By Bishop James Conley
Divine Mercy Sunday concludes the Octave of Easter and draws our attention to the divine and merciful Heart of Jesus. Over the past eight days we have celebrated the triumph of the Resurrection of Christ, his victory over sin and death, and the love and mercy he poured out for us through his Most Sacred Heart.
As we focus our thoughts and prayers on the Sacred Heart of Jesus this weekend, it gives me great joy to share with you the publication of our new and first ever diocesan pastoral plan, entitled One Heart in Christ. With the news of the rising number of adult-converts to the Catholic Church this Easter, both in our own diocese of Lincoln and throughout the United States and Europe, it is indeed an exciting time to be a Catholic! The timing could not be better for us to dream a little about what the future might look like in our diocese.
Imagine walking into a parish that feels alive with the faith, the moment you step through the doors. A place that lifts you out of this mundane and workaday world, into a world that transcends space and time, and is charged with the presence of the divine. A place that is familiar and feels like home—where you are welcomed and greeted by name. A place where Holy Mass is overflowing with worshippers, where Eucharistic adoration hours are full, and a place where the celebration of the sacraments shape schedules.
Imagine a place where marriage and family life can flourish, and where the wounds of an often-hostile culture can be healed and transformed. A place where children, teens, young adults and those of all ages come to learn more about Jesus and his Catholic Church, where they can grow deeper in prayer and their knowledge of Sacred Scripture and the teachings of the Church. A place where families thirst to know Jesus, where vocations to the priesthood and religious life flourish, and where clergy and religious are well supported.
In January 2025, we launched a diocesan-wide effort to create the Catholic Diocese of Lincoln’s first ever pastoral plan. A pastoral plan establishes a shared vision for the future and guides the diocese’s mission and ministry. It outlines pastoral principles that shepherd the goals, priorities, and action steps to be achieved over a five-year time frame. Led by the Holy Spirit, it is a collaborative partnership between the lay faithful in the parishes, the priests and religious, and the bishop and his team.
Through input from hundreds of people—lay, clergy and religious—from across the Diocese of Lincoln, and through the work of a diverse planning team under my guidance, we created a roadmap for our future: our One Heart in Christ pastoral plan. This plan will define our focus for the next five years, although it is also flexible enough to adjust to the needs of our diocese.
One Heart in Christ was chosen by our team to emphasize unity and oneness in Christ. Inspired by Pope Leo’s motto, In Illo uno unum (in Him we are one) and the role that the heart plays in our relationship with God and with others, One Heart in Christ strives to cultivate real and authentic relationships in a highly technologized culture where people can often feel lonely and isolated.
One Heart in Christ includes four main pillars to provide the foundation for our future: Healthy Parishes, Education, Religious Vocations, and Holy Marriage and Family Life. Four primary goals have also been created under each pillar to focus our efforts in the near future. Additional objectives will be released as part of the full pastoral plan to define actions that will allow us to reach these goals.
The lay faithful, priests, and religious were invited to participate in listening sessions beginning in February 2025. All the faithful in the diocese were invited to participate in the sessions advertised through monthly promotional articles and photo stories in the Southern Nebraska Register, weekly print registration advertisements, social media promotional posts, digital registration advertisements distributed weekly to all parishes for insertion into their bulletins, Mass announcements, and more. A brief online comment form—in both English and Spanish—was also made available. Almost 300 people accepted the invitation to participate in the listening sessions and to share their visions for the future of the diocese. Here is a sample of what we heard:
“What can the laity do to help the diocese? What can we do differently as laypeople to empower ourselves? We have a lot to offer.”
“What does a healthy, thriving life for a priest look like?
“How do we sustain Catholic education and keep it affordable, while ensuring fair pay for our teachers and good facilities?”
In addition to the information collected from the listening sessions and companion surveys, a cross section of data was compiled to inform the work including parish data on sacramental statistics and Mass census data; diocesan financial data such as parish and school data on contribution trends, parish net income, parish and school debt, and enrollment trends; and education data including information on Catholic schools, homeschools, and other information.
The mandate was clear: to create a living, breathing plan that ignites our hearts and leads us to Christ.
A planning team of laity, priests and religious, and diocesan staff from across the diocese was assembled and joined me to create the plan. From McCook to Nebraska City, to Shelby, to Lincoln, this team met in Lincoln for two full days in September, and one full day in November to create a vision, a mission, pastoral principles and related goals—and metrics to measure success—as well as a first-year action plan, guided by issues the diocesan faithful said were most important to them. The action plan articulates first-year priorities with action steps to which diocesan leadership has committed, including resources and other support, and a menu of recommended action steps for the parishes, depending upon what they believe is the best fit for them.
The plan does not address every need of the diocese, but it does target the major areas of focus that surfaced from those listening sessions and were identified by the committee. You are encouraged to visit with your pastor if you feel there are also other needs that could be addressed at the parish level.
One critical piece of support is the generous stewardship of time and talent by the 15 planning team members who have committed to partnering with the diocese for one year to support and move the plan forward in a variety of ways—including collaboration with the diocesan faithful and help from those who participated in the listening sessions. The One Heart in Christ pastoral plan launches on Divine Mercy Sunday in conjunction with the release of my One Heart in Christ pastoral letter.
God has given each of us a role and gifts to share with each other. Don’t wait to be asked to start making a difference with the priorities identified in this pastoral plan. Reach out to your pastor and ministry leaders in your parish and let them know you’re ready to do your part to help bring your parish and our diocese together as One Heart in Christ.
This is your home, your mission, your One Heart in Christ.
Editor's Note: Read or listen to the letter and watch an interview with Bishop Conley at www.lincolndiocese.org/oneheartinchrist
