Glossary

"One who has received the fullness of the Sacrament of Holy Orders, which makes him a member of the episcopal college and a successor of the Apostles. He is the shepherd of a particular church entrusted to him" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, glossary).

The Bishop of the Diocese of Madison is Bishop Donald J. Hying.

"The rules (canons or laws) which provide the norms for good order in the visible society of the Church. Those canon laws that apply universally are contained in the Codes of Canon Law. The most recent Code of Canon Law was promulgated in 1983 for the Latin (Western) Church and in 1991 for the Eastern Church" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, glossary).

To view an online version of the Code of Canon Law, please click here!

"The name given the 'convocation' or 'assembly' of the [people] God has called together from 'the ends of the earth.' In Christian usage the word 'Church' has [multiple] meanings: the [people] that God gathers in the whole world; the particular or local church (diocese); and the liturgical (above all Eucharistic) assembly. [Additionally, in modern usage, we often refer to the church building where Mass and the other sacraments are celebrated as 'the church'; for example, 'I left my jacket at church']. ...In the Creed, the sole Church of Christ is professed to be one, holy, catholic, and apostolic" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, glossary). 

The Current Reality Report is a professional and comprehensive report that was produced following months of data gathering, research, and analysis, and which spells out with great clarity and insight our current reality in the Diocese of Madison.

In particular, the Current Reality Report shows us:

• The total population across the Diocese is growing.
• We are losing people, especially our younger people; and we are aging.
• Fewer and fewer people are attending Mass.
• Significantly fewer people are receiving Sacraments.
• Faith Formation enrollment is in a free fall, while School enrollment is holding relatively steady.
• We have significantly fewer priests than in the past, but we project to be relatively stable into the future.
• People who give donate about 2% of their income; with fewer older people giving more these days.
• At present, we are facing financial challenges impacting our mission and our employees.

To view the Current Reality Report, please click here!

"A third degree of the hierarchy of the Sacrament of Holy Orders, after bishop and priest. The deacon is ordained not to priesthood but for ministry and service. Deacons are ordained to assist the bishop and priests in the celebration of the divine mysteries, above all the Eucharist, in the distribution of Holy Communion, in assisting at and blessing marriages, in the proclamation of the Gospel and preaching, in presiding over funerals, and in dedicating themselves to the various ministries of charity. While the Churches of the East have always had a functioning order of deacons, in the West [including the United States] the permanent diaconate was reestablished by the Second Vatican Council" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, glossary).

There are two types of deacons: transitional and permanent. Transitional deacons are deacons who will eventually be ordained priests (usually within 6-12 months of being ordained a deacon), while permanent deacons are deacons who will not be ordained priests (and they may be married and work secular jobs).

"A 'particular church,' a community of the faithful in communion of faith and sacraments whose bishop has been ordained in apostolic succession. A diocese is usually a determined geographic area; sometimes it may be constituted as a group of people of the same rite or language" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, glossary).

The Diocese of Madison is comprised of 11 counties in southwest Wisconsin, and our Bishop is Bishop Donald J. Hying.

"Derived from the Latin word for student, a disciple is someone who has encountered Jesus, heard the Good News of his life, death and resurrection, and chooses to actively follow Him" (Archdiocese of Chicago, glossary).

In the New Testament, "Jesus associated his disciples with his own life, revealed the mystery of the Kingdom to the disciples and gave them a share in his mission, his joy, and his sufferings" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, glossary).

“Evangelization is ‘the proclamation of Christ by word and the testimony of life’ (Catechism of the Catholic Church, #905). To evangelize simply means to spread the Gospel (literally, the "Good News") of Jesus Christ – to proclaim the saving power of his life, death, resurrection, and ascension into heaven, for the purpose of leading those who hear the divine message to repentance, faith, baptism, and growth in discipleship.

In the words of Pope St. Paul VI: ‘For the Church, evangelizing means bringing the Good News into all the strata of humanity, and through its influence transforming humanity from within and making it new: ‘Behold I make all things new’ (Revelation 21:5). But there is no new humanity if there are not first of all new persons renewed by baptism and by lives lived according to the Gospel. The purpose of evangelization is therefore precisely this interior change, and if it had to be expressed in one sentence the best way of stating it would be to say that the Church evangelizes when she seeks to convert, solely through the divine power of the message she proclaims, both the personal and collective consciences of people, the activities in which they engage, and the lives and concrete milieu which are theirs’ (Evangelii Nuntiandi, #18).

The Bishops of the United States paraphrased these same words in their national plan and strategy for evangelization when they said: ‘Evangelizing means bringing the Good News of Jesus into every human situation and seeking to convert individuals and society by the divine power of the Gospel itself. At its essence are the proclamation of salvation in Jesus Christ and the response of a person in faith, which are both works of the Spirit of God’” (Go and Make Disciples: A National Plan and Strategy for Catholic Evangelization in the United States, #10).

