What would you like to know about St. Joan of Arc? Do you have a story about our parish or of general interest that you think others would like to hear? For story ideas, contact Jeff Rholl, jeff@stjoan.com.

What is the Pastoral Council?

Outgoing Pastoral Council Chairperson, Brad Hinker, offers his thoughts on why it is important that you become involved in your parish..

There is enough "official" information about the council on the SJA Website, including the council manual and pictures of current council members(Visit the Pastoral Council Homepage to see what Brad is refering to.). So I will not duplicate that information. Instead I will tell about the council from my personal experience. I have served on the council since 1998 and am honored to have been elected chairperson in this, my final year on the council. Let me give you my reasons for becoming a candidate for the council in 1998. I had no intention of doing so when I went to the discernment meeting, where council members are selected. I felt that I had no real qualification for council membership. I do have a few organizational skills from years of service on corporate boards of not-for-profit organizations, and my intention in attending was simply to offer some suggestions. But I came to the realization at that meeting that God gave me some unique talents and abilities, as God gave to each one of us, and that I certainly had SOMETHING to offer. So I thought "why not me"? I put my name in and was selected. I have not been disappointed. I feel really involved in the parish, my spiritual home. I believe I needed that involvement to feel that I have contributed to the parish, and that it IS my home. It has also been fun and rewarding. I am privileged to work with some wonderful people on the council, the parish staff and many, many people on committees and throughout the parish, newcomers and old-timers alike. I like being actively involved in something I believe in wholeheartedly. It is very gratifying to feel that I do make a difference, that I am helping to chart the future of St. Joan of Arc. Why is it important to be so personally involved? At SJA we believe we are living the spirit of Vatican II. We believe WE ARE THE CHURCH. We are all called to a personal ministry. The pope, bishops, and clergy are all called to a ministry that we respect. They are here to help and serve all. But you and I, all of us are called to a ministry every bit as important as that of the clergy. We are here to make a difference in the world and to minister to each other. At SJA we call it "Collaborative Ministry". We do believe that. A survey of the entire parish was done 2 years ago and that is what the majority of us believe. Brad Hinker is a retired CPA who lives in Eagan with his wife Betty (known to many as Boo). They have been members at SJA since 1987. Brad is a lover of Tradional (dixieland) jazz, wilderness hiking and canoeing. He is proud of his 7 children and stepchildren, 17 grandchildren and of serving on several SJA committees. If WE are the church and we believe in ministering to each other with the support of a parish community, then we are all responsible for keeping it that way. We cannot have the kind of parish that we have been attracted to (not assigned to) without all of us doing our part. We must contribute as well as receive from the community. It goes without saying that we need to support St. Joan's financially. We also need to be personally involved in some way. We have less than half the staff of many parishes our size and we are blessed with many volunteers. We do all this through volunteers and the support of some really outstanding staff members. We also need parishioners to be involved in governance. That's why I ran for Pastoral Council. My term is up in June and honestly I hate to leave. I will continue serving on committees but I will miss being a council member. You see, I feel that I really am an integral part of my church, my parish community. I no longer think of the church as "them", now I think of it as "us". WE ARE THE CHURCH!