PASTORAL COUNCIL
The Pastoral Council shall exist through the mandate and encouragement of
the Bishop of Richmond. The Council shall seek to fulfill the mission of
the Roman Catholic Church in Salem, Virginia in ministerial partnership with
the Pastoral Staff. The Pastoral Council, composed of discerned and
Pastorally appointed members of the Parish, shall provide vision, direction
and active support for the Parish and its Pastor, establishing such
priorities, committees, programs and activities which shall promote and
reflect the living word of God. Staffs serve under the daily supervision of
the Pastor and are not generally eligible for Pastoral Council. The Pastor
may however, appoint staff to Pastoral Council when he deems such action
appropriate.
The Pastoral Council shall be composed of at least (10) members to include:
the Pastor (1), Committee Chairs (or appointed representatives with the
prior concurrence of the Pastor to serve for one year) (the number of
Committee Chairs shall be determined by the Pastor and Pastoral Council),
and discerned members (9 minimum). At all times the discerned members shall
constitute a majority of the Council's membership. A Pastoral Council
Roster shall be used to define the current size and composition of the
Pastoral Council. This Roster shall be maintained and updated as necessary
by the Pastoral Council Secretary.
FINANCE COUNCIL
The finance council gives oversight to the financial stability of the parish,
reviews the monthly financial statements, and helps establish the annual
budget. The members (a minimum of 4) bring their professional expertise to
the table and are responsible for seeing that sound accounting practices are
in place. The Pastor or pastoral coordinator is ultimately responsible, so
the council serves as a consultative body, making recommendations to the
Pastor or pastoral coordinator.
STEWARDSHIP COMMITTEE
The Stewardship Committee is comprised of 6-10 members, plus the pastor. The
committee and pastor discern membership. The committee has responsibility
for increasing the sense of stewardship among parishioners of their time,
talent, and treasure to build up the Reign of God. We meet once a month for
about 90 minutes, and plan annual Stewardship weekends for Time and Talent,
and for Stewardship of Finances. We also assist in creating ways to
recognize and strengthen the various ministries in the parish.
Additionally, our committee assists the pastor with development ideas to
imbue a deeper sense of parish ownership among parishioners.
