WE WALK BY FAITH

COMMUNITY:

1. What programs, ministries, activities and resources does the parish or campus ministry offer to help enliven and deepen the faith of its members? How often do these take place? (weekly, monthly, annually) How many people regularly attend these events? What parish committees coordinate and oversee these events and how many parishioners are involved in the planning?

2. How does the parish or campus ministry actively invite all its members to take part in the sacramental life of the Church? Is preparation for the sacraments a shared ministry? What programs are used for the various sacraments? How many people are involved in conducting these programs? Is sacramental preparation seen as an opportunity to invite individuals to be a more active part of the parish community? Does the parish strive to provide opportunities for all the sacraments to be celebrated in a community context?

3. How does the parish or campus ministry share its ministries and resources with other neighboring parishes? What interaction is there with neighboring parishes? Is there an awareness of the needs of neighboring parishes and of the area? If part of a cluster of parishes, how are resources allocated and managed? What services are shared? What cooperative efforts exist? How many people are involved in the cooperative efforts?

4. Through what programs does this parish or campus ministry express its commitment of outreach to the poor, the sick and the homebound, the youth and young adults, the elderly? How many parishioners are involved in these programs? Who coordinates and oversees them? How successful has the faith community been in implementing these programs?

5. To what extent does the membership of this parish or campus ministry honestly reflect the ethnic and cultural make-up of the wider community in which it is situated? Are the traditions and practices of these cultures adequately and appropriately integrated into faith activities and sacramental preparation and particularly into liturgy and worship?

6. How are parishioners who are college students or young adults encouraged to take an active role in the various ministries of the parish? How are their talents and skills properly recognized and adequately employed for the benefit of the whole community?

7. How are former members who return to the parish and members who participate less frequently welcomed by the pastoral leaders and parishioners? Are they invited to become more active in the community?

8. What are some of the concrete challenges to families living in the area and what is this parish doing to help families meet the challenges?

9. To what extent does the parish or campus ministry actively seek out, extend an invitation to and consciously welcome into the community immigrants and people from different cultures and inactive Catholics and the un-churched?

10. In what ways does the parish or campus ministry actively engage in dialogue, joint ministry and fellowship with other Christian denominations and with congregations from other faith traditions?

11. Is the parish and its leadership well-known to the local community and recognized for its participation in various local initiatives? Are these leaders representative of the parish community in terms of age, race and culture?

12. What methods does the parish or campus ministry use to communicate with all its members? Is the office staff sufficient, well-trained, hospitable and accessible? How is their effectiveness gauged? Where necessary, are there a sufficient number of staff members who are bilingual or multilingual? Is the bulletin well prepared? Does it contain valuable and timely information? Is a directory of parish members printed and distributed on a regular basis? Does the parish have a newsletter in either print or electronic Is there a parish website? Is there a telephone tree or some similar means of rapid communication with all members? Is email used as a method of mass communication? In integrated or multicultural parishes, are all forms of communication as bilingual or multilingual as possible?

13. How does the faith community use media and personal contacts to identify inactive and alienated Catholics? Are settings provided in which people might feel comfortable enough to express any concerns which might have kept them from participation in the church? Does the campus or parish address these concerns to the fullest extent allowed within the teaching of our church? How do we warmly welcome into our parishes those who take steps to return?

14. What are some of the gifts present in the parish or campus ministry that the members would offer to other local churches or ecclesial communities? What are the gifts in other churches or ecclesial communities which would enrich the parish’s Catholic life?

15. How does the parish or campus community recognize and support absent members of the community, for example, those who are sick or serving in the armed forces or are incarcerated in local jails and prisons?

16. How might the staff of the diocesan offices assist your parish to develop programs and processes important for full implementation of the COMMUNITY dimension

SERVICE:

1. What staff or systems are in place dedicated to the justice and peace/social ministry?

2. How is support provided to the justice and peace/social ministry, in terms of both personnel and budget?

3. In what way do volunteers serve in or support local interfaith or civic organizations that address specific human needs such as homelessness and hunger?

   provide assistance to battered spouses and children? provide alternatives to abortion for women faced with an unplanned pregnancy? work for social justice in the community (for example, affordable housing inclusive zoning, etc)? empower low-income persons, such as groups funded by the Catholic Campaign for Human Development?

4. How does the parish or campus ministry participate in legislative advocacy through the Virginia Catholic Conference, the Virginia Council of Churches and the Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy? How is awareness raised about legislative issues?

5. Does the parish or campus ministry promote global solidarity through twinning with Haiti or another developing country, educating on global issues or participating in Operation Rice Bowl or other programs of Catholic Relief Services? How is global solidarity promoted in the parish or campus ministry? What educational, participatory or travel opportunities are offered?

6. To what extent does the parish or campus ministry integrate education on Catholic social teaching and opportunities for service learning into its religious education programs and in the parish school? Does it promote participation in Just Faith and similar justice education programs?

7. Is there is a literature rack? Does it include materials on justice and peace and respect for creation?

8. How does the parish or campus ministry integrate justice and peace and respect for creation into liturgical celebrations (for example, Prayers of the Faithful, homilies, music and the sign of peace)?

