This article is from page 13 of the 2012-11-13 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 13 JPG
LAY Clare people involved in the Killaloe Diocese’s listening process, believe that change in the church must begin locally, even if many of the recommendations suggested by the process can only come from The Vatican.
West Clare woman Maureen Kelly, who is part of the steering committee for the listening process, believes that local engagement in relation to issues like ordaining women priests can have a knock-on effect on overall church policy.
“Any change must begin with what we can influence ourselves – our sphere of influence as those who write about change put it. We may not be able to effect all that people are asking. There are issues on which the wider Church must decide,” said Maureen.
“There is however much we can do locally to ensure that the issues people have raised are addressed. Change begins on the ground and that has a wider impact.
“The issue of ministry of women is frequently raised as one we cannot change. There is much we can do locally to enhance the participation of women and their input into decisionmaking at local level.”
While Bishop Kieran O’Reilly has prompted this process to take place – he has not taken an active steering role to order to allow both lay people ad parish priests to express their opinions in freedom.
“Listening is the first step in engaging with people. Bishop Kieran made this clear when the process began. He wanted to give people an opportunity to express their views on the present reality of the Diocese. He wanted to give space to people to say what is on their minds. The working out of a response will take time but there is a commitment to doing so,” continued Maureen.
“It is also important to give people who are involved on a regular basis to speak their truth. As the conversations go on people gain confidence in speaking the truth of what is important to them, in speaking about how important a faith dimension to life is.
“A comprehensive report has been prepared on the collated findings from the conversations we’ve had to this point. An outline of findings will soon be available for distribution throughout the diocese for those who might not have the time to read the full report.
“We are presently going back to the Parish Councils in the Clusters to present the report and it is being warmly received. The Report is also available on the Diocesan webpage.”