Listening first: How the Diocese of Covington is shaping a foundation and a pastoral plan for the next decade

Laura Keener

Editor

The Diocese of Covington is launching an expansive, consultation‑driven process to develop a Diocesan foundation and set a pastoral course for “the next decade or more.” And like the process used to develop the 2022 diocesan pastoral plan, Bishop John Iffert is inviting parishioners from around the Diocese to be involved in the discernment and recommendation process.

Bishop Iffert says the effort stems from the 2022 pastoral plan, which called for a study on forming a foundation to “encourage giving.”

Rather than “put the cart before the horse” by filing papers and naming a board, the Diocese chose to listen first — to pastors, parish and school leaders, potential board members and donors — so the foundation’s structure and services truly match local needs. “We really needed to hear from pastors … from people who would benefit from these services … [and] potential board members and donors … What would be helpful to them?” Bishop Iffert said.

These initial conversations resulted in a process designed to keep the work focused and transparent by organizing the planning into four Commission-led dialogues:

— Foundation Commission — Designing the foundation’s governance, services, staffing and budget.

— Catholic Schools Commission — Addressing sustainability, structure, curriculum, finances and above all, mission and Catholic identity.

— Catholic Charities Commission — Evaluating governance, rural access to services, volunteer pathways and next‑generation ministries.

— Diocesan Governance Commission — Studying assessments, how diocesan structures and services support parishes and schools, and priorities like technology and communications.

Bishop Iffert is inviting parishioners from throughout the Diocese to consider being a part of a commission, based on personal interest, experience and expertise. The commitment involves four monthly sessions lasting 90 minutes to two hours each. Participants will attend an initial kick-off meeting followed by three focused subcommittee meetings to “benchmark best practices and draft actionable strategic goals,” according to the initiative’s website, covdioplanning.org.

Meetings will be held from April through July, except for the Diocesan Governance Commission whose meetings will occur in the fall and will be announced in July.

The commitment, he says, is to make the process “as open and as transparent as it can be” so that “we can come up with a set of solutions that we can walk out supporting together.”

Spearheaded by Deacon Jim Fortner, diocesan chief operating officer, the Diocese is working with L’Etoile Development Services to help lead and organize the process. Based in Orlando, Florida, L’Etoile Development Services was founded in 2011 by Marilyn Blanchette. Named after her late father, Raymond C. Letoile, the consulting agency specializes in strategic planning, major gift fundraising and leadership development. Joining Ms. Blanchette in leading the process is Mark Dollhopf.

Bishop Iffert describes his leadership approach as rooted in broad consultation that moves toward consensus and, when ready, a clear decision: “Decision making is always a group process, to gain the wisdom that’s there and to try to move towards a shared decision.  … [and] then there’s that moment of decision taking and that’s the role of the bishop; as those conversations progress, to recognize when we’ve come to a moment of consensus that also reflects my view and something we all can live with and support. Then it’s the unique vocation of the bishop, to take that decision and bring that conversation to a conclusion and promulgate whatever policy is going to come out of it.”

At its heart, planning is local Church discernment. “I believe God blesses every local community with the gifts they need to address their problems,” Bishop Iffert said. “In my mind, it’s an extension of God’s promise to fill the body of Christ with gifts; it’s kind of an extension of that promise to provide the kinds of pastors, the kind of shepherds that we need. I talk about a local genius. It’s not one person but it exists within the community. And that’s what we’re trying to do, we’re trying to be prayerful and discern together.”

As the conversations and discernment process begins, Bishop Iffert encourages everyone to “don’t assume” and to “stay open.” There is no agenda, no predetermined outcome. The process is really gathering information and expertise to answer questions that will help shape the future of the Diocese.

“What does the local genius tell us about the future of the Church here?” said Bishop Iffert. “How are we going to be best situated to witness to our neighbors, to evangelize one another, to grow deeper in faith in Christ, and to serve the local Church and the school community, not just in the way we always have, but the way that seems best? We’re going to study and we’re going to go where our discernment and our analysis leads us — with the hope of strengthening Catholic education [and] our life as a diocese.”