Balally Parish Pastoral Council Meeting, November 2015

Back: Fr. Peter Byrne, Paul Hand, Andrew Morgan, John Fitzgerald, Frank Finnegan.

Front: Geraldine Kelly, Breda Kinsella, Audrey Downling, Brid Fitzgerald, Mgr. Dermot Lane.

Missing: Fr. Padraig McCarthy, Mrs. Eilis Pollard

The Parish Pastoral Council is a structure within the church concerned with the pastoral activities of parish life.  It is made up of a representative body of the faithful and includes the priests of the parish.  The Parish Pastoral Council shares the responsibility for building the parish into a vibrant Christian community that promotes Gospel values of love, justice and peace.  It is a consultative body of leaders who actively seek the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and are guided by the teachings, laws and recommendations of the universal church and the local diocesan church.

In Fr. Peter’s words; “The Parish Team operates with the advice of a group of people who have been elected or chosen to represent the different demographic realities of the Parish; the PPC. These men and women keep the Parish on the track of its Mission Statement and ensure that decisions are taken after careful debate and consensus.

The Parish Pastoral council is the fulfilment of the vision of the Church handed down by Vatican II. It puts the lay members and the clerical members of the Church together as a single body, a single Spirit and a single community.”