St.
Ignatius of Loyola
Catholic
Church
A Vision
for Our Future
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March 2004
By the Parish Council
An Introduction from the
Vision Committee
Imagine yourself on a journey.
To prepare, you will need to chart a course, pack provisions and to be
successful, you will have to make adjustments along the way. Our spiritual journey as a Church family is
no different. Currently we have over (1000) families and growing
! Through prayer we must plan for our future. Last (fall a subcommittee) of
the Parish Council met over many months examining every aspect of our parish
life and mission. From that committee (evolved) a strategic plan. The mission
imperatives described below bring to life the important areas of our Church
community: Education, Evangelization, Liturgy, Service, Stewardship and Ongoing
Planning and Support. The charge of the Vision Committee is to oversee the plans
for each of these areas, facilitate adjustments where needed and spearhead
future planning to meet our Parishes ever-changing needs.
As a Catholic Community of
Faith in Southern Frederick County, St. Ignatius of Loyola proclaims the
presence of Christ through our worship, witness, teaching, learning, service
and concern for justice. We seek to:
F
Support the
spiritual, physical and social needs of each individual within the community.
F
Develop programs
and activities that support the fundamental unit of the Christian life—the
FAMILY.
F
Encourage and
promote an ecumenical spirit with other religious and community-minded groups
in our area.
F
Support growth of
our Church by giving of our time, talent, and resources.
(OUR)
Education
Goal: To provide varied educational opportunities
to our Parish children, youth/young adults, and adult parishioners, as well as
to those on the parish staff and those serving in ministries.
Rationale: Educational
opportunities would allow for a better understanding of the Gospel of Jesus
Christ, the foundation of our existence.
Knowledge of our faith will enable us to better live and share our
faith.
Summary
of the Action Steps: Develop plans for education space on the Ijamsville campus, ongoing
recruitment and training of catechists and evaluate sacramental preparation
programs (for our growing and changing needs.
Evangelization
Goal: To be
a welcoming and nurturing family of faith, by proclaiming the Gospel and
sharing in an active faith with those in our community at large.
Rationale: Baptism
calls us to share our faith and to serve God by serving those around us.
Summary
of Action Steps: Develop excellent communication with the parish , expand”
the RCIA program through outreach, focus on unchurched
Catholics, host a parish mission and foster better relations with the community
through open houses, music ministry, youth programs, ecumenical services, etc.
Liturgy
Goal: To
develop the worship and sacramental life of the parish so that all are
nourished in faith and invited to full participation in sacrament and
prayer. Through this, we put our
Catholic faith into action.
Rationale: Jesus
charged his disciples to carry forth his mission to be builders of God’s
kingdom. The foundation of this mission
is the celebration of the Eucharist.
Summary
of Action Steps: Enhance the worship life of the parish, and our liturgical
ministers through educational opportunities, and increasing infrastructure.
Evaluate the worship needs of our youth, and special needs populations. Develop
the music/instrumental/vocal balance of services, and functionality of the
worship space. Explore options for
sacramental staffing. Reach out to the
parish and larger community to increase involvement in liturgical events such
as Holy Week Services and Christmas Masses.
Service
Goal: Called
by faith to serve God’s people, we at St. Ignatius strive to meet that calling
through various types of service.
Rationale: “Whatever
you do for the least of my brothers and sisters, you have done for me.”
Summary
of Action Steps: Help parishioners understand that service is an integral
part of our faith. Do this by: developing opportunities for participation in
all ministries; expanding Healthcare, Bereavement, Social Concerns, and Justice
Ministries; assist special needs populations; witnessing to our faith through
our action in our own parish as well as the community at large.
Stewardship
Goal: To
create a sense of ownership of the parish by all members through the use and
development of our God-given gifts of time, talent and treasure.
Rationale: God
calls us through faith to use the gifts we have been given for the benefit of
all. Much is expected from those to whom
much has been given.
Summary
of Action Steps: Invite the parish community to give of their time, talent and
treasury and make the parish members aware of the needs. Create (a) fundraising
subcommittee to help balance the budget and concentrate on debt reduction.
Create a Development Committee to plan a pay down strategy for the current debt
as well as strategies for funding of capital improvement needs. Examine
alternatives to weekly second collections. Make sure our hard-working staff members
are paid a fair wage .
Achieve greater adherence to archdiocesan policy in the handling of
money and parish assets.
OTHER ~
(ONGOING PLANNING AND SUPPORT)
Goal: To
create an environment that will support our mission as God’s people.
Rationale: With
the right tools we can accomplish our goals and our parish mission.
Summary of Action Steps: Ensure that the Parish Council
governing documents are relevant
to the needs of our community. Work to provide greater awareness of the
organization structures at the parish. Define the roles and functions of our
ministries and groups and the leadership parameters. Develop and implement the Facilities
Improvement/Expansion Master Plan in a timely manner. Keep up with technology to
meet parish needs.
AN INVITATION
FOR YOU
It is important that we all share in this vision…this dream
for our future. Our parish is made up of many who are one. God is our master
planner and we must journey on together with a plan..
At St. Ignatius we have many groups and staff that do a fabulous job meeting
the daily needs of our parish. (With) so many groups working together, it is
imperative that there be a central group that keeps us all on the same track
towards our long term goals. We, the Vision Committee (of the Parish Council,
have been charged with serving in that capacity. We) hope that this brochure gives you helpful
information on the direction that we are headed, and more importantly, gives
you inspiration.
To give us feedback, ask questions or volunteer your talents,
please contact us:
Susan Hynes, Chair suehynes@windsorknolls.com
Mike Goodwin
Ruth Fox
Jean Snowden
George Helta
(Carol Hatosy
John Jaffee
Fr. John Jicha)
To view the entire Parish Strategic Plan (, go to www.e-stignatius.org)