Anthony Cardinal Bevilacqua, Archbishop of Philadelphia, will celebrate Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Philadelphia to open the 28th Annual Convention of the Conference for Pastoral Planning and Council Development (CPPCD) on Sunday, April 1, 2001. Bishop Joseph A. Fiorenza, Diocese of Galveston-Houston and President of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops will give the keynote address for this four day, national conference. The theme of the conference is Renewing Parishes: Becoming Places Where Faith Flourishes.

Conference for Pastoral Planning and Council Development
Sunday, April 1 through Wednesday, April 4, 2001

Opening Liturgy
Anthony Cardinal Bevilacqua, Celebrant and Homilist
Sunday, April 1, 2001
6:00 p.m.
Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul
Philadelphia

Welcome and Keynote Address
Bishop Joseph A. Fiorenza, President of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops
Sunday, April 1, 2001
3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Holiday Inn
4th and Arch Streets
Philadelphia

Renewing Parishes: Becoming Places Where Faith Flourishes is a dynamic, interactive opportunity for participants to learn about and strengthen the leadership skills necessary for Catholic parishes in North America today. The more than 100 in attendance will include staff from dioceses who support parish pastoral council development, diocesan staff involved in pastoral planning as well as pastors, parish staff members and volunteers with an active interest in pastoral councils.

Dolores Leckey, former Executive Director of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops Secretariat for Family, Laity, Women and Youth will be engaging participants in a dialogue around the evolution of leadership in the Church in the U.S. since 1975. The relationship of those leading and those to be led will be the subject of a presentation by Dean Hoge, Professor from Catholic University and author of The Future of Catholic Leadership: Responses to the Priest Shortage; and Converts, Dropouts and Returnees: A Study of Religious Change Among Catholics. Rev. Cletus Kiley, Executive Director of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops Priestly Life and Ministry Committee and Siobhan Verbeek, Associate Director of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops Secretariat for Doctrine and Pastoral Practices will provide a current look at the numbers and trends in priestly vocations, and their implications for modifying structures and methods within parishes.

Renewing Structures is the subject of workshops, panel presentations and open discussions
concerned with identifying new parish structures. Rev. Robert Howes, author of the1998 book, Bridges: Toward Inter-parish Regional Community and a panel of practitioners will discuss the implications of inter-parish cooperation models. Early findings of the CPPCD research project entitled Pathways for the Church of the 21st Century, funded by the Raskob Foundation, and a workshop on Parish Social Systems are also among those planned.

Renewing Methods includes an interactive presentation by Beverly Carroll, National Conference of Catholic Bishops Executive Director of the Secretariat for African American Affairs, Ron Cruz, National Conference of Catholic Bishops Executive Director of the Secretariat for Hispanic Affairs, and Dr. Ruth Narita Doyle, Director of Pastoral Planning in the Archdiocese of New York. They will help participants to reflect on ways parishes and dioceses can build on the rich foundations of their cultural diversity to develop their missions. Other workshops will be presented on recruiting and retaining new Church workers. Workshops on the use of internet supported data and distance learning courses for Pastoral Councils are also planned.

Rev. Thomas Sweetzer, SJ author of Successful Parishes: How They Meet the Challenges of Change; Leadership in a Successful Parish; and Transforming the Parish: Models for the Future will provide the summary presentation Hope in the Midst of Change and Uncertainty.

For more information contact:

Maria Rodgers O'Rourke, Executive Director
Conference for Pastoral Planning & Council Development
12545 Olive Blvd., #175
St. Louis, MO 63141
(314) 579-9577
email: info@cppcd.org
fax: (314) 878-1481
or visit http://www.cppcd.org

Contact
Donna Farrell
Broadcast and Media Specialist
215-587-3747