1. religion and spirituality
2. christianity
3. catholicism

As part of the Secretariat for Leadership Development, the Department for Youth and Young Adult
Ministry seeks to form lay leaders to effectively serve the Church of Pittsburgh in the following areas:
Catholic Youth Ministry
Campus Ministry
•Facilitating a systematic process that produces
competent Youth Ministry Leaders
• Provides leadership formation and consultation to high school
and collegian campus ministry leaders
• Chaplaincy Coordinator for high school and collegian chaplaincies
• Facilitates communication and collaboration between
Campus Ministers, Programs, and Campus Administrators
• Supports the Newman Connection throughout the diocese
•Attending to Youth Ministry Leaders with resources,
training, and support
•Parish consultations to assist in the development of
comprehensive Catholic Youth Ministry
Catholic Committee on Scouting
• Religious emblem/awards training for adult counselors
• Convocation
• Retreat
Diocesan Events and Programming
• Diocesan Youth Council (D.Y.C.)
• Saint Timothy Awards
• “Delegation Leader” for the biennial National Catholic
Youth Conference (N.C.Y.C.)
• “Diocesan Contact Person” for NET Ministries
• ”Diocesan Liaison” for the Youth Rally and Mass for Life
sponsored by the Archdiocese of Washington D.C.
• Monthly Youth Ministry Leader Formation
• Spring Break College Commissioning
Young Adult Ministry
• Engaging young adults and encouraging a dynamic life
in Christ that infuses the Church with energy and
enthusiasm
• Empowering the Young Adult Leadership Team
to make connections and foster communities
Diocesan Events and Programming
• Young Adult Symposium and ongoing leadership development
for regional and parish-based Young Adult Ministry
• License-holder providing guidelines for hosting RENEW
Theology on Tap
• World Youth Day and pilgrimage experiences
Catholic Youth Ministry (C.Y.M.) Sports • Basketball and Softball
• Play Like A Champion TodayTM - Sports as Ministry, Coach Clinic
www.facebook.com/cympgh
www.facebook.com/yampgh
www.diopitt.org
get in touch
2900 Noblestown Road
Pittsburgh, PA 15205
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (412) 456-3140
Fax: (412) 456-3141
[email protected]
[email protected]
Gary W. Roney
Director
Pat Waskowiak
Secretary
Holly Joy McIlwain
Associate Director
Michelle Ubinger
CYM Sports Coordinator
Deacon Alexander C. Wroblicky
Director, Office for Campus Ministry
Deacon Frank Szemanski
To oversee the ongoing development of the diocesan pre-ordination formation program for prospective
deacons as well as post-ordination formation experiences for men already in ordained ministry as deacons.
Department for Diaconate Formation
Diaconate formation involves a program of education, training, spiritual growth, personal
development, ongoing conversion, and discernment. The formation experience is designed to be
powerful and challenging at the same time, practical and relevant. It requires significant time, trust,
discipline, self-surrender, obedience, and true effort. Shaping and guiding diaconate formation are
several key Church documents, including Basic Norms for the Formation of Permanent Deacons and the
National Directory for the Formation, Ministry, and Life of Permanent Deacons in the United States.
services
•Administration of the nomination, application, and vetting of
prospective candidates for the diocesan Deacon Formation
Program. This is a multi-phase process over the course of
nearly a year.
•Development and administration of the Propaedeutic Period,
a year-long preliminary experience for prospective deacon
candidates, exposing them to the nature of diaconate ministry
and the four pillars of the formation program.
•Development and administration of the Deacon Formation Program, a four-year journey through personal, academic, spiritual,
and pastoral formation, including classes, workshops, days of
recollection, an annual retreat, and a supervised pastoral
experience each summer.
•Coordination with faculty, formation advisors, and spiritual
directors for the Propaedeutic Period and Deacon
Formation Program.
•Oversight of the evaluation of candidates throughout the
formation program.
get in touch
2900 Noblestown Road
Pittsburgh, PA 15205
Phone: (412) 456-3124
Fax: (412) 456-3187
D IO CESE O F PIT TSB U RGH D EACO N FO RMAT IO N PRO GRA M
•Planning of liturgies to mark significant steps in the program, from
the start of the Propaedeutic Period to candidacy, installation as
lectors, installation as acolytes, and, finally, ordination.
•Organization of a mentor program for newly ordained deacons in
the first two or three years of ministry.
