A message from Bishop Iffert

“And so it is right that all your creatures serve you, all the redeemed praise you, and all your saints with one heart bless you.” (The Roman Missal, Common Preface III; emphasis added)

November 2024

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I give thanks to God for you!

My heart is filled with gratitude as I present to the priests and people of the Diocese of Covington the five-year “With One Heart” pastoral plan “Empowering Priests. Igniting Parishes. Enlivening the Faithful.”

This plan is not simply my vision. It is better and more promising than anything I could have developed on my own. Although I publish this plan and my prints are on it, it is very much OUR PLAN. Included in this diocesan plan are the pastoral plans of every parish in the Diocese of Covington. These plans have been developed through mutual listening and shared labor, a truly Diocesan plan for forwarding the mission and ministry of Jesus Christ in the 14 counties of the Diocese of Covington.

I am especially grateful to those who saw and responded to the need of their local Church by participating in the data collection and analysis processes of the With One Heart initiative. We are learning and growing together — Bishop, priests, religious, curia staff, parish leaders and lay faithful — expanding the capacity of the heart of the Diocese of Covington to meet the needs of our brothers and sisters that Christ has called us to serve.

I am equally grateful to those benefactors who stepped forward, unsolicited, to underwrite a partnership with the Catholic Leadership Institute (CLI). CLI provided the research and processes that underlie every proposal in this pastoral plan.

This funding will also allow a continued relationship with CLI to provide ongoing formation and leadership development for priests and parish evangelizers. Evangelization — that is the heart of our pastoral plan — developing missionary disciples to bring others to Christ.

We now have our plans on paper. And we have already begun bringing these plans to life. Christ has commissioned us — commissioned you — to make his love known. The Church is an organism — a body. I invite every member of the body that is this local Church in Covington participate in learning, catechizing, evangelizing, and forming leaders for the ongoing mission of Jesus.

Let us move forward boldly and joyfully With One Heart — the heart of Jesus.

Devotedly yours in the love of Christ,

+Bishop John Iffert
Diocese of Covington

Diocesan Pastoral Plan

Bishop John Iffert releases a summary of the 2023–2026 Diocesan Pastoral Plan.
Included in the document are summaries of the Parish Pastoral Plans for nearly every parish in the Diocese.
Click here to read the document.

WOH Programs: Empowering Priests. Igniting Parishes. Enlivening the Faithful.

Disciple Maker Index (DMI)

Now one of the largest research projects in the Catholic Church, with more than 500,000 responses, the DMI survey tool is changing the way Church leaders make decisions. It is an assessment of the spiritual health of a parish. The DMI measures, tracks and draws correlations that influence the spiritual development of a parish.

This 75-question survey provides pastors and parishes a picture of where they are today, allowing them to envision and create vibrant, faith-filled parishes for tomorrow.

Parishes and dioceses may utilize and retake the DMI on an ongoing basis to continuously provide opportunities to measure progress, to determine what is working, to identify areas that need further improvement, and to uncover new priorities to focus on.

Parishes in the Diocese of Covington invited parishioners to complete a DMI during Lent 2023.

Called For More (CFM)

Called For More revolutionizes priestly care and fosters happier, healthier, and holier shepherds through:

— Priest Placement: using technology to better align priests’ gifts and skills with the needs of parish communities so that when it comes time for a new assignment they are placed strategically.

— Transition Plans: equipping pastors and their new parishes with individualized, long-term transition plans.

— Personalized Support: offering targeted roadmaps for self-care, mentorship, and professional development to support pastors.

Began in the Fall 2022 and continued through 2023.

Next Generation Parish (NGP)

This endeavor is a four-year journey to renew parish life and accompany parishes into the future.  Next Generation Parish focus on discipleship, healthy organizational leadership, vibrant Sunday experiences, and evangelization.

This endeavor impacts every level of parish life via coaching, envisioning and implementation.  Through CLI’s early work, they have seen pews begin to fill, collections grow, pastoral and parish leadership refined, and communities strengthened.

Began late 2023.

Good Leaders, Good Shepherds (GLGS)

Using Jesus Christ the Good Shepherd as the ultimate model of leadership, Good Leaders, Good Shepherds is a world-class curriculum that celebrates and supports the ministry of Catholic priests.

Given the demands of ministry and the complexity of running parishes, effective leadership is paramount to creating and building authentic, vibrant Catholic communities. Good Leaders, Good Shepherds is designed to help priests overcome today’s challenges of a diminishing number of clergy and more complex circumstances for priestly ministry.

