Hornsby Cathedral Parish, Parish Missionary Council (PMC)
The PMC’s mission and purpose is to work within and engage the parish. To ask questions about the current and future needs of our community - discerning, praying, supporting, and if required providing leadership around key initiatives and activities.
Since the end of 2020, a group of individuals from the Parish has been going through discernment, to form this important Parish resource and set their vision.
Supported and lead by the Clergy, PMC members* meet monthly and work alongside the Bishop's priorities to “constructively engage in the culture of vocation for all the baptised, which is to be ‘sharers of the mission’ of Christ and ‘go and make disciples’ (CCC, 1213,1223 ). We identify our unique gifts from the Holy Spirit and celebrate our cultural differences by deepening our faith and living out a culture of faith, joy, and participation in the community.”
To achieve that, the PMC will help:
- Create an environment that is invitational, welcoming, and inclusive, as Christ has always shown us.
- Provide opportunities for everyone to belong to our community and be a part of the wider church; take part in the Sacraments; as well as engage in parish life and its pastoral activities. Recognising that every baptised person has been given gifts to share and contribute in fulfilling our Church’s mission and purpose.
- Create innovative, engaging, and enriching pathways to encounter Jesus Christ for young people, and those who are lost, returning to, or exploring their faith. (A ‘pathway’ is an intentional process to take people from encounter/ renewal to further spiritual and catechetical formation and growth, then to deeper conversion and love for Christ, Divine Renovation).
- Provide platforms to foster life-long personal relationships and build stronger, resilient, and closer connections within the community, establishing an insightful environment and culture of belonging, safety, and trust in our Church. In turn, we hope to encourage those in the pews and our returning congregation members to be more engaged, involved, inspired, and committed to serve in their faith community.
Getting to this point
Whilst the PMC is currently focused on culture, it intends to support all the Bishop’s priorities, as set out in his December 2020 pastoral letter**. However, with ongoing pandemic considerations, it was felt that focusing all our thinking and resources on one area would have the most impact.
For more information about this group, please connect with the Parish Office or reach out to a member of the Parish Missionary Council.
*PMC Members as of 01 May 2022.
Clergy:
Fr Brendan Lee
Fr Anselam Lakra
Fr Roger Delmonte
Deacon Peter McCulloch
Members:
Victor Quijada (Chair)
Lawrence Allum (Secretary)
Fiona Brown
Joe Gonzales
Rachel Vala
Principals (attend once a term):
Anthony Gleeson, Principal St Leo’s Catholic College
Trish Biok, Principal Our Lady of the Rosary Primary School
** Bishop Anthony Randazzo’s Pastoral Letter - Jesus Christ: Our Beginning and End: https://www.bbcatholic.org.au/people/bishop/pastoral-letter-jesus-christ-our-beginning-and-end. Summary of the six priorities detailed on page 5.