St. Benedict the Moor Catholic Church belongs to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Savannah, Georgia. As a Diocese, we comprise 90 of the southern counties of the State. Each Diocese is led by a prelate bishop who serves as pastor of the mother church, the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in the city of Savannah. We are currently awaiting the installation of our new bishop from his holiness Pope Francis: Bishop-elect Stephen Parkes. To enable the local Churches to stay connected to the Bishop, the Diocese is made up of Deaneries, that is a cluster of parishes under a representative of the Bishop known as a Dean, who keeps the lines of communication open from parish to chancery.
We at St. Benedict, along with St. Anne, Our Lady of Lourdes, Holy Family and Christ the King form the Columbus Deanery. Each church is led by a Pastor, who is appointed by the Bishop to serve the people of God in his parish church. Friar Noel Danielewicz, OFM Conv. is the pastor of St. Benedict the Moor and a member of the Order of Franciscan Friars Conventual of from the Province of Our Lady of the Angels which is based out of Ellicott City, Maryland. He lives in fraternity with five other friars who service our sister-parishes. Friar Robert Schlageter is pastor of St. Anne and has two associate pastors:
Friar Emmanuel Vasconcelos and Friar Paul Pantiru. Friar Franck will be ministering at St. Anne-Pacelli High School as part of his formation experience this year. Finally, Friar Bob Benko who is the pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes and together these Franciscan Friars live at Franciscan Martyrs Friary.
THE PASTORAL COUNCIL:
Helping Fr. Noel share the leadership of the parish of St. Benedict the Moor are an elected body of six laymen and women who form the Pastoral Council. Their primary focus is the mission of the Church as reflected in our Mission Statement, that underscores the spiritual and pastoral needs of the Church.
In addition, the Council offers wisdom and insight in reaching out to the needs
of the local community in finding and creating ways of collaborative outreach.
Helping keep the momentum of "Growing the Church" we are reliant on the
the support and cooperation of seven committess that are accountable to the
Council. Each committee has a chair and membership to enable them to achieve their respective "pastoral service" to the Church. Our hope is to work towards collaborative interaction where we can see the fruits of Evangelization surface in welcoming new and former members home. We are a Church called and compelled to do the Mission of Jesus in the name of Jesus! AMEN!!
The following are the working committes of the Pastoral Council as we recognize
a need for clear and clean objectives to help us achieve our common GOAL that
seeks new membership and financial sustainability. The work of the Holy Spirit may set on fire members who have never left, but were reluctant or never asked to share their gifts and talents. We are looking for missionary disciples, who are willing to take the GOSPEL to the people. . .one person at a time. The vision of our Holy Father, Pope Francis as we attempt to follow his challenge to the universal Church.
There are eight committees that comprise the Pastoral Council:
Communications Committee Evangelization Committee
Faith Formation Committee Liturgy Committee
Hospitality Committee Maintenance Committee
Repast Committee Stewardship Committee
THE FINANCE COUNCIL:
The Finance Council is called together by the Pastor and five lay members, who are an invaluable resource of valuable advice and assistane in the execution of his parish financial administration duties. The Parish Finance Council does not have decision-- making authority, but is a consultative voice that enables a Pastor to make wise and prudent financial decisions. In order to be effective in their responsibilities as Council members, members should have a thorough understanding of the church's Mission, goals, structure, demographics; as well as, knowledge of diocesan statutes and policies regarding the temporal needs of the Church and the organizational flow of the Diocesan finances.
The principal duties of a parish Finance Council can be classified into three areas:
1. Strategic Planning
2. Capital and Operating Budget
3. Financial Recordkeeping