Introduction

When the first families came together to worship and to educate their children in the spirit of Vatican II, they realized they had to find a place and a priest to journey with them. Somehow the spirit of self-initiation was in those who started our Community and in those who are attracted to what is here today. The seeds planted took root in the environment of the Shrine and the value that the Missionary Servants place on collaborative ministry. This was further nurtured by Father Peter's style of leadership that makes room for others' gifts.

What differentiates our Christian Community from the regular parish is that as an intentional community, our members participate in collaborative leadership. The work and accomplishments, and the very existence of our Community, relate directly to the commitment and involvement of our members. As a small community pursuing many activities, it is important that direction setting and implementation be broadly accepted and evenly distributed. Governance within our Community is not top down but a circular vehicle to support the activities and goals of our whole Community and our many ministries.

As our Community approaches a new and more collaborative model of our governance, it is crucial that we preserve the basic values and practices of our community, as described below:

• the spirit of trust in one another and our belief that the Spirit guides us (Sensus Fidelium of the Second Vatican Council)
• the spirit of openness demonstrated in Sunday dialogue and in community meetings
• the spirit of volunteerism shown in our educational programs and ministries
• the spirit of self direction seen in our multiple ministries and creative liturgies, retreats, and prayer services

As a Community, we believe that truth resides not in one person but in all; it is our challenge to assure that that truth is revealed. Finally, at this stage in the development of the American Church, it is critical that we, as lay people, assume greater responsibility for both today and tomorrow.

It is from this perspective that a new model of collaborative governance is being proposed. It must be as broadly representative as possible where members of our Community guide governance, rather than governance controlling our Community.

What we hope to achieve in developing a new model of governance may be best described in the word "balance". As a Community, we need to ask ourselves how we can balance the needs of our relatively diverse group. We are not only diverse in our individual perspectives of community, we are also diverse in that we are many communities in one. We are a Sunday Liturgy Community. We are a Fund Raising Community. We are a Religious Education Community. We are a Social Justice Community. We are an Apostolic Community. We are a Prophetic Community. Regardless of each of our perspectives or which community we might embrace the most, as a whole, our challenge is to find a model of governance that will respect, honor and balance our diversity.

We need to find a balance between the heard and unheard voices of our Community. Unlike our current model of three facilitators, our new model proposes a seven-member team. In doing so, it is hoped that we will better include the many voices of our Community. One of the concerns that led us to this search for a new form of governance focused around apathy and a lack of involvement in Community activities. What we hope to achieve is a Community where everyone feels connected with who we are and what we do. We hope to achieve this by including as many of the voices of our Community as possible in the decisions affecting our Community.

In order to increase Community involvement we need to balance our commitments. We hope to achieve this by focusing more attention on developing an annual plan of what we as a Community are committed to achieving over the year to come. Along with an annual plan would be an annual review to determine whether or not the items to which we committed were, in fact, accomplished. Follow up seems to be one of the areas of our Community's governance that fails on an ongoing basis. We hope to achieve a Community where everyone is not only included in the decisions, but also in the implementation and evaluation as well. We hope that this collaborative governance will achieve greater awareness of what is going on in our community and thus promote greater participation.

This balance is possible if each of us is willing to open our hearts to one another. This is only possible if each is willing to calm our fears and encourage our trust in one another. The current effort is not focused on taking control away from people, but sharing it more evenly among all of us. This can be accomplished by replacing the implicit structure of our Community governance with an explicit one. This effort is about creating a governing model that will respond to the many diverse perspectives that are present in the individuals of our Community. How do we bring those perspectives together into something meaningful for all of us? This model focuses on bringing these perspectives together.

What are the principles underlying who we are as a Community?

• Spirituality - As an intentional Eucharistic Community we look to each other as well as ourselves in our spiritual journey, and rely greatly on each other for our growth and the growth of our children
• Commitment - If people are selected to do a task after expressing an interest or willingness, they have made a commitment to our whole Community.
• Responsiveness - All those to whom leadership roles have been delegated are responsive to those who delegated them. As individuals we exercise giftedness, keeping mindful that our efforts are in service to and in collaboration with the group as a whole.
• Shared Authority - Authority is shared among as many people as is reasonably possible. This prevents a monopoly of power and requires those in positions of authority to consult with many others in the process of exercising their roles.
• Rotation of Tasks Among Individuals - Tasks are rotated among individuals. Responsibilities that are held too long by one person, formally or informally, come to be seen as that person's property, and are not easily relinquished or controlled by the group. Conversely, if tasks are rotated too frequently the individual does not have time to learn the job well and acquire the satisfaction of doing a good job.
• Allocation of Tasks - Tasks are allocated along criteria such as ability, interest, and responsibility.
• Shared Information - Information is shared with everyone on a regular and consistent basis. Information is power. Access to information enhances one's power.
• Access to Resources - Resources are accessible to everyone. Skills and information are resources as much as physical equipment or space or dollars.

When applied, principles can help to ensure that all voices within our Community will be heard. When applied, principles can help to ensure that those who are in positions of authority will be flexible, open, and temporary.

Length of Service

• Our CLT teen representative serves for one year
• All other CLT members except for our Spiritual Leader serve for two years
• In order to achieve staggered terms in the first year, two of the community-at-large members and the parent member will serve for a one year term. After this first year, all CLT positions will serve two year terms
• CLT members may serve two consecutive terms and be eligible for re-election after an absence of three years
• In the event a CLT member misses 3 consecutive meetings, that CLT member can be removed by a unanimous vote of the remaining CLT members. Our CLT would appoint a replacement with consideration of past election results
• Should a CLT member resign, the process described above will also be used

Sometimes when a unified response can not be achieved we may decide to set it aside for another time. Or it may resolve itself after a time of silence, a practice the Quakers use when working toward consensus.