PARISH COUNCIL
The purpose of the Parish Pastoral Council is to foster full participation of the entire parish in the life and mission of the parish and the Universal Church. The parish faith community participates in this mission by:
- Worshipping God
- Creating and nurturing Christian Community
- Growing in Faith and Holiness
- Serving those in need, especially the poor
Members of the parish council are elected by the parishioners.
http://archphila.org/pastplan/INDEX/PPCindex.html
Parish Council Meeting - November 25, 2019
In attendance: Fr. Murphy, Monsignor Carroll, Sr. Thomasina, Sue Phelan, Regina Jean Claude, Maryann Cassidy, Gina Flatley, John Cooke, Dave Maile, Dan Hilferty, Joe McGonigal, Bob Gross, Amy Brennan, Mike Fohner, Anna Louise Votta, Nick Caramanico, Kim Gerace, Jack Ruffenach
In Absentia: John Donnelly, Tom Judge
The Parish Council began the meeting, as we always do, by praying with gratitude to God for His many blessings, and asking for His guidance and help in discussing Parish business and making wise and careful decisions. A review of parish activities since the last meeting as well as upcoming activities followed.
Parish Activity Document
The Parish Council continued to update the report submitted to Archbishop Chaput in 2015. Corrections were made to
Concentration #5: A Parish Responsive to Others: Pastoral Outreach and Service to Justice and to
Concentration #6: An Effectively Administered Parish: Leadership and Care of Facilities, Personnel and Finances.
Anniversary Mass
53 married couples renewed their wedding vows on Sunday, October 20 during the 10:00AM Mass. All couples who celebrated a milestone in five year increments (married in 2014, 2009, 2004, 1999, etc.) were invited to participate along with all couples married prior to 1969 who were married for fifty years or more.
Parish Coat Drive
The parish coat drive was held the weekends of November 9-10 and November 16-17. Parish Council would like to thank all who contributed to this year’s coat drive. Because of your continued generosity we collected 289 coats. The coats were given to BVM Parish in Darby and Saint Katharine Drexel in Chester.
Special thanks to Amy Brennan and her son Matt Brennan, Dan and Monica Hilferty, Sue Phelan, and Regina Jean Claude for their assistance with this project.
October Count
Every year during the weekends in October Nick Caramanico and Paul Riley count the people in attendance at all Masses. The count includes adults as well as children present at any given Mass. The count is done in order to complete a report that must be submitted to the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. The overall attendance at Sunday Masses during October has remained the same when compared to the same month in 2018. The average attendance for each weekend in October was 1,366. This is approximately 22% of the parishioners registered at St. Dorothy Church.
Letter to a Suffering Church
The Parish Council discussed Chapters 1 & 2 of Bishop Robert Barron’s book Letter to a SufferingChurch. Bishop Barron’s book deals with the sexual abuse crisis in today’s Church. He describes some of the abuse that has taken place in New York and Pennsylvania. The Council noted that even though the numbers of nonbelievers and Catholics leaving the Church are staggering, Bishop Barron forbids us to give up hope. He reminds us that “everything we love in the Church is still present and is worth defending.” He references Abraham, Lot, Eli and David as people in Scripture who did not escape the moral oversight and sanction of God. Bishop Barron concludes Chapter 2 with a look at Jesus in relation to children. Every child is assigned a supernatural guide who is intimately linked to God. Bishop Barron states that those who were ordained to act in the person of Christ have now become obstacles to Christ.
Class Masses
The remaining class Masses for the current school year are as follows:
Sunday, January 12, 2020 10:00AM Grade 4
Sunday, February 23, 2020 10:00AM Grade 5
Sunday, March 22, 2020 10:00AM Kindergarten
Sunday, May 3, 2020 10:00AM Grade 2
The next Parish Council meeting will be held February 17, 2020 at 7:30 PM.
2020 Parish Council Members
Fr. Murphy
Monsignor Carroll
Sr. Thomasina
Amy Brennan
Nick Caramanico
Maryann Cassidy
John Cooke
Deacon John Donnelly
Gina Flatley
Mike Fohner
Bob Gross
Dan Hilferty
Regina Jean Claude
Tom Judge
David Maile
Deacon Joe McGonigal
Sue Phelan
Jack Ruffenach
Anna Louise Votta