"The true Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, who is really and substantially present under the appearances of bread and wine, in order to offer himself in the sacrifice of the Mass and to be received as spiritual food in Holy Communion. It is called Eucharist, or 'thanksgiving,' because at its institution at the Last Supper Christ 'gave thanks,' and by this fact it is the supreme object and act of Christian gratitude to God.

Although the same name is used, the Eucharist is any one or all three aspects of one mystery, namely the Real Presence, the Sacrifice, and Communion. As Real Presence, the Eucharist is Christ in his abiding existence on earth today; as Sacrifice, it is Christ in his abiding action of High Priest, continuing now to communicate the graces he merited on Calvary; and as Communion, it is Christ coming to enlighten and strengthen the believer by nourishing [his or her] soul for eternal life" (Modern Catholic Dictionary).

"It is one of the seven sacraments of the Church; the Holy Eucharist completes Christian initiation. The Sunday celebration of the Eucharist is at the heart of the Church's life" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, glossary).

The name given to the major initiative within the Diocese of Madison to equip all Catholics with the confidence and competence to proclaim Jesus Christ. Go Make Disciples is what we do; Into the Deep is how we're going to realign our resources to do it more effectively.

To view the Diocese of Madison's "Go Make Disciples" website, please click here!

Into the Deep is a multi-year, comprehensive strategic planning process in the Diocese of Madison. Its purpose is to realign our resources – physical, financial, human, priestly, etc. – so that we might move our parishes and other Catholic institutions from “maintenance to mission,” in order to share the life-changing good news of Jesus Christ more effectively in our increasingly secular culture. Our hope is that by coming together and collaborating in new ways we will more effectively and fruitfully: 1) follow Jesus; 2) reclaim Sunday; 3) evangelize others; 4) engage youth; 5) equip leaders; and 6) serve neighbors both now and well into the future.

"The faithful who, having been incorporated into Christ through Baptism, are made part of the people of God, the Church. The laity participate in their own way in the priestly, prophetic, and kingly functions of Christ. Laity are distinguished from clergy...and those in consecrated life" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, glossary).

"When parishes are merged, two or more parishes become a single [faith] community. Parish boundaries are redrawn and a new canonical entity is formed. Two or more parishes, rich in tradition, come together...to form a new faith community, deriving...strength from the gifts of the former communities" (Diocese of Lansing).

A parish merger can be likened to a marriage - the resulting parish has everything the previous parishes had and a new life is begun together.

"In virtue of their baptism, all the members of the People of God have become missionary disciples (cf. Mt 28:19). All the baptized, whatever their position in the Church or their level of instruction in the faith, are agents of evangelization.... The new evangelization calls for personal involvement on the part of each of the baptized. Every Christian is challenged, here and now, to be actively engaged in evangelization.... Every Christian is a missionary to the extent that he or she has encountered the love of God in Christ Jesus: we no longer say that we are 'disciples' and 'missionaries', but rather that we are always 'missionary disciples'. If we are not convinced, let us look at those first disciples, who, immediately after encountering the gaze of Jesus, went forth to proclaim him joyfully: 'We have found the Messiah!' (Jn 1:41). The Samaritan woman became a missionary immediately after speaking with Jesus and many Samaritans come to believe in him 'because of the woman’s testimony' (Jn 4:39). So too, Saint Paul, after his encounter with Jesus Christ, 'immediately proclaimed Jesus' (Acts 9:20; cf. 22:6-21). So what are we waiting for?" (Evangelii Gaudium, #120).

In short, missionary disciples are followers of Jesus Christ whose hearts burn with a love of God and others that compel them to share the Good News with others.

The term ‘new evangelization’ was popularized by Pope St. John Paul II, who distinguished three situations in which the Church exercises her apostolic mission:

"The fact that there is a diversity of activities in the Church’s one mission is not intrinsic to that mission, but arises from the variety of circumstances in which that mission is carried out. Looking at today’s world from the viewpoint of evangelization, we can distinguish three situations.

First, there is the situation which the Church’s missionary activity addresses: peoples, groups, and socio-cultural contexts in which Christ and his Gospel are not known, or which lack Christian communities sufficiently mature to be able to incarnate the faith intheir own environment and proclaim it to other groups. This is mission ad gentes ("to the people") in the proper sense of the term.

Secondly, there are Christian communities with adequate and solid ecclesial structures. They are fervent in their faith and in Christian living. They bear witness to the Gospel in their surroundings and have a sense of commitment to the universal mission. In these communities the Church carries out her activity and pastoral care.

Thirdly, there is an intermediate situation, particularly in countries with ancient Christian roots, and occasionally in the younger Churches as well, where entire groups of the baptized have lost a living sense of the faith, or even no longer consider themselves members of the Church, and live a life far removed from Christ and his Gospel. In this case what is needed is a 'new evangelization' or a 're- evangelization'" (Redemptoris Missio, # 33).

