Gratitude

• For the Passionist Family and Charism
• For faith sharing opportunities among the Passionist Family who are grounded in our love and commitment to remain faithful to the Passionist Charism
• For our efforts to listen in a more synodal way and seek out voices not heard
• That people are feeling part of the Province and willing to work together to look at the future

Uncertainty - can we continue

• To be open to the Holy Spirit and be willing to step out of our comfort zone
• To recognize the importance of cultivating a ‘habit of listening’ throughout the Passionist Family – open to ongoing conversion of mind and heart
• To acknowledge our need to continue to grow together, vowed and lay, united in the Charism
• Through the unknown, are we willing to move forward with the guidance of the Holy Spirit 
• With the process to decide and create which model to use for future leadership

Hopefulness

• We find our strength in the community experience
• Excitement and willingness to work together to carry the Charism forward
• An openness of everyone sharing
• Excited about the direction the Province is moving toward
• The interconnectedness of all three documents – they work together to embody the Charism more deeply
• Holy Cross Province is in a period of important transition and transformation – if that continues, the future is immensely hopeful

Concerned questioning 

• Need to continue to explore what it means to be Passionist Family and engage younger people
• How do we continue to refine the structure and mission of Holy Cross Province
• Need to open our eyes to the people we serve and the languages they speak
• The Extended Council is a step in the right direction but more work needs to be done to integrate the vowed and lay co-responsibilities and authority
• We need to address the power dynamics that are in play within our current system
• The leadership presentation could have been better modeled – perhaps  vowed and lay joint presenters
• Need to move from language of Vowed and Lay Passionists, to Passionists
• There is a general sense that many of the same people are on committees – in some ways this looks like more layers of management, ‘inside’ circles rather than enlarging the tent, still defaulting to imperial model – same old people
• How do we more openly name and address the challenges we face with moving forward as we address racism, sexism, comfort with status quo, power, fear and defensiveness
• Not enough diversity within our prayer experience or in the Pre-Chapter welcome – a little too ‘white’
• Need more effort to make the experience intercultural
• How can we be radical and intentional in our strategic ways to include and engage others, not only in dialogue, but in leadership and decision-making as well
• How can we ritualize or validate the various levels of lay involvement within the Province 

We are grateful for your presence at Pre-Chapter and for all that we heard in your honest sharing. We need you and your voice as we work together toward greater and deeper synodality and circular leadership. 

Together, we will continue to invite the Holy Spirit into our planning, dreaming and discernment as we move forward toward Chapter. We look forward to you participating in further preparations and conversations with us. Invitations will be sent to you soon.

Have a question or comment for us? We would like to hear from you. Contact us at chapter2023@passionist.org.

May the Passion of Jesus Christ be Always in our Hearts!

The Chapter Planning Committee