National Conference of Catholic Bishops - Subcommittee on Lay Ministry
Secretariat for Family, Laity, Women, and Youth
Survey of Directors of Lay Ecclesial Ministry Formation Programs

This survey is part of a project designed to help the NCCB better understand goals and practices in the spiritual formation of lay ecclesial ministers. Please respond for the program you direct.

Name: ____________________________________________

Title: _____________________________________________

Program: __________________________________________

Institution: _________________________________________

Diocese: ___________________________________________

Does your program include the following?

Yes	No	NR
71	29	8	1. A formal spiritual formation component.
53	47	8	2. A screening process to assess a candidate's spiritual readiness for the program.
28	72	13	3. A formal spiritual formation assessment process.

Please indicate whether the process for screening potential program candidates includes the following.

Yes	No	NR
54	46	14	4. A self-assessment process.
80	20	9	5. A personal statement.
84	16	8	6. Letter(s) of recommendation.
72	28	12	7. Interview(s).
60	40	70	8. Other: _________________________________

Please use the scale below for items 9-18.

1=Required as part of the program.

2=Offered as part of the program, but not required.

3=Made available, but not a formal part of the program.

4=Not part of the program, either formally or informally.

Does your program include the following elements?

1	2	3	4	NR
21	14	30	35	4	9. Spiritual director.
40	6	11	43	6	10. Formation director.
36	18	25	21	5	11. Mentoring.
79	6	7	8	3	12. Theological reflection.
51	17	13	19	5	13. Days of reflection or recollection.
48	12	15	25	5	14. Retreat.
60	19	14	7	4	15. Shared prayer.
65	18	9	8	3	16. Faith sharing.
44	25	16	15	4	17. Liturgical celebrations.
59	18	10	13	8	18. Academic courses on spirituality.

Please indicate whether the following have a role in assessing the spiritual formation of candidates.

Yes	No	NR
18	82	14	19. Spiritual director.
49	51	10	20. Formation director.
31	69	12	21. Formation team.
40	60	15	22. Formation faculty.
40	60	15	23. Academic adviser.
42	58	14	24. Academic faculty.
26	74	16	25. Peer evaluation.

Please use the scale below for items 26-45 and 49-68.
1=Not at all.	3=Somewhat.
2=Only a little.	4=Very much.

How important are these qualities in a lay ecclesial minister?

1	2	3	4	NR
0	1	12	87	3	26. Sense of personal call.
0	0	2	98	3	27. Sense of mission/discipleship.
0	0	5	95	3	28. Sense of community.
0	1	5	94	4	29. Commitment to prayer.
0	3	24	73	3	30. Ability to engage in discernment.
0	1	17	82	2	31. Ability to reflect theologically.
0	2	23	75	2	32. Ability to articulate personal faith experiences.
0	3	20	77	3	33. Ability to invite others to a life of faith.
0	0	8	92	3	34. Openness to ongoing conversion.
0	1	6	93	3	35. Openness to life-long faith formation.
0	1	12	87	3	36. Healthy sense of self.
0	0	10	90	3	37. Ability to integrate ministry within the multiple roles in one's life.
0	0	6	94	2	38. Desire to serve others.
1	1	30	68	3	39. Willingness to serve diverse populations.
1	0	3	96	3	40. Commitment to the person of Jesus Christ.
1	0	15	84	4	41. Commitment to the Catholic Church.
0	3	21	76	3	42. Appreciation of diverse models of the Church.
0	1	13	86	3	43. Sensitivity to diverse expressions of faith.
0	1	21	78	2	44. Commitment to social justice.
0	0	14	86	4	45. Openness to transforming grace of ministry.

Using the numbers for items 26-45 above, identify the three qualities that are most important in a lay ecclesial minister.

#40=29%	46. The most important quality.	NR=10%
#27=13%	47. The second most important quality	NR=10%
#27=12%	48. The third most important quality.	NR=10%

How much do candidates have these qualities when they begin your program?

