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Update on
Ecclesial Lay Ministry program
PRAISED BE JESUS
CHRIST!
(Now and Forever)
During the recent meetings of the bishops of the United States held in
Chicago (bishops meet in June and November each year), one segment of
the two-and-a-half-day session was devoted to a forthcoming document on
lay ecclesial ministry. When completed, it will complement
similar documents which address the formation of candidates for the
priesthood as well as the permanent diaconate.
In an era when lay ministry is a growth industry (so to speak) in the
Church, emphasis rightly is being placed on formation and
delegation. Both are required for the ordained. Both now are seen as
crucial for laity who hold leadership roles at the parish level.
People of good will have long brought their faith and energy to various
lay positions in our parishes: directors of religious education, RCIA
coordinators, directors of liturgy, youth ministries, pastoral
associates, parish secretaries, etc., etc. Some of these folks
(volunteers as well as employees) have college/university degrees.
Others do not. The focus of ELM certification is specific formation
and commissioning. Only those commissioned are entitled to be
called ecclesial lay ministers. The expectation is that those in
specific parish leadership roles obtain ELM certification. The goal is
to eventually make ELM certification a condition for those positions.
(As a side note, this diocese adopted the term ecclesial lay ministers
before the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops proposed a more
accurate term: lay ecclesial minister. The terms are interchangeable;
commissioning by the diocesan bishop is the key.)
Ecclesial lay ministry has been a topic of this column many times. I am
most grateful to those who have heard the message and taken it
seriously. The task of assuring one and all that laity in parish
leadership positions have formation, albeit less intensive but
nonetheless similar to the ordained, is most important. The reality is
those who minister in official capacities are called to act for the good
of the Church. That being the case, the Church is responsible for
calling, forming and resourcing laity who assume parish leadership
roles, be they employees or volunteers.
Background may be helpful to those who have ears to hear and are in fact
listening to this major national initiative. It began for our Local
Church back in 1994. The Lilly Endowment (Indianapolis) financed
research whose goal was to study the status of lay ministry in the
Catholic dioceses of Indiana. That study led to the establishment of a
task force consisting of staff from four of the five dioceses in
Indiana, as well as consultants from Saint Joseph’s College and Saint
Meinrad. This task force designed a ministry formation program: 10 core
academic courses judged basic to ecclesial lay ministry formation. A
spiritual formation component and a pastoral/professional skills
component were to be added by each participating diocese. Individuals
completing all three components or their equivalent would be certified
as ecclesial lay ministers and that certification would be recognized in
all four dioceses of the state.
The first academic courses were offered in January of 1998 at two sites.
A total of nine students were enrolled.
Early on it was acknowledged that a college/university degree does not
guarantee the formation that the bishops judge appropriate for ecclesial
lay ministry certification. At the same time, those who have college
credits and degrees often are able to establish equivalency; that is to
say, they have already met some of the requirements established for ELM
certification. Even then some additional work, minimal as it may be,
normally is required before certification is granted. But, since the
focus is on specific formation and a commission by the diocesan bishop,
one does not have to have a college/university degree to win ELM
certification.
The first ELM graduate sailed through on the basis of equivalency.
Casework had been taken at the University of Notre Dame and Loyola
University. Certification was granted in July 2000.
In that same year, Dr. Anne D. Roat became the full-time director of the
Ecclesial Lay Ministry program. She was joined in September by Paul
Shireman, who is the program’s associate director. They completed
development of the pastoral skills and spiritual formation components of
ELM. In 2002 they were joined by Administrative Assistant Linda Harmon.
Information sessions routinely are held around the diocese to explain
ELM and its requirements, with constant reminders that those who hold
specific parish positions are expected to get certification.
In October 2001, Helen Klemme of St. Ann Parish in Lafayette received an
equivalency in the program and Ken Holley of Sorrowful Mother in
Wheatfield became the first person to complete all three components of
the ELM program.
More graduations followed. In October 2002, Claire Baker of St.
Alphonsus in Zionsville, Jim MacDougall of St. Lawrence in Muncie, Steve
Miller of St. Maria Goretti in Westfield, Louise Renz of St. Cecilia in
DeMotte, and Karen Sward of St. Joan of Arc in Kokomo completed the
program, while Ron Morrow of St. Patrick in Kokomo received equivalency
certification.
In October 2003, Connie Calmer-Anderson of St. Maria Goretti in
Westfield, Ed Clifford of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in Carmel, Chuck Damler
of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Carmel, Fred Laud of Sorrowful Mother in
Wheatfield, Phil May of St. Peter in Winamac, Al McConahay of St. Ann in
Lafayette, and Paul Shireman of St. Boniface in Lafayette completed the
program, while Pat Gallagher of St. Alphonsus in Zionsville and Mike
Witka of Our Lady of Grace in Noblesville received equivalencies.
In January 2005, Brigid Ayer of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in Carmel, Mary
Burford of St. Mary in Muncie, Maurice Cohagan of St. Ann in Kewanna,
Anne-Marie Damler of Our Lady of Grace in Noblesville, Marlene Mattox of
St. Lawrence in Lafayette, Jose Munoz of St. Boniface in Lafayette, Joe
Rice of St. John the Baptist in Tipton, Joe Van Schepen of St. Cecilia
in DeMotte, Winnie Van Schepen of St. Cecilia in DeMotte, Vaughn Vernier
of St. Louis de Montfort in Fishers, and Kay White of All Saints in
Logansport completed the program, while Ary Nelson, formerly of St.
Augusta in Lake Village, was given an equivalency.
Plans are already under way for the ELM graduation in October 2005.
Presently 16 individuals are eligible for graduation/certification. Anne
Roat herself, having a doctoral degree, will be among this year’s
graduates after transferring coursework done at St. Mary-of-the-Woods
College and the University of Notre Dame. Four other individuals who are
currently aspirants for the permanent diaconate also are eligible to
graduate in October.
In addition to the 30 individuals who have graduated from the ELM
program, there are currently 194 students enrolled. They attend academic
classes at seven different sites across the diocese, with an eighth site
(Blessed Theodore Guerin High School) set to start this month.
ELM certification is required of those seeking the permanent diaconate.
Five graduates are slated for ordination to the permanent diaconate on
Sept. 17.
More on the ELM program in a future edition. |
