Like an MBA for Catholic pastors

Thirty-two of us graduated today.  The Diocese of Pittsburgh cohort #2 of the "Good Leaders Good Shepherds" program concluded with a festive lunch and graduation.  

The GLGS program came about because so many clergy realized that the seminary teaches men how to be priests, but does not teach us how to be pastors.  This responsibility of teaching men how to pastor had devolved upon the local church.  In decades past, a newly ordained priest could trust that he would have three assignments of at least five years each in different parishes prior to becoming a pastor.  (At least this was the custom in the large Northeast and Midwest U.S. dioceses.  In smaller dioceses, and in mission territories, a man might become a pastor in only a year or two.)  If the learning did not come explicitly from the pastor's mentoring, it came by osmosis and observation.  But as our priestly numbers have shrunk, so has the time between ordination and becoming a pastor.  In our diocese it's now not unusual for men to assume pastoring responsibility after only four or five years of ministry   

At the same time, pastoring has become more complex.  "Going My Way" went and gone years ago.  Today's U.S. pastor has to deal with millions of dollars of buildings and income, and guide a dozen or more paid staff.  I've met pastors from Texas and Florida with 20,000 or 30,000 people in their parish.  The Five L's of Administration -- lights, leaks, locks, loot and lawns -- have been supplemented by the leadership, multiple languages of immigrants, lawsuits and the occasional loony.

To respond to the felt need of so many priests and bishops, the Catholic Leadership Institute created the "Good Leaders, Good Shepherds" program.  In the words of their website:

"Using Jesus Christ as the ultimate shepherd and model of leadership, the Good Leaders, Good Shepherds curriculum for clergy was specifically designated to help Catholic priests overcome the challenges today of a diminishing number of clergy and more complex circumstances for priestly ministry.  The goal is to minimize the frustration and energy spent on their administrative roles and maximize the joy and time spent on the pastoral duties for which they were uniquely ordained.  The impact will be more holy, healthy, and happy shepherds of vibrant parish communities, leading more people to a deeper relationship with Christ."  ( Visit www.catholicleaders.org ) 

The curriculum uses the best contemporary business practices and applies them to the world of the 21st century U.S. Catholic parish.  GLGS sees leadership in five contexts:  self, one-to-one, team, organizational and strategic alliance/relational.  We attended 30 full days of workshops over the past 18 months.  The GLGS program takes pride in avoiding like the plague boring lectures.  Rather, the "learning leaders" engage us with multimedia, role playing, small and large group discussion, personal reflections, even the occasional movie.  (We watched "Hoosiers," "The Karate Kid," "Twelve Angry Men," "Romero" and "Keys of the Kingdom."   Each one showed us the concepts we were learning in vivid narrative.)  We were constantly exhorted to take what we learned and apply it to our pastoral situations.  It was not all work.  Our "final exam" came by our learning teams competing with "GLGS Jeopardy."   

Along the way we priests, along with our diocesan bishop, David Zubik, not only learned a new language of leadership, with such ideas as DISCposition, phases of performance, sponsor and charter documents, team formation and nurture.  We also grew a little closer as a presbyterate, in priestly bonds of fraternity.

And so today at our graduation, Catholic Leadership Institute executive director Father Bill Dickinson congratulated us on our perseverance.  He likened our certificate of achievement to receiving an MBA in Catholic pastoring.  He also gently challenged us, saying that completing the hours and hours of workshop only brings us 20% of the potential of the curriculum.  We have to see GLGS with the vision of a three, five, or seven year implementation.  If we apply the GLGS concepts in our parishes and pastoral situations, we can really break open the potential of what we learned, to become excellent Christian leaders in the manner of Jesus Christ, and to build up alive and vibrant and energized Catholic parishes.

I am most grateful for our bishop and diocese to bring GLGS here, and for the opportunity to experience a vision of what excellent leadership might look like.  The end of the workshops comes as I begin pastoring four parishes in New Castle.  For years we priests have been exhorted to "work smarter, not harder."  Now, along with my two fine parochial vicars, and the dedicated volunteer members of our pastoral and finance councils, I have the chance to put this rich learning into practice.