Serving God's People

In early 2008, Bishop Robert N. Lynch charged the Vicar General, Fr. Robert Morris with launching and facilitating a process to reevaluate the use of resources and personnel throughout the diocese in an effort to improve the quality of ministry provided to Catholics throughout the Diocese of St. Petersburg in their parish.

This process, Serving God’s People,  has been initiatied in the Citrus and Lower Pinellas Deaneries.  These two deaneries have completd the initial phase and have submitted their reports with recommendations to the Presbyteral Council.   (For more information about the status of the process, please click the link above entitled Deaneries.)

This process was initiated principally in response to the following three factors:

1. The number of priests available to serve in the diocese is decreasing.
2. The local demographics have shifted substantially in the past 10 years, and are projected to continue to shift.
3. The continual challenge posed by maintenance and upkeep of facilities, especially when coupled with the recent decline in the economy.

After completing the Pastoral Planning Process, it is hoped that:

1. Awareness of the needs, ministries, people, facilities, finances, and future opportunities for growth of each parish, deanery, and of the diocese as a whole will be increased.
2. Participation in the stewardship and leadership of the parish by the lay Catholic population will be enhanced.
3. Specific recommendations for best positioning the local parishes and deaneries for service to their local communities will be identified.

We invite you to browse through this site and its resources to further your understanding of this process, and if you have any questions, please feel free to contact your parish priest or the Diocesan Pastoral Center Offices.