"A community of Christian faithful stably constituted in a...church or churches...whose pastoral care is entrusted to a pastor [or administrator, and other priests working with him] under the authority of the diocesan bishop. Most people think the parish is the church where they worship. A parish, however, is [typically] a territorial division of the diocese — a geographical area. The people within the parish are cared for by the pastor [or administrator, and other priests] assigned to this community by the bishop.... Because it is about geography, people of all parishes are made up of Catholics and non-Catholics. Within a parish, there is a [church or churches] where the spiritual needs of the people in that area" are cared for (Archdiocese of Chicago, glossary).

"Parochial Administrators are being named for most of the Pastorates created by Into the Deep. Parochial Administrators have all the same rights and duties as Pastors, but they are named for situations that are temporary. For example, a Parochial Administrator could be named if the Pastor becomes seriously ill and is not able to lead the parish. In the current situation with Into the Deep, the temporary situation stems from the fact that the parishes will eventually be merged to create a new parish. Once the new parish is created, the Parochial Administrator will be named Pastor. In the few situations where a parish will not be merged (e.g., St. Paul's University Catholic Center in Madison), the priest will become Pastor on July 1, 2023.

"A parochial vicar is a priest assigned by his bishop to a parish...to assist a pastor [or administrator] in the care of the faithful. The Code of Canon Law defines the office as follows: 'Parochial vicars are priests who render their services in pastoral ministry as co-workers with the pastor [or administrator] in common counsel and endeavor with him and also under his authority'" (Archdiocese of Cincinnati, glossary).

According to the Code of Canon Law, "[p]articular churches, in which and from which the one and only Catholic Church exists, are first of all dioceses.... A diocese is a portion of the people of God which is entrusted to a bishop for him to shepherd with the cooperation of [his priests], so that, adhering to its pastor and gathered by him in the Holy Spirit through the gospel and the Eucharist, it constitutes a particular church in which the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church of Christ is truly present and operative. ...Every diocese or other particular church is to be divided into distinct parts or parishes" (Code of Canon Law, #368, 369, 374).

"The pastor is the [primary] shepherd of the parish or parishes entrusted to him under the authority of his bishop. He is an ordained priest responsible for the ministry of teaching, sanctifying, and governing, with the cooperation of other priests or deacons in the parish and the assistance of lay members of the faithful" (Archdiocese of Cincinnati, glossary).

A “pastorate” is a grouping of parishes under the leadership of a single pastor or administrator, with other priests serving alongside him as parochial vicars (and/or with a “priest in residence” if a priest is retired from full-time ministry or has another assignment but is willing to assist). As such, nearly every pastorate will have a small “team of priests” plus a unified and larger group of dedicated lay employees (and any deacons) working together to serve the needs of their parishioners more effectively. Parishes within a pastorate will begin to work together more closely and collaborate in new ways beginning on July 1, 2023, with the goal that they will merge into becoming a single canonical parish by the summer of 2024.

"An authorized mediator who offers a true sacrifice in acknowledgment of God's supreme dominion over human beings and in expiation for their sins. A priest's mediation is the reverse of that of a prophet, who communicates from God to the people. A priest mediates from the people to God.

Christ, who is God and man, is the first, last, and greatest priest of the New Law. He is the eternal high priest who offered himself once and for all on the Cross, a victim of infinite value, and he continually renews that sacrifice on the altar through the ministry of the Church.

Within the Church are men who are specially ordained as priests to consecrate and offer the body and blood of Christ in the Mass. The Apostles were the first ordained priests, when on Holy Thursday night Christ told them to do in his memory what he had just done at the Last Supper. All priests and bishops trace their ordination to the Apostles. Their second essential priestly power, to forgive sins, was conferred by Christ on Easter Sunday, when he told the Apostles, 'For those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven; for those whose sins you retain, they are retained' (John 20-22, 23).

All the Christian faithful, however, also share in the priesthood by their baptismal character. They are enabled to offer themselves in sacrifice with Christ through the Eucharistic liturgy. They offer the Mass in the sense that they internally unite themselves with the outward offering made by the ordained priest alone" (Modern Catholic Dictionary).

A "priest in residence" is a priest - retired or with another assignment - who is not officially assigned to a parish but who helps the pastor/administrator and other priests at the parish and lives in a parish rectory. 

"The position of vicar forane is appointed by the local bishop. His role is to assist the bishop in overseeing the priests of a particular area. Each diocese is divided into areas called vicariates. ...The [vicar forane's] role is to assist the bishop in overseeing the spiritual needs of the priests in his region, to be attentive to pastoral issues in his region, and to coordinate regional pastoral responses. For example, [he] might organize a day of confessions in his [area] or perhaps a common Mass for specific celebrations. [Vicars forane] also usually hold regular meetings with the priests of the [vicariate] to relate to the bishop their concerns and ideas. [They] are responsible for making sure parishes in their region are following proper rules for sacramental records and that the rights of other priests in rectories are respected by the pastors. ...In essence, their role is to assist the bishop in the smaller but essential matters of the diocese" (Fr. Charles Grondin).

Vicariates are regional groupings of parishes to facilitate organization and administration within a diocese. (See "Vicar Forane" for more insight into this.)