMeDomine]

To me, collaborative ministry means a connection between clergy and non-clergy in carrying out the mission of the church.

For example, my parish has one priest. He works hard and does a lot, but there’s no way he can do everything. One of the facilities within our parish is the only hospital in town. If he went there daily to bring communion to the Catholic patients and visit with them, he wouldn’t have time for any of his other duties. So extraordinary ministers carry out that task. That’s collaborative.

The other option is to skip that activity. My mother was recently in the hospital and the parish that includes that hospital does absolutely nothing to bring communion to the patients. If you really beg you can get a priest to anoint a patient, but that’s it.

 

[drafdog]

“Collaborative” means two or more persons working cooperatively in a given project. It doesn’t necessarily mean taking away from ordained clergy or replacing ordained clergy. It’s just a way of talking about cooperation in getting the work done.

Matthew

 

[quiet52]

I run into the term “Collaborative Ministry” all the time.

For example, my local diocesan paper has had advertisements recently seeking to hire Catholic school principals, music “ministers,” “lay pastoral administrators,” parish business managers, and even part-time “sacramental ministers.” (Sorry for all of the quotation marks!) All of the advertisements require the candidates to be participants in “Collborative Ministry.”

“Collaborative Ministry”: what do you think it means?

I see the term as yet another way to emasculate our priests and to blur the distinction between the ordained the the laity. In other words, our priests become mere functionaries to fulfill certain roles within a parish, and not as true pastors and parish fathers.

 

[quiet52]

“Collaborative Ministry”: what do you think it means?

I see the term as yet another way to emasculate our priests and to blur the distinction between the ordained the the laity. In other words, our priests become mere functionaries to fulfill certain roles within a parish, and not as true pastors and parish fathers.

I don’t think the motives of lay people should be suspect. We offer our help with good intentions – to help build up the Church in various ways – not to do “anything bad” to priests or to anyone – though none of us are perfect in what we do of course. Also – there are many involved lay people who are taken for granted as “mere functionaries” – we need to be more supportive of clergy AND laity who serve us.

 

[puzzleannie]

I tried to answer this but will hold off until I can work some Christian charity into the answer. had a rough day on the ranch.

there are at least two books out with that title for anyone that wants to waste $10 or $20 bucks.

 

[Claire_from_DE]

I run into the term “Collaborative Ministry” all the time.

For example, my local diocesan paper has had advertisements recently seeking to hire Catholic school principals, music “ministers,” “lay pastoral administrators,” parish business managers, and even part-time “sacramental ministers.” (Sorry for all of the quotation marks!) All of the advertisements require the candidates to be participants in “Collborative Ministry.”

“Collaborative Ministry”: what do you think it means?

I see the term as yet another way to emasculate our priests and to blur the distinction between the ordained the the laity. In other words, our priests become mere functionaries to fulfill certain roles within a parish, and not as true pastors and parish fathers.

Could this be a term for some kind of formation program in your diocese? Our diocese had a program geared toward preparing lay men and women to work in parish ministries but I think it is no longer in existence.

 

[Jennifer_J]

I tried to answer this but will hold off until I can work some Christian charity into the answer. had a rough day on the ranch.

there are at least two books out with that title for anyone that wants to waste $10 or $20 bucks.

I know I can hardly wait for your answeer, since you are “in the trenches” with such things!

 

[SMHW]

“Collaborative Ministry”: what do you think it means?

From my personal experience as a former employee of a parish with several paid staff members, each of whom had their own budget, and who, on occasion, have tended to butt heads with each other when they had to work together, this is what I think collaborative ministry means.

In other words, the music minister has to expect to help or find someone who can when there are First Communions, parish reconciliation services, special teen masses, etc even though that wasn’t in his contract.

The DRE has to abide by the 'liturgical expertise" of the worship minister instead of insisting the children stand around the altar like all the First Communion children do at the other parish in town and the pastor said he didn’t really care.

The secretary has to help find a room for the money counters on Tuesday morning… which means she has to ask the Prayer group leader if they can use the unheated hall because they can’t meet in the Church where there’s a funeral meeting… all because because the pastor offered the usual counting room to the decorating committee to store 250 poinsettias until after the last Mass on the 4th Sunday of Advent.

