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Our own Federation has been drawn into this
vortex. Responding to a Position Statement passed two years ago,
we have embarked on a journey of retooling the organization in
order to deepen our network by providing more effective service
going forward. In January of 2012, our Board chose SSA
Consultants to conduct the study. This past January, the Board
accepted five priorities recommended as a result of that study,
and your Board is now at work on them. These priorities are: .
·
Strengthen the FDLC engagement with
the Bishops’ Committee on Divine Worship;
·
Redesign the current organizational
leadership model;
·
Redefine the FDLC governance
infrastructure;
·
Pursue the development of a
comprehensive vendor partnership with Faith Catholic;
·
Redesign the National Meeting.
The priorities are clear and
logical and very likely not a great surprise. They distill and
organize much conversation about the Federation taking place over
recent years.
We have begun this journey by
restructuring the position of Executive Director, realizing that
this position is pivotal to the accomplishment of our goals. In
order to seek the best candidate, we have begun a nation-wide
search, inviting all interested candidates to apply. Interested
parties may go to our web site
www.fdlc.org for further information.
The road ahead might be a bit bumpy
at times. This is the nature of change. But as we journey
through the rough spots, we also discover new possibilities. For
example, the National Meeting might seem different because of a
different way of sharing with the Bishops’ Committee on Divine
Worship. But though a more effective conversation, we might be of
greater assistance to the Bishops and to their Secretariat as we
collaborate in service to the liturgical life of the Church in our
nation, identifying liturgical concerns more clearly and
addressing them more collaboratively.
As we continue this vital work of
the Federation, I’m grateful to Lisa Tarker, to Joe Skeffington
and to Dianne Jimmink at the National Office as they serve in the
midst of all this flux. I’m grateful to the Executive Committee
and to the Board of Directors for their vision and insight. I’m
grateful to Msgr. Rick Hilgartner, Fr. Dan Merz and to the bishops
of the Committee on Divine Worship for their openness and their
support. I’m grateful to our members for their loyalty to the
cause and for their passion for the liturgical life of our nation.
I look forward to seeing all of you in Erie, Pa. In October. |
