Diocesan conversations begin

GRENADA

“We are here to create the Kingdom of God in Grenada and we will do that only if the majority of us are selflessly at work in God’s name.”

This was the message from Bishop Clyde Harvey of St George’s-in-Grenada as he addressed attendees at the first in a series of “conversations” he has scheduled to listen to the people in the diocese.

The Catholic Focus October issue reported over 100 persons from the diocese’s 20 parishes, including representation from Carriacou and Petite Martinique attended the meeting on September 23, at Norton Hall, St George’s.

The Bishop noted collegiality and co-responsibility based on Pope Benedict XVI’s and Pope Francis’s pronouncements on the way forward for the Catholic Church, are important for clergy and laity to work together and be collectively responsible.

“Nothing will happen in this Church unless we work it together. We are all co-responsible to the Body of Christ. It is about reforming the Church, changing traditions; transparency; collective responsibility and effective leadership,” he said.

Bishop Harvey hoped that collegiality and co- responsibility would be strengthened in the years to come. He added that the faithful have a religious conversion to make if they are to really serve the Church as the Church needs to be served.

The day’s agenda included three working sessions. First, there was a plenary discussion on ‘What significant events and experiences have shaped your Catholic life’. Then came group discussion followed by group reports on ‘What do you think was good for the Church, and what do you think has been challenging for the Church’. The final session was more group discussion and reporting on ‘What do we need to address for the Church to move forward’.