The Second Vatican Council called for the creation of
Parish Pastoral Councils. In the Decree on the Apostolate of the Laity, #26, we
read:
In dioceses, as far as possible, councils should be set up
to assist the Church’s apostolic work, whether in the field of
evangelization and sanctification or in the fields of charity, social
relations and the rest…
Such councils should be found too, if possible, at parochial,
inter-parochial, inter-diocesan level, and also on the national and
international plane.
These councils were to serve in an advisory capacity to
the bishop or pastor, and were to utilize the many and varied gifts of the laity
in service to the Church. To
reflect this new movement toward collaboration the revised Code of Canon Law of
1983 states:
After the diocesan bishop has
listened to the presbyteral council and if he judges it opportune, a pastoral
council is to be established in
each parish; the pastor presides over it, and through it the Christian
faithful along with those who share in the pastoral care of the parish in
virtue of their office give their help in fostering pastoral activity.(Canon 536)
The decades following the Second Vatican Council in the Roman
Catholic church were difficult in some ways. Therefore, in the post-Vatican era
much experimentation with parish councils has taken place.
In the area of parish pastoral councils in particular, no guidelines were
given from the Council or from the renewed Canons. In our search for form we
have often tried to put the vision of collegiality into bureaucratic and
corporate structures where it is not at home.
Early on, the
attempts at forming consultative bodies found their inspiration in the American
government model. Voting and
representation and a committee structure prevailed. Theological reflection on the nature and identity of the
Vatican II Church challenges the government model by offering a gospel model
focused on mission and investment of the baptized in the pastoral life of a
parish.
Page last updated October 05, 2005