1	2	3	4	NR
0	8	54	38	8	49. Sense of personal call.
0	16	64	20	9	50. Sense of mission/discipleship.
0	20	66	14	8	51. Sense of community.
0	15	62	23	8	52. Commitment to prayer.
4	49	45	2	8	53. Ability to engage in discernment.
14	61	23	2	8	54. Ability to reflect theologically.
2	32	60	6	8	55. Ability to articulate personal faith experiences.
4	42	49	5	8	56. Ability to invite others to a life of faith.
0	20	61	19	8	57. Openness to ongoing conversion.
2	26	48	24	9	58. Openness to life-long faith formation.
1	20	65	14	9	59. Healthy sense of self.
2	45	47	6	10	60. Ability to integrate ministry within the multiple roles in one's life.
1	4	33	62	9	61. Desire to serve others.
5	38	48	9	9	62. Willingness to serve diverse populations.
0	2	44	54	8	63. Commitment to the person of Jesus Christ.
1	5	48	46	10	64. Commitment to the Catholic Church.
6	51	39	4	9	65. Appreciation of diverse models of the Church.
4	49	42	5	9	66. Sensitivity to diverse expressions of faith.
3	44	50	3	9	67. Commitment to social justice.
2	23	62	13	10	68. Openness to transforming grace of ministry.

Please use the scale below for items 69-88 and 92-111.
1=Not at all.	3=Somewhat.
2=Only a little.	4=Very much.

How much does your program emphasize the development of these qualities in program candidates?

1	2	3	4	NR
0	9	24	67	6	69. Sense of personal call.
0	3	16	81	6	70. Sense of mission/discipleship.
0	3	15	82	6	71. Sense of community.
0	5	27	68	6	72. Commitment to prayer.
0	10	34	56	5	73. Ability to engage in discernment.
0	3	20	77	6	74. Ability to reflect theologically.
0	3	27	70	6	75. Ability to articulate personal faith experiences.
0	8	41	51	6	76. Ability to invite others to a life of faith.
0	4	16	80	6	77. Openness to ongoing conversion.
0	1	16	83	6	78. Openness to life-long faith formation.
1	4	25	70	6	79. Healthy sense of self.
0	5	28	67	6	80. Ability to integrate ministry within the multiple roles in one's life.
0	2	26	72	6	81. Desire to serve others.
0	7	35	58	6	82. Willingness to serve diverse populations.
0	1	15	84	5	83. Commitment to the person of Jesus Christ.
0	1	26	73	7	84. Commitment to the Catholic Church.
0	3	31	66	6	85. Appreciation of diverse models of the Church.
0	4	27	69	6	86. Sensitivity to diverse expressions of faith.
0	3	32	65	7	87. Commitment to social justice.
1	4	23	72	7	88. Openness to transforming grace of ministry.

Using the numbers for items 69-88 above, identify the three qualities that your program emphasizes most strongly.

#74=25%	NR=10%	89. The most strongly emphasized quality.
#70=11%	NR=10%	90. The second most strongly emphasized quality.
#78=10%	NR=10%	91. The third most strongly emphasized quality.

How much do candidates have these qualities when they complete your program?

1	2	3	4	NR
0	1	20	79	13	92. Sense of personal call.
0	0	19	81	13	93. Sense of mission/discipleship.
0	1	20	79	14	94. Sense of community.
0	1	40	59	14	95. Commitment to prayer.
0	8	47	45	13	96. Ability to engage in discernment.
0	3	34	63	13	97. Ability to reflect theologically.
0	1	24	75	13	98. Ability to articulate personal faith experiences.
0	2	45	53	13	99. Ability to invite others to a life of faith.
0	1	26	73	14	100. Openness to ongoing conversion.
0	1	22	77	13	101. Openness to life-long faith formation.
0	2	41	57	15	102. Healthy sense of self.
0	2	47	51	13	103. Ability to integrate ministry within the multiple roles in one's life.
0	0	16	84	13	104. Desire to serve others.
0	3	55	42	13	105. Willingness to serve diverse populations.
0	1	14	85	14	106. Commitment to the person of Jesus Christ.
0	1	22	77	15	107. Commitment to the Catholic Church.
0	1	39	60	14	108. Appreciation of diverse models of the Church.
0	1	34	65	13	109. Sensitivity to diverse expressions of faith.
0	2	51	47	13	110. Commitment to social justice.
0	2	29	69	13	111. Openness to transforming grace of ministry.

Avg.=32%

112. Approximately what percentage of candidate's time is devoted to spiritual formation activities?

Yes No NR

116. What are the most important elements of spiritual formation for lay ecclesial ministers? Why?

117. What do lay ecclesial ministry candidates find most helpful for their spiritual formation? Why?

Please attach a copy of program requirements and any materials specifically designed for the spiritual formation process for lay ecclesial ministers.

CARA/Center for Applied Research on the Apostolate
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