Parish Pastoral Council

Next Meeting – Wednesday, January 15

The next PPC meeting will be held on January 15, 2025 at 7pm, in person in the McKenna Hall or via Zoom (Meeting ID: 896 2921 2316 / Passcode: 963054)

 

Parish Pastoral Council News & Updates

Please join us for the 2024-2025 Parish Pastoral Council (PPC) Meetings! 

Every meeting of the PPC is open to all and there is reserved time at the beginning of the meeting for parishioners to bring any questions or concerns they may have to the council. Any parishioner also may come to listen in to topics being discussed.

The council meets on the third Wednesday of the month from 7-9pm, unless otherwise scheduled, and are usually held in McKenna Hall and via Zoom (Meeting ID: 896 2921 2316 / Passcode: 963054).

Council Meeting Schedule

  • September 18, 2024
  • October 16, 2024
  • November 20, 2024
  • December 18, 2024
  • January 15, 2025 
  • February 19, 2025
  • March 19, 2025 
  • April 9, 2025
  • May 21, 2025
  • June 18, 2025

Overview

Holy Trinity (HT) is a Catholic parish sponsored by the Society of Jesus. As such, its identity is rooted in the person of Jesus as he is encountered and understood by the Jesuits and their lay colleagues through their practice of Ignatian spirituality. This identity is the starting point for understanding the parish’s mission and the role of those who are involved in parish governance, including members of the PPC.

Our mission statement:

Holy Trinity is a Jesuit Catholic parish that welcomes all to:
Accompany one another in Christ
Celebrate God's Love

Identity

HT parishioners form a community of companions of Jesus on mission with him in this place and at this time in history.  PPC members, who along with the pastor are formed by their understanding of Jesuit identity and mission and their practice of Ignatian-style prayer, are leaders of this community of companions of Jesus.

Role

PPC members share leadership responsibility with the pastor at HT. As advisors to the pastor, PPC members assist the pastor in discerning, articulating and communicating to other parishioners the identity and mission of the parish, and they assist the pastor in assuring fidelity to that identity and mission.

Way of Proceeding

The sacred nature and purpose and close relationship to the Society of Jesus demands that the PPC carry out its responsibilities in ways that are distinctively Jesuit.

For example:

  • A PPC member approaches participation on the Council with an open heart and mind coupled with a willingness to listen to and follow the guidance of the Spirit, which may be expressed through one’s colleagues on the Council;
  • A PPC member practices the Ignatian presupposition, that is, always presumes that the other is speaking or acting without bad intent, and always gives the other the benefit of the doubt;
  • The PPC deliberates through communal discernment. Communal discernment:
    • Is a way of reaching a decision in which all have participated and which all can embrace, even if it is not what one would have chosen him/herself apart from the discernment process;
    • Seeks consensus;
    • Is not necessarily compromise, though it may involve compromise;
    • Reaches a decision through a process that respects the beliefs and opinions of each member of the group, and that preserves the group's unity and harmony and mutual affection; and
    • Is consciously and deliberately attentive to the Spirit within.

Qualities of Effective Members

One who would like to serve as a member of the PPC:

  • Engages in regular personal prayer;
  • Has been an active parishioner involved in the life of the parish for at least two years;
  • Has pledged to worship with the parish community at Sunday Eucharist as often as possible;
  • Has participated in some parish ministry (committee) for at least one year;
  • Agrees to support the parish financially;
  • Has participated in some parish-sponsored retreat or prayer program or event;
  • Is capable of thinking broadly and strategically and without uncontrolled bias, and has a mind and heart open to the “magis,” that is, what is for the greater good;
  • Is willing to serve as a PPC member for at least three years.

One who is selected to serve on the PPC will be expected to:

  • Participate with other PPC members in other ongoing formation programs that are designed to deepen their understanding of Jesuit identity and mission and the ways of proceeding that are appropriate to the PPC;
  • participate in scheduled PPC meetings as faithfully as possible;
  • Be a liaison and an active member of one of the parish's committees, reporting to the committee the works of the council and reporting to the council the updates on the committee's work;
  • Observe or otherwise participate in parish activities and ministries so as to be familiar with the parish’s efforts to be faithful to its identity and to carry out its mission; and
  • Encourage input and communication with parishioners to ensure the needs of the parish are met.

Membership, Terms, and Selection Process

The Parish Pastoral Council will be comprised of a minimum of 10 members and a maximum of 12, excluding the pastor. The term of office of each member will be three years.

Selection of PPC members will be through the following process:

  • The PPC will timely publicize the qualities of effective PPC members (see above) and will invite parishioners to consider whether they possess these qualities and want to be considered for selection to the PPC; if so, interested parishioners will submit an “expression of interest”;
  • Parishioners expressing interest in this way will be invited to participate in an information session in which current members will further explain the identity and role of the council and its “way of proceeding” (see above);
  • Following the information session, parishioners expressing interest will again prayerfully consider whether God is calling them to this service; if so, they will submit their names and other appropriate information about themselves to the PPC for inclusion on an election ballot;
  • Registered and fully initiated parishioners who are at least 16 years of age are eligible to vote; these may vote for not more than the number of candidates necessary to fill vacancies on the PPC.