Diocese Stages Successful Pastoral Congress Follow Up Meeting
The Pastoral Congress follow up meeting held at the Grenada Trade Centre Annex on Saturday February 13th has been labelled a tremendous success.
The exercise provided a platform for updates on progress made by the various parishes, following the hosting of the Diocesan Pastoral Congress in July 2020.
Bishop Clyde Martin Harvey in his welcome remarks encouraged members of the various parish councils in the diocese, to hear the challenge of the Lord and rise up to meet it, as he spoke on the theme “Being and Becoming Church in Grenada”
Six mandates were adopted coming out of last year’s meeting to which parish councils were encouraged to step up their missionary role within their communities particularly as the Diocese and the region grapple with the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Speaking at the end of the successful and well managed meeting the representative from the St Dominic’s Parish Lorna Samuel said “We are deeply motivated in our drive to Live Church Build Community and Serve our Country, and I am extremely pleased to be exposed to the level of work undertaken by the various parishes. I am impressed and I am elated.”
Samuel gave the assurance that every existing project within the St Dominic’s Parish will be strengthened. “Parishes will definitely undertake different projects based on location and resources, but after today there is an energy to serve Christ through community outreach – I am amazed the magnitude of work in the other parishes.”
Yvonne Richards-Scoon from the St Peter’s Parish echoed the sentiments of Mrs. Samuel hailing the day’s undertaking a major success. “It is really good to come out here today and learn of all this work from the various parishes” Mrs. Richards-Scoon said. “We at St Peter’s continue with our Soup Kitchen Initiative and other programmes embracing the needs of the community and parishioners with a lot of emphasis as well on our young people” she added.
The representative from St Martin De Porres, Ishmel Pierre shared with the news team, that they held an Independence Day Exhibition, which was geared at fostering an interactive environment for participants to hear from each other. “I am a bit taken aback at the depth of work undertaken in most of the parishes and this will serve as a catalyst for us to get moving, though I must admit that we do have some work going on”, Mr. Pierre stated.
Presentations were made by CARITAS on the Diocese’s Disaster Preparedness Plan, while updates were provided by Carriacou and Petite Martinique, Sacred Heart Parish Tivoli, Our Lady Help of Christians Beaulieu, and Blessed Sacrament Grand Anse.
Each representative highlighted strides made in the areas of Food Security, Education and Mental health. Those three platforms were adopted by Bishop Clyde Martin Harvey as main areas of focus on the way forward for the local Church. Participants along with the Zoom audience were all captivated by each of the presentations.
Mention must be made of the boat project and the Mt Gava After-school Programme at Mt. Toute, from the Blessed Sacrament Parish; the Outreach and Education Programme from Carriacou and Petite Martinique; agricultural projects undertaken by Sacred Heart Parish, Tivoli as well as agricultural projects by the youth from Our Lady Help of Christians. There was also a moonlight walk initiative among the youth.
All of the parishes reported increased activities and awareness pertaining to Mental Health. Mental Health dominated discussions at the February 13th 2021 meeting, following a detailed presentation by Mrs. Meryl Roberts. She reiterated the importance of both individual and family recognising the need for help in its earliest stages. During her presentation, participants were exposed to a wide range of preventative measures; the focus was on addressing the stages of mental deterioration and destigmatizing the issue.
The February 13 meeting was facilitated via zoom in keeping with Covid 19 Protocols.