Through Good Leaders, Good Shepherds, priests can minimize the frustration and energy that they spend on their administrative roles, and instead, maximize the joy and time spent on the pastoral duties for which they were uniquely ordained. Ultimately, the impact of this formation is more holy, healthy, and happy shepherds of vibrant parish communities, leading more people to a deeper relationship with Christ.

Good Leaders, Good Shepherds is designed just for priests, so each learning module includes ample time for prayer, liturgy and building priestly fraternity. All sessions are highly interactive, pastoral, and relevant to the vocation of priestly life and day-to-day pastoring. Using priest/parish-based examples, and the best of Catholic tradition, the curriculum provides the skills and practices that will allow a priest to be a happy, holy, and healthy shepherd in any leadership circumstance

This signature formation curriculum supports priestly leadership and ministry.  Almost 3,000 priests across the country have received world class leadership training that better prepares them for self-leadership, parish leadership, and team leadership through a blend of training, tools, coaching, reflection, and fraternity.

In the Diocese of Covington, Good Leaders, Good Shepherds Cohort 1 concluded June 2024; Cohort begins April 2025.

Parish Missionary Disciples (PMD)

This discipleship and evangelization training engages faithful parishioners and transforms them into missionary disciples who pray and teach others to pray, share the Gospel with another, share their own testimony, and accompany one another on their Catholic discipleship journey.

Cohort 1 concluded April 2024; Cohort begins February 2025.

Tending the Talents

Centered on Jesus’ model of leadership, Tending the Talents is designed to support parish and diocesan leaders in their unique role in ministry and to strengthen the talents God has given them so that they can be even more effective Catholic leaders. This formation curriculum complements the primary leadership skills and practices delivered in Good Leaders, Good Shepherds. It seeks to strengthen the overall quality of ministerial relationships and the ministries and priorities that are most important to the local parish and diocese.

Tending the Talents is a blended learning curriculum in which the experience is an integration of three types of learning:

— Online learning will help participants prepare for sessions as well as guide and support them in applying what they learned in previous sessions. The online dimension will accelerate the pace with which new knowledge is acquired and increase the retention and application of participants’ skills as Catholic leaders and disciples of Christ.

— Classroom sessions will be dynamic, interactive, and full of conversation and hope. Participants will join their peers in ministry to dive into leadership themes, share new insights and best practices, and apply new principles together.

— Leadership applications will support and guide participants in applying new learning within their parish or diocese. Participants and their pastors/directors will clarify visions, goals, and initiatives for their ministry and ensure that all efforts are aligned. These meetings will allow them to celebrate learning and reinforce a culture of Catholic leadership in their parish or diocese.

Cohort 1 began August 2024, concludes December 2024.

Like family, ‘With One Heart’ launches

Laura Keener, Editor Blue skies, cooler temperatures and…
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Upcoming Events

Parish Missionary Disciples: Cohort #2

Cohort #2 of Parish Missionary Disciples (PMD) training is coming in spring 2025. Contact Jamie Schroeder, [email protected], by November 22 with questions and/or to indicate participation.

Part of the With One Heart initiative and a strategy of the Diocesan Pastoral Plan, PMD is a powerful training program for Catholic believers designed to equip them with the skills needed for effective evangelization. The program consists of six seminars spread over four weekends spaced several weeks apart. All sessions will be held in Kelley Hall at St. Joseph, Cold Spring. Exact dates and times are listed below. The first weekend theme will be Love of God, the second weekend is about Love of Neighbor and the third and fourth weekends will center around Living out the Mission.

Friday, Feb. 21, 6-9PM and Saturday, Feb. 22, 9AM-4PM

Friday, March 14, 6-9PM and Saturday, March 15, 9AM-4PM

Saturday, April 5, 9AM-4PM

Saturday, May 17, 9AM-4PM

PMD is offered at no cost and is open primarily to parishes who were not represented in Cohort #1. Parishes who wish to participate may send three to four people until the capacity of 60 to 75 participants is reached. Participants must be available to attend the entire program and be committed to putting the training into practice in their parishes. Pastors should identify a PMD point person at the parish who will handle invitations, registration, and communication regarding PMD.

November 2024 — Diocesan Pastoral Plan

November 2024, Bishop John Iffert unveils the Diocesan Pastoral Plan. The Pastoral Plan is based on data collected during the Parish Listening Sessions and Deanery Strategy Sessions, as well as parishioner survey results gathered through the Disciple Maker Index.

With One Heart: "Messenger" Special Edition

Pastors and PPOC Materials

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