Second webinar on parish council ministry to be held December 8
On Tuesday, December 8, 2015 at 8:00 p.m. EST, the Archdiocese of Western Pennsylvania of the Orthodox Church in America will offer the second in a series of free webinars devoted to the ministry of the parish council.
Titled “Expectations and Good Practices of Parish Councils,” the webinar will be facilitated by Joseph Kormos, the Archdiocese’s Parish Development Ministry leader. Members of all dioceses and jurisdictions are invited to participate. There is no charge to participate in the webinar, but participants must register in advance on-line.
“Clergy and laity leadership collaboration is critical in preparing parishes to use all of their gifts and resources to live a life in Christ and to present Orthodox Christianity to Americans and America,” says Mr. Kormos. “This webinar series will explore and rethink how to transition parish councils from the parish ‘fire department’ to a shared leadership body that cooperates with the priest to discover possibilities, discern priorities, drive change and enliven vital parish ministries.
“Our first session in this series drew a large on-line gathering to review the fundamentals of parish governance based on Orthodox ecclesiology, and explore the purpose of the parish council and relevant historical influences on American parishes that have led to common challenges faced by parishes and their councils. In this second session we will examine: qualifications, qualities and expectations of parish council members; ideas for effective council structure and healthy habits and practices of good parish councils. In particular we will examine the critical parish council role of defining a healthy, hopeful parish long term vision and building a competency for mature dialogue on important parish issues and concerns.
“The series is useful for clergy looking to strengthen their parish council, parish council veterans desiring to make their service more meaningful and persons new to parish council service who seek to learn how to contribute quickly.”
Further information may be obtained by contacting .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).