God has entered into covenants with God's people in both the Old and the New Testament. Through these covenants, God has promised to be with us always.

We, as people of faith, are called to enter into a covenant imaged in Jesus. Through our baptism, we are called forth to live the Gospel message of love for our brothers and sisters.

Through the following covenant, we, the members of St. Mary's Parish Pastoral Council, strive to build an ever-stronger parish community where the word of God is proclaimed, studied and integrated into our daily lives. We endeavor to follow the example of Jesus by reaching out to those in the broader community. Our challenge is to have this covenant stand witness to the presence of God in our midst.

As members of the St. Mary's Parish Pastoral Council, we fully accept the Vision and Mission Statements of our Parish and the responsibility to live them fully to the best of our ability.

St. Mary's Vision Statement:
To be a vibrant worshipping community in the urban downtown area

St. Mary's Mission Statement:
To live the challenge of Christ; to be a community rooted in Scripture; and to have a living tradition of prayer, encouragement, open inquiry, service and social justice

It is the mission of the St. Mary's Parish Pastoral Council to encourage and support the efforts of St. Mary's Community to proclaim the Good News of Christ's Gospel. Our purpose is to be an advisory and policy making body united in service with the Pastor and Pastoral Staff to promote continual spiritual growth and Christian living. The Parish Pastoral Council participates in developing goals and objectives for St. Mary's Community, as well as in reviewing its programs in light of these and Diocesan goals. To this end, we will give prayerful and thoughtful consideration to any and all matters set before us, acknowledging the wisdom of God in all things.

We have been chosen. We have been recommended by other members of this faith community and selected through a discernment process guided by the Holy Spirit. We acknowledge our unique role as representatives of the many voices of the people of the St. Mary's Community.

We Pledge:

to be prayerful, both privately and communally
to be pastoral in response to the parish needs
to support diversity initiatives
to be discerning when making decisions
to challenge each other and the parish in spiritual growth
to be collaborative in mission and ministry
to be open to new ideas and other points of view
to be supportive of each other and all groups and committees
to participate in ongoing leadership formation
to listen to the voices within our community
to recognize and call forth the giftedness of all God's people
to be prophetic in providing a broader, more challenging vision of the Church.

We Also Accept the Following Responsibilities:

To provide a forum where all members of the St. Mary's Community can express opinions and contribute to the decisions that affect its life and mission.

To encourage involvement and to maintain constant communication with the entire faith community of St. Mary's

To be concerned with all the activities of St. Mary's Community connected with the mission of Church:

to promote active participation in the liturgical life of prayer and worship

to support the efforts of religious education programs for youth and adults

to encourage social ministry programs that help bring justice and charity into people's lives

to review financial planning and yearly budget to ensure the Parish's future fiscal stability

to collaborate on long range planning for the welfare and development of St. Mary's Community

to encourage and empower people to more fully respect and appreciate the similarities and differences of all individuals, through diversity initiatives

to dialogue with the Bishop, his staff, other Diocesan representatives and the civic community when needed

to prayerfully consult and collaborate with other faith communities, including those of the Monroe Clinton Group.

By the power of this covenant, guidelines and procedures for the Parish Pastoral Council will be as follows:

Membership:

Registered members of the St. Mary's Community will be eligible to serve; a married couple can serve jointly.

There will be no fewer than 10 and no more than 15 discerned members on council; couples count as one. If the number of council members drops below 10, the Chairperson will fill the vacancies, for the remainder of the Council year, from those parishioners who participated in the discernment process but were not selected.

In addition to the number stipulated above ~~ a high school student from St. Mary's Teen Youth Group will be eligible to serve on Parish Pastoral Council for a period of one year. He or she will be selected through a discernment process with his or her peers. If no member of the youth group comes forward to participate on the Parish Pastoral Council, the chairperson in consultation with pastoral staff, may appoint a high school student from the parish to serve on PPC for a period of one year.

The Pastor and Pastoral Staff will be members of council.

Terms of Office:

Council members will be selected for a three-year term, which begins at the regularly scheduled council meeting in June.

A portion of Council membership will be discerned annually

It is recommended that a formal installation of Council members take place during a weekend Liturgy.

A member having completed a three-year term will not be eligible for council discernment for two years.

Discernment Process:

Council chairperson will convene a Parish Pastoral Council Selection Committee, consisting of outgoing Council members. This committee will be formulated in January and will coordinate the discernment process for new members in the spring.

