Most Rev. Robert Miranda, the Bishop of Gulbarga, organized a planning session for the Diocesan Pastoral Plan for the Year 2025-2030 on 8 March at Sugyan, the Diocesan Pastoral Center. This event gathered key figures and participants to discuss the direction and implementation of the diocesan pastoral plan.
The resource persons for the session included Most Rev. Gerald Isaac Lobo, Chairman of the CCBI Pastoral Implementation Committee; Rev. Fr. Anil Prasad, Coordinator of the KRPP. The meeting began with a prayer by Fr. Gerald Sagar. Sr. Gracy, Fr. Maxim SJ, Bishop Gerald Isaac Lobo, Bishop Robert Miranda, Fr. Anil Prasad, and Mr. Sudeer were on the dais for the inaugural session. Fr. Stany Lobo extended a warm welcome to the guests and participants.
Bishop Robert Miranda delivered the introductory talk. He shared a personal reflection on the early diocese, comparing it to a newborn baby. He emphasized that the diocesan pastoral plan is critical, as Jesus Himself followed a plan in His ministry. The Pope, too, had a plan, and the synodal journey reached the grassroots level.
Bishop Gerald Isaac Lobo clarified that he was not the resource person for the session. Instead, he underscored that the Church is synodal, meaning that we engage with people to understand God’s will. He also quoted the famous adage, “Failing to plan is planning to fail.” He explained that the pastoral plan guides where the diocese needs to go, stressing the importance of collaboration and integration. All religious congregations are expected to follow one unified plan—the diocesan plan. While charisms may differ, religious communities should not have their own separate pastoral plan outside the diocesan framework.
The bishop further explained that each commission must align its plan with the diocesan plan. This includes focusing on mission trajectories grounded in Scripture and Church teachings, setting clear goals and objectives, establishing key performance indicators, and developing an activity plan matrix.
He also shared several strategies for effective implementation, including dissemination, facilitation, and communication strategies, as well as systems for reporting progress and conclusions.
Fr. Anil Prasad, the regional coordinator, spoke about the changes in the new plans compared to the previous ones. He noted that every miracle begins with a problem and that even challenges often contain the potential for a miracle. He assured the participants that the new plans were simple.
Following this, various commissions, along with their teams and secretaries, participated in group discussions to develop their diocesan plans. After these fruitful discussions, representatives from the commissions on Women, Faith Formation, Basic Ecclesiastical Community, and Evangelization were chosen to present the outcomes of their discussions. A total of 67 participants attended the meeting, contributing to the collaborative effort of planning for the diocese’s future.
