DIOCESAN—Like so many things this year, Ministry Day will take on a different look in that it will not be held in person. But being held virtually isn’t the only thing that will be different this year.

 

Ministry Day will be themed “From Crisis to Calling” and is set for Oct. 1. It is being held in conjunction with Educational Leaders Day and Presbytery Day.

 

Combining these three events is a first in the Rockford Diocese and is an event that organizer Kevin Fuss, director of Research and Planning, says is sure to be rich in “information, collaboration and action that will benefit both participants, their parishes and the entire diocesan Church.” 

 

How to use Zoom The diocesan Ministry Day program will be presented on Zoom. Here are steps to help you attend the virtual meeting.   1  If you don’t already have Zoom installed on your computer you can click on the link in your confirmation email from Parish Catalyst, “Download and Run Zoom.” Then you can test your audio and video connection well ahead of the event.   2  If you don’t want to wait to download Zoom on your computer, you can download it anytime by selecting “Zoom Client for Meetings” after you click on https://zoom.us/download.   3 If you plan on attending the event on a tablet or phone, simply go to the App Store (Apple) or Google Play (Android) and download the free Zoom mobile App.   4 If you have never attended a Zoom meeting and would like to watch an example of someone downloading Zoom and attending their first meeting, you might find the video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9isp3qPeQ0E useful. The video has ads you can skip.   5 If you do not have access to a computer or device you can still participate by phone. You will be provided a call-in number after registration.   — Penny Wiegert, editor

Featured speaker and facilitator will be John Poitevent from Parish Catalyst, a Catholic non-profit organization that helps parishes experience renewal through prayerful collaboration, theological reflection, and planning. 

 

Participants can hear a message about this year’s event in a video by Poitevent on YouTube at https://youtu.be/wgOZ4UJcjTo.

 

And even though attendees will be at home or at their parish on a computer, tablet or phone using the Zoom platform instead of gathering in one big room, they will still have the opportunity to interact. In fact, the day will be an interactive team-focused day with online discussion and time for each parish group to work together. 

 

The day will begin at 9 a.m. and end at 4 p.m. There will be an hour break for lunch from noon to 1 p.m. Fuss says the day promises “to go fast.”

 

When parishes are completing exercises, they will gather into virtual chat rooms that are private, similar to having a regular virtual meeting. They may then work on the exercises as a group without distractions from other people or parishes. 

 

Smaller parishes and parishes with only a few attendees will be grouped together similarly to what has been done at previous Ministry Day events. After the break-out sessions are over, they will rejoin the full group.

 

Parishes could decide to set aside a meeting room at their parish and project the conference onto a screen with staff socially distanced in the room. Alternatively, attendees could participate from their individual offices either at the parish or at home. A combination of these is also possible (i.e some gather together in a room while some are at home or in their offices).

 

Even though Ministry Day is free of charge, participants must be registered. 

 

One person at a parish may register all participants or each can register individually at https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYkdumsrjstEtzchWXchcqlDs_icj-0fA9N.