9. justice, peace and respect for the life and dignity of all people into their everyday life and work?

10. How does the parish or campus community seek opportunities to discuss and address social and ethical questions with followers of the Gospel and other religious traditions?

11. Does the parish and school (if applicable) conserve energy or recycle paper, plastic and cans or otherwise demonstrate care for God’s creation (for example, using ceramic mugs instead of disposable cups)?

12. Are facilities accessible to persons with disabilities (those who are hard of hearing, who use wheelchairs or who are developmentally delayed)? Are programs designed to meet these parishioners’ needs? How are facilities and programs assessed for accessibility? Do we use people-first language when speaking or writing to a person with a disability?

13. How does the parish encourage participation of traditionally marginalized groups, such as racial and ethnic groups, women, low-income parishioners and persons with disabilities, in parish life and its leadership?

14. How does the parish call its members to be just stewards of their resources of time, talent and money? Does the parish provide ways of being financially accountable to its members?

15. Do the parish and school (if applicable) pay a living wage to its employees? Do the parish and school (if applicable) provide employee benefits in accordance with diocesan personnel policies?

16. Are parish facilities available for use by community groups addressing human needs, such as Alcoholics Anonymous and other support groups? How are community and neighborhood concerns integrated into the life of the parish?

17. Does the parish make use of the resources available through the diocesan Office of Justice and Peace?

18. How might the staff of the diocesan offices assist your parish to develop programs and processes important for full implementation of the SERVICE dimension for We Walk by Faith?

WORD:

1. How does the parish or campus ministry impart a knowledge of the Catholic faith and challenge and support adults to develop a mature Catholic faith?

2. How does the parish provide age-appropriate and diverse faith formation opportunities to children, youth and adults?

3. How does the parish challenge its members to be active disciples in family, work and civic society?

4. How does the parish use technology to communicate and to promote and expand its ministry of the Word?

5. Does the parish or campus ministry provide references or library resources, or make known where such resources are available, to help community members in their progress toward a deeper understanding of the Word and teaching of the church?

6. Describe the catechetical vision and practices that the pastor or campus 1 minister and catechetical leader exhibit in guiding the parish’s ministry of the Word.

7. Describe the relationship between the parish and the school and how each might better learn from and support the other (if applicable).

8. How does the parish or campus ministry respond to the need for a trained catechetical leader to direct its ministry of the Word and for trained catechists?

9. How does the parish or campus community truly “proclaim itself to be the place of authentic ecumenical witness” (Directory for the Application of Principles and Norms on Ecumenism, and inter-religious witness?

10. How does the parish or campus ministry integrate and build upon the dynamic interrelationship of Word and Worship?

11. How might the staff of the diocesan offices assist your parish to develop programs and processes important for full implementation of the WORD dimension for We Walk by Faith?

WORSHIP:

1. To what extent are the youth and children of the parish invited to be a part of the liturgical celebrations?

2. Does the parish track attendance at Mass? (This information can be helpful in making decisions about liturgy; for example, scheduling of Masses)

3. How do the liturgical celebrations of the parish or campus ministry take into account the various ethnic groups represented by those present in the parish or campus ministry?

4. How does the parish assure the occasional celebration of carefully designed bilingual or multilingual liturgies to bring the different ethnic groups of the parish together?

5. Does the music program provide music at liturgy that is appropriate to the community and context of the parish or campus ministry? Does the music program enhance the Eucharistic liturgy and other worship services? How is this assessed?

6. To what extent do the preachers of the parish receive resources to continue to improve their homiletic skills? Do the homilies within the parish provide true spiritual nourishment for the people of God who gather at the liturgy to be fed at the table of God’s Word? How is this assessed?

7. Does the parish or campus ministry offer formation opportunities for liturgical ministers? Does the parish or campus ministry communicate about diocesan liturgical formation opportunities?

8. Do the hymnals, liturgy programs and other printed worship aids encourage the participation of the assembly? Are these printed materials worthy of use in the liturgical context?

9. To what extent do the leaders of the parish or campus ministry call forth and invite people to share their gifts through liturgical ministry? When was the last time that the parish or campus ministry invited people to be trained for liturgical ministries?

10. In what ways do the parishes within each region look for opportunities to share liturgical resources? How do parishes in a region cooperate in the formation and training of liturgical leaders? How could the parishes adjust Mass schedules or times for communal reconciliation services and other celebrations to make better use of the liturgical leadership within that region?

11. Has the parish or campus undertaken a thorough review of the accessibility of its buildings and property for those who have some form of disability? What accessibility issues exist in the current buildings or practices? What assessment tools could be used to address these issues? Are those affected involved in assessment or decision making?

12. Is the worship space accessible so that people who use wheelchairs, crutches or other mobility aids can serve as ushers, lectors and Eucharistic ministers?

13. How is the sacrament of Reconciliation encouraged to stress the importance of this practice in promoting spiritual development of individuals and the whole parish?

14. How might the staff of the diocesan offices assist your parish to develop programs and processes important for full implementation of the WORSHIP dimension for We Walk by Faith?