Ministerial PJP input to Discernment and Writing Groups
Two current Trustees of Ministerial PJPs and the Executive Officer of AMPJP are among a select group of people appointed to the Discernment and Writing Groups for the Plenary Council 2020.
John Honner (Trustee with Edmund Rice Education Australia) and Carmel Ross (Trustee with MercyCare) applied for, and were selected for, positions as members of the group addressing the theme: Inclusive, participatory and synodal. Sr Clare Condon SGS is also in this group. Clare was the Congregational Leader when the Sisters of the Good Samaritan established Good Samaritan Education. Inclusive, participatory and synodal is the theme that many assume will have the major focus on governance. The Ministerial PJP perspective will assist this group see the breadth of current and potential approaches to Church communication, cooperation, operation and governance.
Lawrie Hallinan, AMPJP Executive Officer, applied for, and was selected for, a position as a member of the group addressing the theme: Open to conversion, renewal and reform.
Eva Skira, Chair of the AMPJP Council said:
“It is a joy and a comfort to me to know that so many competent and faith-filled people volunteered for these challenging positions.”
Ms Skira added:
“I understand that John, Carmel and Lawrie’s role on the Discernment and Writing Groups is in a personal capacity – not as a representative of a Ministerial PJP or of the AMPJP. Nonetheless, I’m sure their knowledge of Ministerial PJPs and their potential in the Church will be part of their contribution to the Discernment and Writing Group.”
Recently, Plenary Council facilitator Lana Turvey-Collins said
“More than 400 people – from all parts of the country, from various cultural and linguistic backgrounds, from teenagers to people in their nineties – expressed their interest in helping the Church discern what God is calling us towards at this time in our history,” she said.
About 100 applicants were selected for the interview stage. Approximately, 17 applicants for each of the six themes were interviewed by panels of three people.
“From that number, about 60 lay people, priests and religious will join 12 bishops to form the six Discernment and Writing Groups – skilled and faith-filled people who will prayerfully discern what the Spirit is saying to the Church in Australia.” said Mrs Turvey-Collins
Archbishop Costelloe said the bishops on those groups “very much look forward to being part of this Church-wide process of discerning the will of God and responding to His will”.
The six National Themes for Discernment invite people to reflect, to pray and to consider how God is calling the People of God to be a Christ-centred Church in Australia that is:
- Missionary and Evangelising;
- Inclusive, Participatory and Synodal;
- Prayerful and Eucharistic;
- Humble, Healing and Merciful;
- A Joyful, Hope-Filled and Servant Community;
- Open to conversion, Renewal and Reform.
Individuals and groups from across Australia are encouraged to consider one of the six National Themes for Discernment. The Plenary Council 2020 website contains resources to assist those wanting to host a discernment group.
An online portal was recently opened to allow people around the country to share their discerned communal response of up to 1000 characters (about 150 words), offering practical ways to respond to the chosen National Theme for Discernment.
Those responses will be provided to the Discernment and Writing Groups that will draw together the wisdom of the Church and the broader community to draft papers for consideration in the lead-up to the first session of the Plenary Council
