First listening session for archdiocesan planning process is set for Aug. 24

Criterion staff report

Catholics from across central and southern Indiana are invited to take part in a series of listening sessions starting at 2 p.m. on Aug. 24 at St. Louis Parish, 13 St. Louis Place, in Batesville that will be part of a pastoral planning process for the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.

The process, which is expected to take place over two years, is aimed at answering three questions: “Where are we today?”; Where is God calling us to be?; and “How will we get there together?”

Archdiocesan leaders have noted that answering the three questions will involve attentive listening, prayerful discernment and collaborative engagement.

In the coming months, seven listening sessions related to the process will take place across central and southern Indiana. An online survey related to the planning process will also soon be available on the archdiocesan website.

In answering the question, “Where are we today?” archdiocesan Catholics are asked to consider what the challenges and opportunities facing the Church in central and southern Indiana are at this time.

The question, “Where is God calling us to be?” is an invitation to discern prayerfully where the Holy Spirit is leading the faithful of the archdiocese, especially as it enters into the final mission-centered year of the National Eucharistic Revival.

Finally, the question, “How will we get there together?” is a call to take concrete action to help the Church in central and southern Indiana arrive at where God is calling us to be.

During the pastoral planning process, Catholics in the archdiocese are invited to pray that the Holy Spirit will guide the faithful in listening to God’s word and one another as all the faithful seek together to discern God’s will for the Church in central and southern Indiana.

They are also encouraged to take part in the listening sessions and complete the online survey.

Catholics across the archdiocese will also be invited to provide feedback on action plans developed in a later step of the planning process by a committee guiding the pastoral planning process. It is made up of diverse Catholics from across central and southern Indiana and is led by Archbishop Charles C. Thompson. †