Institute for Ministries

The Institute for Ministries exists to develop, support and coordinate those programs and services which prepare people in diocesan-identified ministries to carry out their responsibilities in a competent manner. To this end, the Institute in cooperation with parishes, deaneries, diocesan institutions and the office of central administration strive to prepare lay ministers so that they are competent, effective and faith filled.

Mission Statement

As a means of assisting him in his role as chief shepherd in fostering the unity of the Church, protecting its authentic teaching and worship, and providing effective programs and services to meet the spiritual, pastoral, educational and social needs of the people entrusted to his care, the Diocesan Bishop has established the Institute for Ministries of the Diocese of Pittsburgh. The Institute for Ministries operates out of the Secretariat for Parish Life and Lay Leadership.

The Institute for Ministries exists to develop, support, and coordinate those programs and services which prepare people in diocesan-identified ministries to carry out their responsibilities in a competent manner. To that end, the Institute for Ministries aids the Bishop, pastors, and other pastoral leaders in recruiting, screening, preparing, certifying, supporting, and evaluating those called to serve in diocesan-identified ministries.

Guiding Principles

There are certain principles that underlie the work of the Institute for Ministries, defining its role in the diocesan Church.

First among these is the definition of the word ministry as applied to the institute's work. All committed Catholics recognize that, by virtue of their baptism, they are called to minister to the world by serving humanity for the kingdom of God. But the word ministry as commonly used by the Institute for Ministries refers to those specific roles which are recognized and authenticated by the Church because of their formal relation to the public, communal life of the Church.

Further, the institute recognizes that it cannot assume nor be delegated such basic parish responsibilities as initiation, catechesis and foundational spiritual formation. Preparation for "formal" ministry, the work of the institute, presupposes that a person has a basic foundation in the Catholic doctrine and spirituality.

But it recognized also that any ministry candidate's good will, personal piety and educational background must be augmented by specific preparation aimed at assuring that the minister is competent, effective and faith-filled.

There must be a deeper theological or intellectual preparation, skill development and solid spiritual formation, a three-fold readiness that the institute emphasizes. The good of the Church as well as the good of the person in ministry also requires continuing evaluation and formation.

It should be understood, too, that certification for a particular ministry is not automatically or necessarily followed by commissioning to undertake that ministry.

Finally this effort is a cooperative one involving the Institute for Ministries and parishes, institutions, deaneries, and diocesan central administration.

The Forms of Ministry

There are three groups of ministers with which the institute interacts. The first group includes those ministers who:

• have a leadership role in the parish;
• coordinate ministry in a specific area of need;
• are in ministries of word, sacrament and/or service;
• have an academic degree; and
• are paid ministers

In this category are director and coordinator of religious education, principal and assistant principal through the 12th grade level, director of music ministries, parish social minister, higher education campus minister, pastoral associate and youth minister. The Second group includes those minsters who:

• serve in the ministry of word, sacrament and/or service;
• are paid or volunteer; and
• are responsible for one specific ministry.

In this category are catechists for baptism preparation, CCD, RCIA, marriage preparation, special education, and elementary, middle and secondary school; preschool, kindergarten, elementary, middle and secondary school teachers; coordinators for bereavement team, elderly out reach, environment/art, liturgy, parish disaster, respect life, support group, and refugee sponsorship; catholic youth ministry and school coaches; and regular and health care eucharistic ministers. The second grouping also includes secondary school chaplain and counselor, cantor, catechumenate director, Catholic Scout leader, choir director, instrumentalist, lector, organist, persons with disabilities advocate, program manager, secondary school youth ministry team member, and youth worker. The third group includes those ministers who:

• serve in internal service, or
• are parish committee members, or
• are volunteers.

This category includes members of apostolate committee, parish pastoral council, evangelization committee, family life renewal team, finance council, Ladies of Charity; Married/Engaged Encounter team; Retrouvaille team, temporalities committee, worship committee and St. Vincent DePaul Society. Additional ministers in this category are bookkeeper, business manager, greeter/usher, health care and homebound visitors, parish service volunteer, prayer group leader, sacristan, secretary, altar server and sacramental sponsor.

The Work of the Institute

The Mission Statement of the Institute for Ministries sums up why the institute was founded and hints at what it does. In many ways, the institute serves as the catalyst for revitalizing and deepening the spiritual life of the near 800,000 Catholics in the diocese.
One major thrust in this effort is making sure that training methods and materials as well as consultation services are in place to identify, recruit and screen candidates for the ministries deemed vital in expanding God's kingdom on earth.

Putting these tools in place is just part of the story. The institute must make sure they are used effectively so that those who eventually serve in the many programs of the local church are competent to do so and are faith-filled.

The institute also must ensure that those in the ministries identified by the diocese as vital to its mission are not just trained but also receive the continuing support they need. To that end, the institute will provide continuing formation, resource materials and consultative services that will enable the ministers to persevere in their important work.

To foster unity and cooperation, the institute also will provide those elements that encourage collaboration in ministry among clergy, religious and laity.