Diocese of San Jose 2023 Pastoral Plan
  • MarkB
    Posts: 1,087
    San Jose, CA is not my diocese, but I take interest in it because I used to live there. This month the diocese released its 2023 Pastoral Plan that will guide operations for at least the next five years. Several months ago, the diocese hired a lay C-suite level executive in a newly created directorship to oversee the plan's implementation. Link to the document here:
    https://www.dsj.org/wp-content/uploads/12-05-23-Pastoral-Plan-DoSJ-Brochure-singles-web-res.pdf

    On page 6, the diocese states the following catastrophic declines in Catholic practice:

    - While the general population in the diocese has increased by 5.8%, Mass attendance has decreased by 39.8% and children's faith formation enrollment has decreased by 40% over the past ten years.


    A 40% drop in Catholic affiliation and practice is alarming, possibly a Blockbuster Video death-spiral level decline, but also consistent with what has occurred in other urbanized, secular regions of the United States.

    Of particular interest to people here might be what the diocese proposes regarding worship. That section starts on page 13. On page 15 is this objective about liturgical music:

    Objective 4: Lift spirits with engaging, liturgically appropriate music

    In our parishes and schools, the People of God can expect:
    • Improved quality of liturgical music based on the unique cultural preferences of each parish and school community.
    • Highly trained and spiritually formed liturgical music leaders, cantors, and musicians.

    The diocese will support parishes and schools by:
    • Appointing a diocesan leader for music ministry.
    • Updating diocesan music ministry standards, policies, procedures, roles, responsibilities, etc., based on best practices from within and beyond our diocese.
    • Developing and supporting music ministry formation and training programs for liturgical music leaders.


    Does anyone agree with me that this objective is flawed from its inception and at its core? "Lifting spirits with engaging music" is what has been attempted for the past forty years or more. That hasn't worked. Whether such music has contributed to the exodus of Catholics from attending Mass is debatable; I believe it has because it has made Mass seem like a secular activity with "Jesus sprinkles" that can easily be regarded as optional or uncompelling. Basing music choices on "the unique cultural preferences of each parish and school" is not a criterion for liturgical music that appears anywhere in the Church's documents or rubrics about liturgical music.

    Regarding the goal of having "highly trained and spiritually formed liturgical music leaders, cantors and musicians," good luck with that when the document also admits that there are "financial challenges, staffing and compensation challenges, and rising costs of living" in most parishes. (pages 6-7)

    I think implementing Vatican II's liturgical reforms and the new Missal authentically is going to take about 200 years. I also expect further catastrophic declines in Catholic affiliation and practice in the United States over the next 30 years. Many dioceses will contract further, and there will be even more parish mergers and consolidations.
    Thanked by 2tomjaw CharlesW
  • Reforms can be implemented only if bishops are orthodox and not disobedient and not allowed to flagrantly wave away council documents. American bishops are largely very comfortable with this behavior and recent pontificates show little interest in discipline. I don’t see what improvements can be made until that changes.
  • I think implementing Vatican II's liturgical reforms and the new Missal authentically is going to take about 200 years.


    It's amazing how the great reform, meant to bring to fulfillment the desires of the liturgical movement, ultimately instead empowered to the lunatic extreme and made much worse and seemingly irrecoverable everything that was viewed as aberrant by the preconciliar liturgical movement:

    -The desuetude of Gregorian Chant
    -The importation of popular styles into the liturgy
    -The spoken Mass without reference to the tradition of sung liturgy.

    What was prima facie meant to make the "right" things desirable and more accessible ("Let's have a simplified Graduale, all of the people should know the chants that pertain to them, sing as much as you can even if you can't have a fully sung Mass..." etc) became the ultimate license to do the worst of the worst:

    -Any music of any style but the proper
    -No chant ever
    -Speak everything always
    -Demolish choirs....

    Something went off the rails more seriously than "poor implementation," if you'll pardon my saying so.
  • tomjaw
    Posts: 2,787
    It looks like the deckchair rearrangement committee... Sadly position of deckchairs has little influence on the steering.
  • francis
    Posts: 10,832
    Does anyone agree with me that this objective is flawed from its inception and at its core? "Lifting spirits with engaging music" is what has been attempted for the past forty years or more. That hasn't worked. Whether such music has contributed to the exodus of Catholics from attending Mass is debatable; I believe it has because it has made Mass seem like a secular activity with "Jesus sprinkles" that can easily be regarded as optional or uncompelling. Basing music choices on "the unique cultural preferences of each parish and school" is not a criterion for liturgical music that appears anywhere in the Church's documents or rubrics about liturgical music.

    Shine, Jesus, Shine!

    Yes. The N.O. is flawed from its inception. IT… embodies "the unique cultural preferences of each parish and school"… IT… places the whim of every bishop, priest, pastor, musician and committee above the will of the church in her authentic liturgical expression. The Titanic is going down.
    Something went off the rails more seriously than "poor implementation," if you'll pardon my saying so.

    Why Did the Titanic Sink?
    High speeds, a fatal wrong turn, weather conditions, a dismissed iceberg warning and lack of binoculars and lifeboats all contributed to one of the worst maritime tragedies.

    Dismissed iceberg warning… can you identify that one in the conciliar path?

    Somebody sent this to me yesterday.

    2EED63F7-49FB-4FB3-9DAA-D8DDE398680B.jpeg
    1179 x 2556 - 580K
    Thanked by 1tomjaw
  • CharlesW
    Posts: 11,983
    Also, the Titanic captain and officers had been involved in a previous ship near-disaster of their own making. The captain brought many of them with him when he took over the Titanic. Put not your faith in princes...
    Thanked by 2tomjaw a_f_hawkins
  • tomjaw
    Posts: 2,787
    A good friend was at the release of the Pastoral Plan, and is rather more upbeat.

    It was released at an event that included a type of Vespers, the psalms were sung and the Magnificat and Alma sung in Latin. This was sung by a diocesan choir... The bishop is friendly with tradition, and it seems that things are looking up in the Cathedral that was known for having rather poor music.
    Thanked by 2Chrism LauraKaz