Pastoral Planning
A methodology
An IFE for "Pastoral Planning" goes through four steps:
A) Looking at and listening to the "needs and aspirations" of people
B) Reaching down to their "core needs and aspirations"
C) Identifying the "critical points" - the diagnosis -
D) Agreeing upon some "lines of action" or "Apostolic Priorities".
Hopefully this "way of proceeding" is not only a useful tool to proceed with the IFE in an orderly and efficient way, but will also become a permanent attitude in every member and community during the implementation and unfolding of the programmes. This attitude can be described as "being always attentive to people, with the minds and hearts open to the Spirit".
A.- Looking at and listening to the "needs and aspirations" of people
The main input for pastoral planning is experience rather than global analysis of the situation. Looking at the people being served, listening attentively to their "cries", we can find their needs and aspirations. What are their needs and aspirations?
This survey is usually done before the gathering. The participants prepare, individually or by delegations, a written report on these needs and aspirations. Obviously, previous to the survey, the fields of service are clearly defined: youth ministry, catechism, family, CLC formation...
It is important to specify the purpose of the survey, foreseeing its use during the Encounter. The questions for the survey could be formulated as follows:
1. In the specific field of service, what are the needs and aspirations of the people?
2. What answers have thus far been offered?
3. With what results (successes, obstacles...)?
4. How was the whole operation evaluated?
These reports, made available to each participant, are the main input during the first step of the IFE. The participants are given time to read the reports, or a synthesis, and during the plenary each delegation is invited to explain the context of their survey, so that their reports may be better understood. Meeting in workshops, the participants are asked two questions:
1. Which needs enumerated in the reports have impressed you most?
2. Do you have any suggestion to improve the synthesis of the reports?
B. Reaching down to the "core needs and aspirations"
This second step leads to a deeper perception of the needs and aspirations of people in the specific field of service. "Core" means that many of their needs and aspirations are, in fact, expression of a much deeper need or aspiration. In other words, they have a root underneath. If the deeper need and aspiration is addressed, the others will be automatically satisfied.
The question asked is: Looking at people with God's eyes, what are their core needs and aspirations? (Each one points out two or three core needs. Each group should not point out more than four or five).
C. Finding out the "critical points" in each field of service - The diagnosis -
A critical point is an on-going concrete situation, whose outcome and risks can already be foreseen, if nobody does anything about it. In other words, it is the main challenge faced by CLC in this particular field of service.
To single out a critical point means, in fact, to make a diagnosis of that situation, taking into consideration the core needs and aspirations of the people involved, the resources of the local Church, the CLC resources and the specific mission the Lord is entrusting to CLC. (This is the appropriate moment for a prayerful day in the gathering's programme).
In each field of activity there are, usually, only two or three critical points.
D. Agreeing upon the "lines of action" for CLC - Apostolic Priorities -
Once the critical points have been clearly defined, some solutions can be formulated. A critical point, by its very nature, is an action-related situation. Therefore the remedies should also be action-oriented. The question asked is: What are the best answers CLC can offer to these critical points?
Each critical point should be addressed by some line of action, though it can happen that one line of action actually addresses more than one critical point.
A line of action (or Apostolic Priority) includes:
- a flow of actions to be implemented, - What to do?
- the objectives to be attained, - What for?
- the ideals that inspire and guide its implementation, - Why and How?
The formulation of a line of action should be quite specific regarding the actions that are foreseen, without entering, though, into too many details. It is up to the local communities to bring the line of action down to earth, when they implement it by means of well-defined programmes and specific activities.
The lines of action as a whole constitute a "four or five year plan" and are, therefore, maintained without change for this period of time, while the programmes and specific activities are evaluated regularly, and, if necessary, adjusted.