I subscribe to the YouTube channel of Midlife Stockman. He works a lot in Detroit. This guy, who might be one of the nicest guys who walks the earth, spots properties that are neglected or abandoned eyesores, dangers overgrown sideways, etc., and cleans them up for no charge. The transformations are amazing. His videos can be habit forming. You have been warned.
Tonight I watched a video while making supper of what was maybe his biggest challenge yet. Usually he works along (how, I don’t know). This time he needed and team and to invest his own money.
As I watched I thought of the Archdiocese of Detroit, and the Diocese of Charlotte and the Diocese of… and the Diocese of… and the Diocese of… and the Diocese of… and the Diocese of… and the Diocese of….
I’m mulling over this video as a metaphor (analogy?) to consider. Before we can do a lot of rebuilding, a lot of demolition and clean up must take place. Things must be cleared.
That will require grace and elbow grease.
Of course, that begins with a personal challenge: GO TO CONFESSION.
(If that hasn’t also been banned as being against “unity”.)
Maybe where you are you can brain-storm together with others and tackle some problems. For example, I direct your attention – ever shorter these days under the barrage of information – back the unfortunate Charlotte where at a Mass with their overlord… bishop, 95% of the people present knelt for Communion after he communicated to in writing (to the watching world) that he doesn’t like that sort of thing.
Again, analogies limp and metaphors are never perfect. But something about what this guy does is on target and inspiring.
There are two other channels I have been thinking about in this light.
No, they are not about chess. I’ll get to those eventually, too.
BRICK BY BRICK.
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Meanwhile, Sacred Heart of Jesus in Port Chester, NY, closed in 2017, was sold off and recently torn down.
A regular Latin Mass was said there every Sunday, for decades. Some Catholic luminaries regularly attended that Mass. I hope the 30 pieces of silver made Cardinal Dolan happy.
Here in Taxachusetts, Our former Cardinal sold majority of Churches in middle
Class and wealthy cities and towns. PRIME REAL ESTATE!
All to pay for pedo lawsuits. He closed thriving Catholic schools with 5 year waiting list. Some churches in wealthy areas had parishioners who offered to purchase property. Cardinal said no, no, no. Vatican refused to hear.
Cardinal made it clear his decision would not be challenged. Like Ramses in the Ten Commandments movie..”So it is said, so let it be done.”
This brought to me memories of a time I was involved in helping tidy up a sacristy (it hadn’t seen any proper care in several years and things had been piling up for complicated reasons). So much could be done of the small work for the dignity of the Liturgy, and help actually be welcomed in many places, but we’ve lost the institutions we used to have for this kind of action (things like St. Veronica confraternities).
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Not:
By all means – disagree with the reasoning that was used (and there were all sorts of competing reasoning & criteria).
By all means – dislike or disagree with whichever decisions you want (I certainly have a personal list of ones that I hate and/or think were bad).
However…
Don’t distort the facts. That’s a disservice to the truth and disrespectful to the man and the office.
—
You’re saying that the Cardinal
– ‘sold majority of Churches in middle-class and wealthy cities & towns’? No. Just sifting my memory I came up with at least 20 in Boston. Add in Quincy, Brockton, Revere, Chelsea, Lynn, Salem, Lawrence, Lowell, Somerville, etc… – you’re quickly up to half or more of the 75+ closed or consolidated.
Those middle-class & rich cities & towns? Yes, there were closures – but it was things like one parish out of two or three, two or three parishes out of six or eight. I don’t recall cases where people were left without a parish in their town. Maybe one or two cases of small towns sharing a parish.
– ‘…rich cities… Yeah, Boston has some rich neighborhoods – that’s where the Cardinal started, before selling churches – by selling the archbishop’s mansion & chancery grounds.
– ‘All to pay for…’ Yes, some of the money was used for lawsuits, etc… In each suppression, any funds realized were allocated to follow the congregation to the receiving parish as worked out with the pastor and those and any other uses were disclosed.
– ‘pedo lawsuits’ Yes! Paying liability judgments and settlements and funding counseling for victims after the decades of predation & secrecy! That’s what the Church is supposed to do! (at a bare minimum, years later)
– ‘All to pay for lawsuits’ …and not just lawsuits. He could have tried going without closings & consolidations for at least a few years – but that would fly in the face of two readily-apparent trends.
First – the number of available priests was and is shrinking. Should he have kept parishes open by stretching priests thinner & thinner, by pushing even more priests into pastor roles they’re not suited for?
Second – the demographics of the baby boom and greatest generation were approaching or passing retirement age, and the bottomless magic lamp from the rose-tinted & slightly mythical glory days that people thought Cardinals Law or Cushing could rub & get money for anything was going to be running a lot leaner.
– ‘closed schools with a five-year waiting list’? I’m coming up blank when I try to think of which school you’re talking about.
– ‘turned down parishioners who offered to buy parish properties’ That one is right. Do you really think it’s a good idea to set up a ‘business model’ where the rich parishioners might try to exert their standing as ‘the reason a place is there’?
– ‘made it clear that his decision would not be challenged’ He waited years as some groups filed appeals. He actually reversed or altered his decisions in a few cases.
– Vatican refused to hear. Nope – a number of groups had multiple appeals to various Vatican bodies. Yeah, many ultimately turned down, but they were heard – AND there were one or two corrections/instructions issued to the Archdiocese.
Midlife Stockman seems like such a good guy. The world needs more of what he does.
Prayers for those suffering and not having access to the TLM. Creativity seems to come about when we are lacking in something…well, lots of praying helps too.
There are several churches in my diocese that are owned by the Parish and NOT by the diocese. This happened when the diocese wanted to sell the property and the local residents wanted it kept. The parish council BOUGHT the property and it is still a church. Many years later when the diocese was looking for money they were unable to force the church to be “combined” with another parish and then sold since the diocese no longer owned the parish.
The SSPX buy church properties though a third party so the diocese does not know WHO is buying the property. It almost seems demonic for a Church to be sold and the prelate wants nothing to do with it remaining in the hands of Catholics. Rather it be turned into a bar, restaurant or worse.
The “Pedo” problems in the church are directly related to the wrong men being allowed to proceed in seminary. The diocese, in most cases, did not BUILD the church. It was built by the local catholic community with local money. It almost seems like theft to sell a property that your ancestors spent time, money and blood erecting.
When a Bishop says he wants to “humble” and not live in the place that was BUILT FOR HIM by the people of the community, does that strike you as charitable or prideful? Does Christ reject the gifts we offer him? These places were not built for the MAN, they were built for God and for his “vice roys” who live in them. Selling them has always seemed wrong to me. The only time I could see that happening is if the place is in such disrepair that the cost of repairs is more than building new. In THAT case we can say that the structure has “lived it’s life.”
In almost all other cases it is simply MONEY that is being sought by selling these locations. There is nothing wrong with them and in many cases the closure is NOT wanted by the local faithful.