•Coordination with the Department for Post-Ordination Formation
in planning prospective workshops that would be of particular
value and interest to deacons.
•Planning and implementation of an annual weekend retreat for
deacons and spouses.
office for deacon personnel
The Deacon Formation Program in the Secretariat for Leadership
Development is administered in conjunction with the Office for
Deacon Personnel in the Secretariat for Clergy. The Office for
Deacon Personnel deals with all day-to-day issues involving
permanent deacons in the Diocese of Pittsburgh.
Deacon Stephen J. Byers
Director
Email: [email protected]
Diocese of Pittsburgh
Deacon Formation Program
412-456-3124
[email protected]
Do you have
a heart for others?
Amy Hirsh
Secretary
Sister Cindy Ann Kibler, SHS
Coordinator for Pre-ordination Pastoral Experience
The Department for Pre-Ordination Formation cares for the formation of men in all stages of seminary
training, collegiate through theology, in anticipation of possible reception of Sacred Orders.
department for pre-ordination Formation
Ongoing conversion is the vocation of any disciple of Christ. The seminarian pursues ongoing conversion in the priestly
formation program in a particular way, considering how he might be serving the Church as a diocesan priest. The pursuit
of holiness is a call to perfection in the ways of the Lord. The seminarian grows in his understanding of faith, hope, and love
and comes to understand how the priest, configured to Christ, is called to be Head, Shepherd, and Spouse of the Church.
The governing documents of priestly formation speak about the areas of formation a seminarian must address in his
discernment and preparation for the priesthood. Saint Paul Seminary emphasizes an integrated formation which considers
the following pillars: human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral formation. The two most current magisterial documents
governing priestly formation in the Catholic Church are Presbyterorum Ordinis (1965) and Pastores Dabo Vobis (1992).
Human formation
Intellectual formation
The purpose of human formation is to develop the personal and interpersonal qualities that will allow each seminarian’s personality to
develop after that of the Good Shepherd. The diocesan priest leads
people to Christ and His Church. Therefore, his personality, attitude,
and disposition are to serve as “a bridge and not an obstacle for others in their meeting with Jesus Christ, the Redeemer of humanity”
(Pastores Dabo Vobis, 43). Human formation is foundational for the
life of grace, but also for the other pillars of formation.
The purpose of intellectual formation is for the seminarian to grasp
the Catholic intellectual and liturgical tradition, to be able to proclaim and teach the Gospel of Christ, to communicate the mystery
of God to the people of today, and to be equipped for the continuing
pursuit of truth.
Spiritual formation
Spiritual formation strives to establish a foundation within the seminarian for a lifetime of priestly ministry in the Church. This foundation is an intimate relationship with the triune God, the source of all
love and truth, a relationship nourished by Scripture and Tradition,
celebrated in the sacraments—most particularly in the Eucharist—
and marked by a sincere devotion to Our Lady, the Mother of God
and the Mother of the Church. To this end, the spiritual formation
program challenges the seminarian to grow in loyalty to the Church,
the sacrament of salvation.
get in touch
2900 Noblestown Road
Pittsburgh, PA 15205
Phone: 412-456-3048
Fax: 412-456-3187
Email: [email protected]
Pastoral formation
The priestly formation program at Saint Paul Seminary introduces
the seminarian to pastoral formation in a number of ways, but most
particularly through the apostolic works program. The students
are exposed to an array of pastoral opportunities which will both
enhance their gifts and challenge them in areas of needed growth.
Each seminarian assists in an assigned ministry for normally two to
four hours a week, supervised by onsite supervisors.
Vocations web site: www.pghpriest.com
Very Reverend Brian J. Welding
Director
Reverend Joseph Freedy
Vocations Director
Very Reverend Thomas W. Kunz
Spiritual Director
Reverend Nicholas S. Vaskov
Director of Pastoral Formation
Sr. Cindy Ann Kibler
Apostolic Works Coordinator
Reverend Brian W. Noel
Adjunct Spiritual Director
Debra Kubiak
Secretary
“Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoeverwants to be first must be servant of all.
For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as ransom for many.” (Mark 10:42-45)
department for post-ordination Formation
The ongoing formation for priests and deacons includes two major areas of focus as defined in the United States
Catholic Conference document The Basic Plan for the Ongoing Formation of Clergy. The first treats ongoing formation
in a “synchronic” way, noting that there are elements or dynamics of ongoing formation that are the same at every
moment of priests’ and deacons’ lives. The second area proceeds “diachronically” or longitudinally, identifying the
different formational tasks appropriate in the different ages and special moments of priestly ministry and life. Specific
attention is given to the newly ordained, priests in transition, priests entering their first pastorate, priests in midlife,
and priests in the third age. More recent initiatives consider the formation of an entire presbyterate.
