|
The Parish Ministry
Team Program*
St. John has recently
initiated a Parish Ministry Team program as an effective way for our
parish to organize our efforts and focus our work, providing
opportunities for each individual to recognize parish and community
needs and participate in addressing those needs. The program can
be defined in the following way:
A cooperative way of promoting lay ministry that
relies on the God-given talents and
capabilities of both the laity and clergy to do God's
work in the church, using teams.
The Parish Ministry Team
Program provides a structure that is a catalyst for promotion of lay
ministry and this team approach has been proven effective in achieving
the overriding goal of total parish involvement.
Parish Ministry Teams
Have the Following Potential:
- Renew and extend the faith and service of the
worshipping community
- Engage the cooperation and involvement of the laity
in the mission of the Church
- A way to utilize the untapped talents within a
parish and thereby allow for individual and parish renewal and
self-evangelism
- Allow for greater community presence and involvement
- Assist the parish in fulfilling its mission
*Excerpts
from The Fellowship of St. John the Divine of the Antiochian Orthodox
Christian Archdiocese, Parish Ministry Team Resource Handbook
We have identified 10
teams and are filling the team leader roles. Once mission
statements have been written for each team, team members will be
recruited and an initial team meeting will be set up to discuss the
mission statement and team goals for the year.
More information to come
in future bulletins......
"I have told you many
times that the Church is not the bishop alone, nor is it the clergy or
the laity alone. The Church is the bishop, the clergy and the
laity working together as a beautiful symphony for the glory of God"
+Metropolitan PHILIP
Parish Ministry Teams:
- Bookstore Team
- The St. John the Baptist Parish Bookstore exists to provide materials
for education in the Orthodox faith (books, videos, CD’s and classes),
gifts, liturgical supplies and items for special occasions such as
baptisms, weddings, etc. Using an operating budget, all monies
above operating expenses (i.e. profits) from the bookstore will go to
the parish general fund.
- Building
& Grounds - Development Team - The Buildings and
Grounds Development Parish Ministry Team attends to the improvement of
Parish buildings and grounds and coordination of contractors for major
repairs, including beautification efforts and expansion. Teams
will be created on an as needed, ad hoc basis.
- Building
& Grounds - Maintenance Team - The Buildings and
Grounds Maintenance Parish Ministry Team attends to the maintenance and
repair of Parish buildings and grounds. The team coordinates such
efforts as general maintenance, janitorial work and supplies, landscape
maintenance and gardening (includes cemetery maintenance).
- Christian
Education Team - The Christian Education Team’s
mission is one of total Parish education. This is accomplished
through the development of classes and other educational events that
build Christian community and Christian knowledge.
- Financial Team
- In addition to drawing up the annual parish budget, issuing
all checks and keeping all financial records, the Financial PMT reviews
all proposals presented with the mindset that they should be approved
if they meet certain criteria which includes determining the cost of
the proposal, presenting it to the Parish Council and/or the general
parish revealing both its beneficial and non-beneficial ramifications.
- Evangelism Team
- As its name suggest, this PMTs goal is sharing the gift of our
Orthodox faith within our surrounding community, including arranging
speakers, working with iMinistries to create media for outreach, etc.
This team also oversees our Greeters team.
- Hospitality Team
- Overseeing everything from our weekly Sunday lunches to food for
special events, this PMT includes many parish members.
- iMinistries Team
- Existing to promote the visibility of Orthodox Christianity and St.
John’s to our community, as well as to streamline communication within
our parish, this PMT oversees all electronic media (including the
church website, audio, video, email, and management of the parish
address database). Through use of these media, this PMT seeks to
provide easily accessible, compelling and informative resources for
seekers, visitors, and members of our parish.
- Liturgical Team
- Consisting of the Priests and Subdeacons, this PMT manage all
people and materials necessary to carrying out the liturgical life of
the church. The liturgical team trains and schedules acolytes &
myrrhbearers, cares for the sanctuary and its furnishings and ensures
that all materials necessary to worship are available as needed.
- Liturgical Music Team
- Under the leadership of our phenomenal Choir Director and Readers,
this PMT works together to lead the congregation in singing all our
services, as well as offering Orthodox music within our surrounding
communities.
- Parish Council
- These elected and appointed members serve Fr. Basil and St. Johns by
oversight of the various Parish Ministries Teams.
|
