STATEMENT OF BISHOP BRADLEY ON
PARISH LIFE COLLABORATOR APPPOINTMENT

The following statement is from Bishop Paul Bradley, auxiliary bishop and diocesan administrator, on the appointment of Sister Dorothy Pawlus, CSFN, as the first Parish Life Collaborator in the Diocese of Pittsburgh at St. Bartholomew Parish, Penn Hills:

“To ensure vibrant parishes, the Diocese of Pittsburgh has instituted a new parish leadership position called the Parish Life Collaborator. In a process begun in September 2004 under then-Bishop Donald Wuerl, the Parish Life Collaborator position was developed based on models from dioceses throughout the country and approved by the Church.

“After careful screening and training, seven applicants were approved for this new position. Sister Dorothy Pawlus, CFSN, has been appointed by me for our pilot program at Saint Bartholomew Parish, Penn Hills.

“We are experiencing a very real shortage of priests to serve as fulltime pastors in our parishes. Presently, there are 214 parishes in the Diocese of Pittsburgh with 21 priests serving as pastors or administrators of more than one parish. There are an additional 30 priests with at least two different assignments. Within the next five years it is projected that the number of active priests will be less than the number of parishes in our diocese.

“In many ways, this moment is bittersweet. While we are proud to name Sister Dorothy our first Parish Life Collaborator, we are reminded today in a concrete way of the shortage of vocations to the priesthood. All of us must pray together that the Holy Spirit will move more young men to consider the selfless, devoted service to the People of God found in the priesthood.”