Services Provided:
•Oversees the staffing of an office for the ongoing formation
of clergy.
•Serves as the liaison for priests or deacons that might be assigned
by Bishop Zubik to graduate studies.
•Ensures resources, programming and training through human,
intellectual, spiritual, and pastoral on-going pastoral formation
and leadership development of clergy.
•Plans, designs, communicates and evaluates clergy convocations
convened by the diocesan Bishop.
•Plans, designs, communicates and evaluates on-going formation
for clergy in collaboration with members of the Post-Ordination
Formation Board. This advisory board is made up of several priests
and deacons that are appointed by Bishop Zubik.
•Coordinates annual retreats for priests and deacons in
collaboration with Deacon Steve Byers, Director of the Department
for Diaconate Formation.
•Provides information and assistance to those seeking a sabbatical or mini-sabbatical.
get in touch
2900 Noblestown Road
Pittsburgh, PA 15205
Phone: (412) 456-3052
Fax: (412) 456-3187
Email: [email protected]
•Collaborates with the Delegate for Retired Priests to coordinate
programs for clergy anticipating retirement from active ministry.
•Networks and partners with other institutions outside the diocesan
structure in order to ensure and provide similar services.
•Partners and collaborates with other diocesan secretariats for the
development of clergy as leaders. Some of these efforts are
evangelization, catechesis, worship, justice and peace, diversity,
and lay leadership.
•Through the mechanisms of diocesan communications,
communicates the values, purposes, and activities of the ongoing
formation of priests to the People of God.
Reverend Joseph M. Mele
Director
Lori Rectenwald
Administrative Assistant
Clare Giuffre
Secretary
The Department for Lay Ministries exists to coordinate the Hiring Process; oversee certification; facilitate
authorization and provide formation for the following Lay Ecclesial Ministers
department for Lay Ministries
DIRECTORS/COORDINATORS
OF RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
MASTER CATECHISTS
•DRE perceiver interview
•Development of Course Outlines
•Guidance/support for candidates seeking employment
•Assistance with disseminating openings through current
lay ministers and the diocesan website
•Direction/Support for Pastors with Hiring
•Assistance with the process of using a parish search
committee for hiring
•Provides above services in collaboration with the
Dept for Religious Education
•Formation of Master Catechists
Lay Ecclesial Ministries
•Interim Hiring Handbook for seven of the ten Lay Ecclesial
Ministries groups (Catechetical Administrator, Directors of Music
Ministries, Elementary School Principal, Parish Business Manager,
Parish Social Minister, Pastoral Associate, Director of
Youth Ministry)
•Facilitation of LEM Commissioning & Authorization
PASTORAL ASSOCIATES &
BUSINESS MANAGERS
•Convenes and administers the Certification Board (an
Inter-Secretariat/Department) body responsible for evaluating
and recommending the certification processes for all lay ministers
(altar servers through youth ministers)
•Inservice & enrichment opportunities for Pastoral Associates
•Provide human, spiritual, intellectual, pastoral formation for LEMs
•Liaison with Business Managers Association
•Facilitation of pastoral field experience for LEMs
•Certification process & interviews with Pastoral Associates
& Business Managers utilizing National Standards
•Enhance training of field supervisors, increasing competencies
for pastoral leadership
PARISH SOCIAL MINISTERS
EDUCATIONAL SUPPORT
•Co-sponsor inservice and enrichment opportunities
with Department for Human Life and Dignity
•Diocesan Supervisor for Pastoral Ministry Practicum
with Duquesne University
•Oversee vetting process
•Administer Diocesan Tuition Assistance (Master’s Degree)
for Pastoral Ministry
•Part of the planning team for the Institute for Pastoral Leadership
get in touch
2900 Noblestown Road
Pittsburgh, PA 15205
Phone: 412-456-3110
FAX: 412-456-3184
Email: [email protected]
[email protected]
Sharon T. Hachman
Director
Susan Heastings
Secretary
“Let us listen to what all the Faithful say, because in every one of them the spirit of God breathes.”
