Preliminary communication
The Future Roel of Priests and Laity in the Church in Slovenia
Brigita Perše
; Pastoral Service - Archdiocese of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Abstract
Over the next ten years the number of priests in the Church in Slovenia is expected to diminish considerably. From countries where a fall in the number of priests
has already been recorded we hear warnings that this greatly affects pastoral care and
the actions of parish priests. The Church in Slovenia is taking these warnings seriously
and is asking itself how to maintain pastoral care. For this reason, during 2012 we
conducted a survey among priests, asking them what they think about the future of
the Church, especially about the role of priests and laity in it. This article lays out the
results of the survey and then discusses and comments on these results, especially on the
basis of church documents and the experience of pastoral care in the German-speaking
Church, where the problem of the shortage of priests has already been encountered.
According to the survey, priests in the Church in Slovenia will have to focus more on
“typical” priestly duties and look on the laity in the light of the Second Vatican Council.
Priests who took part in the survey identified the same limitations in themselves and
in the laity, and these limitations must be addressed in the future so that the mission of
the Church can be more successful.
Keywords
Church; Slovenia; parish; pastoral care; priests; laity; survey.
Hrčak ID:
266258
URI
Publication date:
2.2.2014.
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