|
Main Menu
|
|
|
|
|
Volunteerism in the Archdiocese of Armagh |
 |
 |
 |
The government taskforce on active citizenship recently carried out a national survey on volunteerism. In conjunction with this work Fr Harry Bohen, on behalf of the taskforce, contacted Archbishop Brady asking him three questions with regard to volunteerism. Archbishop Brady asked me to respond on his behalf. Here is what I sent to Fr Bohen having surveyed a variety of people working in different roles in the diocese.
What are the main trends or changes in the extent and nature of volunteerism within the Church in your own diocese?
Some of the changes with regard to the extent and nature of volunteerism within the diocese include:
- Overall, there has been a decline in the number of people volunteering.
- There is a growth in the number of older people who are retiring early who are making their time and talents available to the parish and the diocese.
- Volunteers are more likely to come forward where they identify a real need for which they have the skills with which to make a contribution.
- People who in the past would have volunteered for church activities are increasingly volunteering for other community based volunteer organizations, particularly care based organizations.
- There are fewer volunteers for service activities such as cleaning and hospitality leading to an increased dependence on paying for such services.
- Volunteers are more likely to commit to short-term projects than long-term projects.
- There are more opportunities for volunteers and there is a greater need for volunteers.
- There is an increased need for specialized volunteers, for example, people with financial, legal, counseling, facilitation and language skills.
- There is much more caution and attention given to the character and quality of volunteers recruited, particularly in areas of care of vulnerable people and children.
- The many new national in the country have particular needs leading to a rise in the demand for volunteers who can support them.
What, do you believe are the main reasons for this change?
Some of the factors militating against volunteerism in the diocese include:
- The cultural shift form a pre-modern to a post-modern mindset that would include increased individualism and consumerism leading to a decreased sense of responsibility for community.
- Increased secularization had led to a decline in church membership and thus a decline in the numbers available to volunteer.
- The coming to light of clerical sexual abuse of children and the matters related to it has done considerable damage to trust among many people, leading to a decrease in willingness to be involved with the church.
- The cost of living, and particularly the cost of housing and the expectations around standards of living have greatly increased financial pressures on families leading to the demand that spend more time working and taking second jobs.
- As our society provides increased opportunities for children and others to participate in a range of social and cultural activities, parents spend more time responding to the demands of bringing children to classes, events etc.
- More young people are feeling the need to have money for social activities and are therefore seeking part time jobs in their spare time.
- There has been a massive expansion in the number of voluntary organizations which makes it increasing difficult for any one organization to find volunteers and is in part creation the impression that are less volunteers.
- As a church we creating time boundaries that enable volunteers to be assured that their time of volunteering has an end as well as a beginning.
Some of the factors that support volunteerism in the diocese are:
- An increased awareness of the teachings of the Second Vatican Council with regard to baptism, which emphasizes the rights and responsibilities of the baptized in participating in the mission of the church.
- Coupled with this is a declericalizing of ministry, which in the past would have suggested that all church ministry is the responsibility of the clergy alone.
- This awareness that relationship with Christ calls us to an active care of our neigbour and to a commitment to justice is leading people to volunteer in a wide variety of voluntary organizations.
- Volunteers who receive training, support, recognition and a sense of belonging, who are given short-term projects and are equipped to carry out the task develop a sense of their own worth and value. They know that what they do makes a difference and it gives them the motivation to volunteer again.
The demands on organizations to have accreditation has, on the one hand hampered volunteerism in that it has discouraged some people from volunteering and on the other hand has enhanced it in that volunteers are better equipped which gives them an increased sense of confidence and security.
What is currently happening or planned to happen to address this change in the diocese?
- As a diocese we continue to support many of the excellent voluntary organizations by encouraging church members to participate in them and by publicizing in parish bulletin, announcement etc events they are holding and the needs that they have.
- The impact of a decline of volunteers and the underlying causes has had an impact on the morale of priests and lay people who constantly attempting to recruit volunteers. To address this we recently held training for priests, led by Mr. Jim Campbell of the Institute of Cultural Affairs, Belgium, on how to act as facilitative leaders. We have invited Br. Loughlan Sofield to address the diocesan pastoral council on participation in the mission of the church. He will also spend four days engaging with the priests of the diocese on matters of morale and strategies for working effectively in collaboration with lay people.
- We have recognized the need for the training and support of volunteers. Thus we provide better training for volunteers who participate in church activities and in the outreach activities of the church.
- To this end we have, in the last three years, employed four lay people who are primarily involved in recruiting volunteers, providing them with training, on-going support and the opportunity to reflect on their work.
- We have developed a diocesan pastoral plan, which has increased the need for volunteers and the opportunity for people to volunteer. It has also identified some of the major needs that we need to be responding to as a church in the next few years.
- We are committed to the formation of parish pastoral councils, which are a structure that identifies the needs of the community on the one hand and on the other hand identifies the gifts in the community that can meet the identified needs.
- We have transformed our approach to the formation of parish pastoral councils. In the past we offered some preliminary training and then left them to their own devises. We now have a five-part process in place, facilitated by diocesan personnel, which entails:
- An initial information period for the whole parish on parish pastoral councils;
- A formation programme for those who will serve on the council;
- Working with the newly formed parish pastoral council on becoming an effective team;
- Bringing them through a process in which they form their three-year strategic plan;
- A quarterly evaluation and review of the work of the council.
- We have developed a child protection policy. All parishes and diocesan church based organizations are to have a policy in place.
- We have developed training programmes in the areas of youth ministry, family ministry, liturgy and bereavement ministry by way of ensuring that those involved are equipped to carry out their role and have more confidence in doing so.
- We take great care in recruiting volunteers, particularly in areas where they will be working with children or vulnerable adults.
All of the above arises out of conversations I have had with a variety of people working in different jobs in different areas of the diocese. In the light of these I recognize that we still face many challenges in the area of volunteerism. The final comments are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Archbishop Brady on whose behalf I have tired to accurately respond to the three questions offered by Fr Harry Bohan.
In my opinion, there is much to be done. We have not, for example, formally addressed the changing nature of volunteerism and its impact on the diocese. Giving it specific attention and inviting a wide range of voices to address the issue would be a great help. We have not, to any great extent, engaged in training in strategies to recruit volunteers or sought the wisdom of volunteer recruitment organizations. We have not sufficiently, in our parishes and church based voluntary organizations recognized the tremendous pay off that there is in putting adequate resources into training volunteers and meeting their out of pocket expenses. The amount of hours and work such trained volunteers could give by way of service in church, community and society could not be paid for. We struggle to find a balance between how much time volunteers are willing to commit and the amount of time it takes to adequately train volunteers to carry out their assigned tasks effectively.
I hope that this information is of some help to you in forming a picture of volunteerism within the church in Ireland. I look forward to hearing more as the picture emerges.
Andrew McNally
Office of Pastoral Renewal and Family Ministry
On behalf of Archbishop Sean Brady, Archdiocese of Armagh |
© All material on this website is copyright of the Office of Pastoral Renewal and Family Ministry, Archdiocese of Armagh
Designed and developed by GetOnline
|
|
|
|
Search
CatholicIreland.net Features
|
|
Parish 
