By Auxiliary Bishop Joseph Ha Chi-shing, OFM
I often visit different parishes and so does Cardinal Stephen, but the visit here refers to a kind of official pastoral visit, which is different from going to a parish to preside at the liturgy or take part in activities. Firstly, parish priests are given a questionnaire and are required to present to the bishop a recent update on various aspects of the parish, such as catechism, Sunday school, staff, pastoral team, pastoral direction of the parish, annual plans and financial situation, to name but a few. Then members of the diocesan curia, including at least Cardinal Stephen and the vicars general, and sometimes the chancellor and the procurator, visit the parish together. With these people, I believe that we can already see the standard of pastoral visits to a parish.
Normally, we arrive around 4.00pm and immediately talk to the pastoral team to find out about the work each of them is responsible for and the overall situation in the parish.
Often, the previous questionnaire will be the subject of our conversation. Later, we will look at the chapel, the parish office, and other parts of the parish, such as the classrooms used by the catechists and the Sunday school, the places where the pious associations meet, and so on. What do we need to see? Is it neat and clean? Are they properly maintained? Are important documents properly stored? Is the space well used?
In the evening, around six o’clock, it is the time for vespers. We will pray together with the pastoral team, and the pastoral council members, if they are free, are welcome to join us for dinner. Indeed, praying together is the best way to express the communion of the parish community, whereas eating together is a more relaxed way to have a conversation during the official visits, which is invaluable!
Experience has shown me that such occasions are a better opportunity to see the interaction between the pastoral staff and the community members, and to have a realistic glimpse into the atmosphere of the parish.
After a simple dinner, it is time for the pastoral council members, together with the pastoral team, to exchange views with us, the contents of which of course centre around parish life. In fact, what we talk about is of course important, but the frankness of brothers and sisters in the Lord and their listening to one another are already cherishable in themselves, as they can increase mutual trust and build up community, which is indeed the concrete implementation of synodality!
Since it is a weekday evening, it is not advisable to be too late. So generally speaking, pastoral visits to parishes end around nine o’clock. Needless to say, we are all reluctant to part!
When will we come back? Since the pastoral visits began at the end of 2022, only 11 parishes have been visited so far. It seems that it will not be possible to complete a cycle of visiting all the 52 parishes without taking three or four years! However, it is totally worthwhile because it is a concrete demonstration of the synodality of the Church!
