Parish Council

A parish council is a group of people chosen from and by the parish, who together with the pastor seek to fulfill the mission of the Church by accepting the responsibility to guide, to determine the direction of the parish, and oversee its pastoral activity and temporal affairs.

As the primary policy-formulating body of the parish, this group makes decisions for the parish by responding to the needs of the parishioners and discerning the will of God in a particular community of believers. The work of the parish council is focused by the parish mission statement and articulated in long and short-range planning and goal setting.

The parish council exists to ensure that the parish is carrying out its stated mission and that the pastoral needs of all parishioners are met. These needs include the formation of community, proclamation of the Gospel message, and service to each other and the global community. Parish councils seek to involve the broadest base of participation from parishioners, making a variety of experiences available to parish members.

The parish council also fulfills a visionary role in the parish, leading the community into the future based on an awareness of the teachings, traditions and experience of both the local and universal Church. This important responsibility is carried out in the context of prayer and spiritual growth.

The entire parish needs to be aware of the responsibilities of the parish council and its current activities. Parishioners need to feel that the parish council represents them in its leadership of the parish. Conversely, the parish council members humbly accept the responsibility of representing ALL voices in the parish in seeking to discern the will of God in the local community. The St. Vincent Pallotti Parish Council consists of 10-12 members, each serving a three-year term. Each spring parishioners who accept nomination go through an election/discernment process, and new members join the council, replacing those who have completed their terms. This ensures that the council always has a blend of experience and fresh opinions.