After being encouraged to pray for the calling forth of leadership, parishioners are asked to submit their own or a fellow parishioner's name for service on the Parish Pastoral Council.

Candidates are contacted and asked to attend an information session on the role and responsibilities of a council member. This session will also provide the opportunity for the candidates to pray and reflect on the call to this ministry.

After the information session, candidates are encouraged to spend a week in individual discernment. All candidates are then invited to attend a second session. This is a gathering for prayer when the names of the willing candidates are placed in a container and the Parish Pastoral Council vacancies are filled by the drawing of names under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Leadership Discernment:

Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and Secretary will be chosen through a process of discernment at the June meeting of Parish Pastoral Council.

Officers will serve a term of one year. However, they are eligible for future leadership discernment.

There will be a special prayer for the discernment process. Then, Council members will be given an opportunity to offer, in writing, the names of nominees for the Parish Pastoral Council Chairperson position. Individuals can either be nominated by another council member or through self-nomination. The Parish Pastoral Council Selection Committee will present the names orally to council. Couples may be considered, jointly or individually, for a leadership role. However, a couple cannot hold two different Council leadership positions within the same Council year. After a period of prayer and personal reflection, each nominee is given the opportunity to accept or decline the nomination. The names of those accepting their nomination are placed in a container. Following another period of prayerful consideration, the Chairperson is chosen by the drawing of the name under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

The process is repeated for Vice-Chairperson and Secretary.

Leadership:

The Parish Pastoral Council Chairperson will preside at all meetings and is responsible for preparation of meeting agenda with the assistance of the Pastor, Vice- Chairperson, and Secretary.

The Vice-Chairperson performs duties of the Chair in the absence of the Chairperson and aids the Chairperson and assists in the preparation of meeting agendas.

The Secretary is responsible for distribution of Council Minutes (prepared by a scribe hired to record proceedings), agendas, and other materials to council members. The Secretary is also responsible for the following:

All Council correspondence
Posting Meeting Agendas and Minutes in Church
Publishing meeting dates in the bulletin
Posting Council Minutes and agendas on the Parish website.

Meetings:

Meetings shall begin with a period of prayer.

Meetings will be held on the third Monday of the month from September to June. Special meetings may be held as decided by either council or the Pastor.

A special meeting, in June, will be held to review, consider, and approve the upcoming fiscal year's budget.

Attendance at all meetings is required of all participating members. Council members are expected to contact the Chairperson if they cannot attend a meeting. The Chairperson will assume responsibility to communicate with members incurring unexcused absences. Members showing excessive absences will be asked to discern their continued membership.

Members of St. Mary's Community are encouraged to attend council meetings. Comments may be offered during the "open to the floor" portion of the meeting. However to be on the Agenda, a parishioner must seek permission, from the Chairperson, prior to the date of the Agenda Meeting.

On policy and substantive resolutions, as well as for routine or administrative issues, it is the intent of council to follow the consensus procedure. However if after an extended discussion (i.e. the span of two scheduled meetings) on a particular question, Council is not able to reach consensus, a two-thirds majority vote of the entire Council will decide the issue.

If, in the opinion of the Pastor, the teachings of the Church and/or the Diocese are being departed from, exception may be taken to the Council's direction. The Pastor shall explain and clarify to council the reasons for the exception and council shall reconsider the issue. If a consensus cannot be achieved, the matter must be referred to the appropriate Diocesan authority.

Annual Review:

We will review this covenant annually. Updating it, as needed. Any proposed revisions will be effective when consensus occurs. Subsequently, the St. Mary's faith community must consent to proposed revisions through an agreed process; e.g. parish meeting or bulletin notice.

Since Council is the central leadership body in the St. Mary's faith community, the following standing committees are part of the overall Council structure and are accountable to that body to present their work for affirmation by the Council.

Buildings and Grounds
Finance
LifeLong Learning
Liturgy
Long Range Planning
Ministry Fund
Parish Life
School Partnership
Social Justice
Stewardship
Tithing Fund

Parish Pastoral Council will maintain contact with all organizations, groups and ministries within the St. Mary's faith community (i.e. Youth Group, Seniors, etc.)

Each committee shall be responsible for formulating its charter, subject to approval of the Council. As changes occur, revised charters will be subject to Council approval

All committees and any organization funded by Council shall report on a yearly basis on its goals, activities, and membership.

Each standing committee shall have a council member to serve as liaison.

If a particular need or demand arises, Council may establish an AdHoc Committee to facilitate immediate and responsive action.