- St. Paulinus of Nola
department for Parish Advisory Councils
As a critical component of growing The Church Alive, the Department for Parish Advisory Councils provides
tools, consultative services and formation opportunities to assist the central leadership bodies of the parish to
chart a vibrant Christ-centered mission for their parish communities.
Through two primary resources, One Body, One Mission: the Pastoral Council Guidelines, and Means for Mission:
the Parish Finance Council Guidelines of the Diocese of Pittsburgh parish leaders are equipped with the fundamental
theological framework and practical strategies to enhance the life, mission and growth of the parish community.
INDIVIDUAL PARISH OR
MULTI-PARISH CONSULTATION
Consultants are a select group of Parish Pastoral and Finance Council
Instructors who have been recruited, screened and prepared for
their distinctive role by the diocesan Department for Parish Advisory
Councils. They are equipped to provide a limited and focused
number of services to assist a pastor and his pastoral council in
implementing some particular aspect of One Body, One Mission and
Means for Mission.
The formation is comprised of three sessions:
One weekday evening session will be held for both council members
together
One all day Saturday sessions for each council separately
One Evening of Recollection or Retreat usually offered in Advent and
the Easter Season.
Certificates are earned by those who complete each of the
above sessions.
ACQUIRING CONSULTATIVE SERVICES: The Pastor or his
designee contacts the Director of the Department by phone at 412456-3047 or by email at [email protected] to determine
goals for the consultation. An interview with the pastor is conducted
to determine the service(s) needed. Based on the parish’s need and
the abilities of the consultants, a PPC Consultant is recommended to
the parish for the agreed upon service.
AN ONLINE E-TOOL FOR ADVISORY COUNCILS AND PASTORAL LEADERS: EQUIPPING FOR LEADERSHIP
Additionally, on a monthly basis we will e-mail an electronic
newsletter which will highlight specific trainings, events and
resources. Leaders can receive emails with weekly updates to
“Follow Us” by submitting an e-mail in the upper right hand corner of
the e-tool webpage found at: http://pghparishadvisorycouncils.org/ PARISH PASTORAL AND FINANCE COUNCIL
INTRODUCTORY FORMATION: Newly appointed members
of parish advisory councils attend an introductory certification
course that highlights the vision and methodology of planning for
mission within the parish.
get in touch
2900 Noblestown Road
Pittsburgh, PA 15205
Phone: 412-456-3047
Fax: 412-456-3184
Email: [email protected]
www.pghparishadvisorycouncils.org
Our Department has developed an interactive e-tool that will share
pastoral planning resources, leadership updates and a weekly blog
with your leadership team. It can be accessed directly at the above
web address.
Ms. Sharon A. Bogusz
Director
Susan O’Neill
Secretary
The Department for Pre-Ordination Formation cares for the formation of men in all stages of seminary
training, collegiate through theology, in anticipation of possible reception of Sacred Orders.
The Office for Priestly Vocations
The Vocation Office sponsors discernment programs for men of high school, college, and post-college age. High school
vocation group events are for young men in high school who desire to know Christ and his plan for their lives and who are
interested in learning more about the priesthood. Specific events include a Come and See Weekend at Saint Paul Seminary, a Fall Retreat at Camp Allegheny, and the annual Quo Vadis Days. These retreat and discernment days allow the
young men to meet seminarians and talk to them about their vocational journeys and include prayer, discussion, brotherhood, as well as recreational components.
College discernment groups are for men currently enrolled
in college studies who want to know more about a vocation
to the priesthood. The group meets monthly for prayer,
a shared meal, and discussion around a topic relevant to
discernment. A Christmas Discernment Retreat is hosted
each year for college and post-college men interested
in discerning more deeply a call to diocesan priesthood.
This weekend retreat, which includes prayer, Mass, and
discussion, is led by the Vocation Director, Father Joseph
Freedy, along with Bishop Zubik, the seminary faculty, and
seminarians.
get in touch
2900 Noblestown Road
Pittsburgh, PA 15205
Phone: 412-456-3123
Fax: 412-456-3187
Men older than college age
who wish to learn more about
the priesthood are invited to
participate in the post-college
discernment group. Similar to the
college discernment group, these
men meet monthly for prayer, a
shared meal, and conversation on
a vocational topic aimed at assisting their discernment.
The post-college men are also invited to the Christmas
Discernment Retreat.
Reverend Joseph Freedy
Director, Office for Priestly Vocations
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.pghpriest.com
Amy Hirsh
Secretary