By Sujata Jena
Bhubaneswar, Oct 23, 2023: The Conference of Catholic Bishops in India (CCBI) has organized a public strategic planning workshop for the Church in Odisha to help it focus on Synodality, Vatican-II documents, and New Evangelization in multi-religious and cultural contexts.
The October 16-18 workshop “was to revisit and revamp the CCBI vision, mission and its commissions, departments, apostolates’ goals and objectives, and key performance indicators,” Father Charles Leon, the coordinator of the CCBI Strategic Planning, told Matters India.
Father Leon, who is also the executive secretary of CCBI vocation, seminary, clergy and religious commission, said the workshop is part of India’ Latin rite bishops’ plan to celebrate its ruby jubilee (40 years) in 2028 and the Great Jubilee of Christ’s death in 2033.
“It is the right time to think of what God wants CCBI to be in 2033. Therefore, your contribution is paramount,” the priest told 56 bishops, diocesan priests, women and men religious, various regional and diocesan secretaries, lay and youth leaders who attended the workshop at Utkal Jyoti Regional Pastoral Center in Jharsuguda, a town in the eastern Indian state.
“You are not mere participants, but the stakeholders who were identified, elected, and invited. Collective energy and ownership are what is expected of you,” he added.
In his opening remark, Archbishop John Barwa of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar thanked those present and said, “We have come from different parts of Odisha but we have one mission: the mission of God. We must actively and consciously participate to discern what God wants from us. Through this, we make our journey relevant, fruitful and target-oriented as a church in Odisha.”
Jesuit Father Joe Xavier, the key resource person for the workshop and a core team member of CCBI Strategic Planning, explained that the program is the first step for Catholics in India to come together, pray, discern, and gain insights on how God wants them to change by 2033.
Father Xavier helped the participants understand in depth the CCBI’ commissions, departments, and apostolates. He also urged them to dream together to bring changes in the Church.
Father Xavier also explained how to make public strategic planning that includes mission directions, goals, and strategies.
The resource persons want the CCBI Strategic Planning to focus on specific areas of the church, Synodality, Vatican-II documents, and New Evangelization in multi-religious and cultural contexts.
The core values for the planning will be based on CCBI’s governing principles.
The CCBI was set up in 1988 as a wing of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India. It has now 132 dioceses, 23 archbishops, and 195 bishops. It has 16 commissions, four apostolates, and six departments.
The Catholic Bishops Conference of India is the national body of Latin, Syro-Malabar and Syro-Malankara rites that make the Catholic Church in India.
The workshop proposed appointing a deputy secretary to facilitate the process of CCBI Strategic Planning of each region
These secretaries will select around 6 members for the training of the trainers in each region.
The meeting suggested organizing a consultation for these secretaries of the North Zone on December 5 and for the south on December 11.
The organizers will conduct a Training of Trainers in New Delhi December 6-7 for the north zone, comprising Agra, North, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Bengal, North East, Odisha, Jharkhand, and Bihar.
Such a training for the south zone (Western Telugu, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka) will be held December 12-13 at Bengaluru.
These trainers will conduct one-day workshops in each diocese during January and February next year.
The workshop asked the organizers to conduct, document, and despatch details of such programs to the CCBI core team.
All these programs are expected to help 14 regions and 132 dioceses become more result-oriented.