The School principal has to work with the DRE to make sure that the school basketball team doesn’t host a tournament on the same weekend in the same building where the CCD/RE/FF kids are hold their annual mini-retreat.

For the Easter Vigil, just about every head of some group or another, paid or volunteer, has to work with just about every other group. Each group has its own idea about who, what, how many, how long, etc. The pastor often tells everyone to figure it out and then let him know later. When later comes, the pastor says it’s too long, too expensive, doesn’t have enough readings, needs more music, etc.

(disclaimer: these are all made up issues which are similar to those I have seen in my parish)

 

[kage_ar]

That these hiring managers want people who are more interested in doing what it takes and working with others to accomplish the ultimate goal in the ministry than the kind who want to build their own little empire?

A nice way of saying, if you do not play well with others, you need not apply.

 

[Lepanto]

The DRE has to abide by the 'liturgical expertise" of the worship minister instead of insisting the children stand around the altar like all the First Communion children do at the other parish in town and the pastor said he didn’t really care.

What is a “worship minister”? Is that the priest?

 

[Joannm]

That these hiring managers want people who are more interested in doing what it takes and working with others to accomplish the ultimate goal in the ministry than the kind who want to build their own little empire?

A nice way of saying, if you do not play well with others, you need not apply.

I think that says it in a nutshell. Collaboration means being able to work collaborativley, that is, working within each person’s area of expertise, sharing the workload, and not butting heads. That means the clergy and lay people working in a parish really work together. The “collaborative” pastor expects certain things from those who work for him and wants them to also think for themselves and not simply wait for him to dictate what to do…he wants to hear what they think and to share ideas.

 

[Joannm]

What is a “worship minister”? Is that the priest?

Many parishes have a liturgy coordinator who helps to organise things. They are usually, or should be, people who have some expertise in liturgy and not just someone who took a workshop.

 

[SMHW]

What is a “worship minister”? Is that the priest?

Bad choice of words. I should have said Liturgy Director.

 

[Lepanto]

Bad choice of words. I should have said Liturgy Director.

Not to be obtuse, but what is a priest if not a “liturgy director”? Isn’t that the raison d’être of the priesthood?

 

[SuscipeMeDomine]

Not to be obtuse, but what is a priest if not a “liturgy director”? Isn’t that the raison d’être of the priesthood?

The pastor is always responsible for the liturgy in his parish. That doesn’t mean that he has time to choose the music and rehearse the choir every week. It doesn’t mean that he has time to work with the school children for their Mass or plan a liturgy for a special occasion. Hence, a liturgy director is needed.

 

[SMHW]

Not to be obtuse, but what is a priest if not a “liturgy director”? Isn’t that the raison d’être of the priesthood?

The “Liturgy Directors” I know would probably be best described as the pastor’s executive assistants in the liturgy area. (In my parish, at various times, that particular role has been both separate from or combined with the role of music director.) Some liturgy directors may be paid staff. Others may be volunteers. The tasks for a liturgy director span the gamut from keeping the pastor appraised of specifics of the GIRM and acting as master of ceremonies at liturgies, to such simple things as marking the ordo with post-its. The liturgy director typically keeps track of ushers, sacristans, EMHCs, lectors, readers, altar servers, decorators, visiting/fill in priests, etc.

The truth of the matter is that many priests simply don’t know what the latest and greatest liturgy documents say. They may have the general idea but most don’t keep up on the finer points. And for many people, priests included, reading legal documents is just plain difficult and/or boring. So when I priest is asked, “Why [do we]/[don’t we] do such and such?” or if he sees that something is done at a different parish and he’s thinking of implementing it at his parish, he is likely to hand the responsibility off to his liturgy director.

Now obviously some liturgy directors are going to be better qualified than others. And some liturgy directors have agendas of their own. But this is true for priests as well.

A liturgy director often has the task of telling other ‘ministers’ what can’t be done in a special liturgy, thus saving the pastor from being the bad guy. But since the parish practices collaborative ministry, everyone will feel good about it.