Nothin' says fun like a staff meeting

Mondays are recovery days for anyone who works in pastoral ministry. Parish and campus ministry staffs review outcomes of Sunday worship including the homily, the music, all ministries, the catechumenate, anything involving religious education, faith formation, technology interaction (live stream worship, close caption for the hearing impaired, the sound system, etc.), why the doughnuts did not arrive on time for Welcome Sunday, why pumpkins didn't sell this year as well as they did last year at the annual harvest parish fair, who forgot to add Mary Smith's name to the roll call for the annual Mass for the Deceased when everyone knows that her surviving husband is a major parish contributor, why the music ministers changed hymn #333 to #445 at the last minute when everyone knows that #333 is the preferred and maybe rapping the meeting up with a conversation over the variables in the budget and the parish head count as another church year winds down at the end of November. 

Nothin' says fun like a staff meeting. 

The staff meeting may occur on a Monday following the morning Mass, unless that liturgy was replaced by Mary Smith's funeral followed by a brunch served by the Bereavement Ministry that ends about two minutes before the staff gathers to sit in a catatonic state following five weekend Masses that include six infant baptisms, a children's liturgy of the Word, dismissal and instruction of the catechumenate preceded by three weddings between Friday night and Saturday, parents in crisis about why their child cannot be confirmed with peers because of his consistent absence, a dying beloved parishioner needs the Sacrament of the Sick, an elder fell in a pothole in the church parking lot and is now threatening to call the local bishop to sue the church, the diocese and the Vatican and an engaged couple who wants to be married in three months (no judgment) finds out that they need unanticipated paperwork because one of them has been married before.  

Don't you just love it when somebody just tells the truth? 

Weekly outcome reviews are necessary for change to occur, otherwise, how will staffs maximize potential outcomes to actualize the reign of God here and now? Staff meetings are necessary. However, some staffs may squander precious time with a minimalist approach that prohibits growth. Being stuck in the mud is no way to inspire a church to push on in long haul Gospel mission. The mud gets pretty comfortable if you sit in it long enough. 

At your next staff meeting, try applying these three questions to achieve healthier, more desirable goals:

1. Was this week better for the life of the community than last week? Why? If not, why not? 
2. What will we do differently starting next week? Think, "How will we continuously improve?"
3. As our ministry constantly evolves and changes, what will we do this week to improve how we do ministry? 

The Gospel is clear in its priority of service as an outcome of the celebration of Eucharist, particularly to those with particular needs. The Second Vatican Council, the largest staff meeting in history envisioned review initiatives that give bodily witness to Christ in the flesh when it states: 

“In the early days, the church linked the “agape” to the Eucharistic supper, and by so doing showed itself as one body around Christ untied by the bond of charity. So too, in all ages, love is its characteristic mark. While rejoicing at initiatives taken elsewhere, it claims charitable works as its own mission and right. That is why mercy to the poor and the sick, charitable works and works of mutual aid for the alleviation of all kinds of human need, are especially esteemed in the church. “ Gaudium et Spes 8

So on Monday morning (yes, that's tomorrow), when you ask these three questions, the real question becomes, "How do we answer these questions?" 

If you stayed stuck in the mud, than the Gospel stays stuck on a page in a book and Vatican II is a historical moment in the life of the Church. How will your staff bring the Gospel and plant the fire-in-the-belly mission of Vatican II to life in the flesh on Tuesday morning after your we-knocked-this-out-of-the-ballpark staff meeting?