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Pastoral Priorities

What are the Pastoral Priorities?

As followers of Christ we are called to live the mission that he entrusted to us: Go preach the gospel and make disciples!

How are we doing this in the Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth? In January of 2020 we began the journey of becoming a diocese with 20 parishes (plus the Cathedral). At the end of year that saw us trying to become new parishes oriented to our mission in the midst of a global pandemic, we also faced another major diocesan change: the succession of a new bishop. Archbishop Dunn became the second archbishop of the Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth on November 27, 2020. As our new bishop, Archbishop Dunn wanted to build on the hard work the people and parishes of the Archdiocese began. To so, in January 2021 he shared four pastoral priorities that he wants us as a diocese to focus on. These priorities are shaped by our already established diocesan values of mission, community, and, formation.

The four pastoral priorities are: Evangelization, Homelessness, Parish Identity, and Catechesis. Archbishop Dunn offers his reflections on these priorities in a Pastoral Letter to the faithful release on January 28.

Pastoral Priorities: September 1 Report Template (MS Word)

Need some help growing your faith?

Parishes across the Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth are making disciples! In other words, they are helping people grow in their faith and finding ways to share it! Check out what’s happening at…

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Who will you invite?

All across the Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth parishes hosted evangelization programs that began in September or October. It was a monumental task to plan these efforts but all to invite people to come and see what these evangelization programs were about. Yet it happened, and it happened well!  Hundreds of people were invited to discover Jesus for the first time…or perhaps re-discover him.  Our efforts don’t end here! This is just a first step in a life long journey of becoming missionary disciples.  Parishes will continue to provide first step evangelization programs but also other ways – bible studies, faith sharing, discipleship groups, to name a few – for people to continue to build a relationship with Jesus. 

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Have you made the invitation?

All across the Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth our parishes have invited people to meet Jesus.  Have you done so?  Inviting someone to anything, let alone to encounter Jesus Christ, is not always an easy task.  So, Archbishop Dunn would like to help you!  The theme of this year’s Assembly of the People of God was: invitation.  As a result of Hurricane Fiona the Assembly was cancelled. However, we didn’t want you to miss out on the great content so the Assembly is available on video!

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Priority - Parish Identity

Parish Identity

“Every one of our new Parishes needs to commit to developing a new Parish identity that is positive and united, regardless of the number of people or number of buildings. The focus must be on the whole community of the faithful that makes up the parish, rather than particular groups that gather at individual churches. Doing so will require fostering healthy relationships and new understandings of Parish life and roles.”

Priority - Homelessness

Homelessness


“While many are without homes in Nova Scotia, many more are presented with the impossible choice of whether they spend what little they have on shelter or food. I realize that many of our Parishes have ministries dedicated to these and other social issues, e.g., food banks, various kinds of outreach, etc. This can provide a variety of opportunities where we can collaborate with our brothers and sisters of other Christian denominations. Our new Parishes have many properties, some of them surplus, and I ask Parish leadership to consider whether some existing resources can be diverted for the service of the homeless in some way.”

Priority - Evangelization

Evangelization

“Evangelization – proclaiming the good news of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ – is the primary activity of the Church. Each new Parish must have a plan for evangelization with a commitment to a particular program of evangelization. Significant time, energy, and resources should be invested in reaching the various audiences of the new evangelization: those who have never heard the Word of God, those who have heard the Word of God but fallen away, and those who have heard the Word of God yet require ever deepening conversion”

 

Priority- Catechesis

Catechesis family Bible together PD 356x200

In addition to a program of evangelization, each Parish must have a process of ongoing formation in faith for children and adults. Growth in our closeness to the Lord and friendship with Him comes not only from study but also from encounter. All of our methods should be holistic in their approach to formation: human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral. On this page throughout the year, we will post material and resources to help all of us work towards strengthening these priorities in our parish communities.

How do we live out these Priorities in our Archdiocese?

So how do we, as a local Church bear fruit under each of priorities? For each of the above priorities Archbishop Dunn gives parishes a task and a timeline for those tasks. To support parishes in these activities the team in office of Pastoral Life & New Evangelization (PL&NE) and other diocesan staff will:

  • develop and implement resources related to each priority
  • research and curate existing initiatives and tools to share with parishes
  • pray with and for parish leadership, that our combined efforts will be guided by the Holy Spirit!

Resources for this work will be made available on this page – so check back!

2021 Pastoral Priorities Presentation by Thinkific

Archbishop Dunn has recently offered webinars that highlight each of the four pastoral priorities he has set for the Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth.  These webinars were presented to parish leaders across our diocese to help encourage and inspire their parish communities to live as missionary disciples. These presentations are available to the faithful on Thinkific, an online learning platform.  See the links below: 
 
• Parish Identity - Thinkific Link 
• Homelessness - Thinkific Link
• Evangelization – Thinkific Link
• Catechesis – Thinkific Link