Catholic Parish Administration: A Handbook

Administering a Catholic parish today is as complex as it has ever been. Catholic Parish Administration: A Handbook provides a brief, informative, readable, and very helpful explanation of basic parish management to pastors, priests from abroad, deacons, seminary students, pastoral and finance council members, and lay parish workers.

Working from the key notion of building and sustaining relationships, the author introduces the reader to the often technical world of administering a Catholic parish in the modern church. Parish structure, lines of authority in parishes and dioceses, finances and budgeting, personnel, insurance and risk management, property matters, are all discussed. Discussion questions at the end of each chapter provide pastors, staff members, council members, seminarians, and others starting points to discuss the the nuts and bolts of managing a parish.

Highlights * Covers numerous elements of parish administration in a brief, detailed, accessible style, with concrete examples drawn from the author’s long career in parish management and administration. * Should be required reading for seminarians, many of whom will be pastors just a few years after ordination. * An indispensable source for lay parish administrators, volunteers, and those who serve on pastoral councils.
* Written by an author who has extensive experience on the parish and diocesan levels, in budgeting, management, personnel, financing, and other matters.