This reasonably new Council was elected and given the responsibility to be truly representative of the community of St Mary’s Nelson. Additionally, with the recent Synod called by Arch Bishop John Dew, all Parish communities were called to become the Salt of the earth and Light of the world. It is this Council’s role and challenge to faciliate this spiritual growth within our Parish. An early achievement for the Council was the creation of a new mission statement and adjoining objectives after consultation with the Parish community. The Mission Statement reads:

“We, the Catholic community of St Mary’s Parish Nelson, are called to be the visible Body of Christ, to live and share our faith through worship, service and love.”

We seek to achieve this by: deepening our spiritual lives

  • being an all-embracing, warm and welcoming community
  • reaching out to all who suffer
  • seeking social justice
  • encouraging young people to participate in our parish life
  • educating in faith – at all levels
  • supporting the mission of our Catholic schools
  • developing lay leadership

We ask Christ’s blessing on this continuing journey. To conclude, there have been many achievements to date. Currently, the structure of the Council is being looked at to explore ways and means by which the Council can enhance the effectiveness and implementation of the challenging mission set before us. Once again we ask that Christ bless this exciting journey.