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COMMENTARY
Report from New York
Francis Piderit, VOTF New York
[The following message was sent in late January to
VOTF members in the New York archdiocese. See DIOCESE/State
Watch for more.]
In the wake of the January 19th announcement of the
parish realignment decisions by the Archdiocese of
New York, we share some news and thoughts with you,
and to ask your help as we prepare for the important
work that lies before us in the weeks and months ahead.
Helping Affected Parishes: Our first response to the
announcement has been to reach out to affected parishes.
We know that two parishes are already actively organizing
their response: Our Lady Queen of Angels in East Harlem
and Mary Help of Christians on the Lower East Side.
Our Lady Queen of Angels in East Harlem: Over the
past week, we coordinated contacts with Peter Borré,
head of the Council of Parishes in Boston, who has
led resistance in the Boston area over the past two
years. This Saturday, Peter will be coming to Manhattan
to meet with the parishioners of Queen of Angels. A
public procession is being planned for 1:30PM, beginning
at the church, 226 East 113th Street. Participants
are asked to wear crosses and blue ribbons, signaling
that Jesus and Mary are marching with us. The procession
will pass other Catholic centers in the neighborhood,
and end at 1261 Fifth Avenue (108th Street), where
we will meet, hear from Peter Borré, and strategize
as a community.
Mary Help of Christians on the Lower East Side: Representatives
from Mary Help of Christians will attend on Saturday,
and are also working to stage a public demonstration
at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on Sunday, Feb. 4,
time to be determined.
Each affected parish needs to determine its response:
to protest or to acquiesce. VOTF NY cannot make that
decision for them. What we can do is help them understand
what tools and resources are available to them if they
are ready to fight to save their parish. And if they
decide to defend their parish against closing, we can
help them fight. So if you know individual parishioners
in the affected parishes, call them, get a sense of
the reaction, and invite them to join in Saturday’s
march and meeting, which are surely the first of many
to follow in coming months.
Responding to the Decisions of the Archdiocese
As you may know, VOTF New York was aggressive in attempting
to influence the realignment process. We held our first
Parish Encounter event in 2005, where we had representatives
from over 40 parishes participating. At our second
event in April of 2006, we heard powerful testimony
from parishes already on the list, signaling the presence
of strong faith communities determined to carry on.
We hope that our work made a meaningful contribution
to the fact that the final list of parishes to be closed
was much shorter than the original list.
Having said this, we also recognize that the Archdiocese,
beyond releasing the list, has revealed virtually nothing
about its decision-making process. The attitude seems
to be, “Trust us, we know what we are doing.” But
we know from bitter experience that when it came to
issues we care deeply about, such as the safety of
our children, the hierarchy of our church has repeatedly
demonstrated in the past that it did not know what
it was doing.
We care deeply about our parishes. Will the decision-making
be any better when it comes to parishes?
So it is difficult to take the decisions announced
last Friday on trust. The Archdiocese has revealed
nothing about its financial condition. Cardinal Egan
has publicly stated that within two years of his arrival
in New York, he “balanced the budget, and we
have never had anything but a surplus ever since.” If
this is indeed true, then why is it that the Archdiocese
of New York has not published financial statements
of its condition in more than 20 years. After VOTF
NY representatives met in person with the chief financial
officer of the Archdiocese, William Whiston, in February
of 2005, we promised complete and consolidated financial
statements for the Archdiocese and all the entities
it controls by August 2005 at the latest. To date,
no financial statements have ever been released.
We really have no idea what the financial condition
of the Archdiocese is…whether parishes are being
closed due to the lack of parishioners, the lack of
clergy, or for the sale of real estate assets… or
whether these decisions are good decisions or bad decisions
for the life of Archdiocese as a whole. What we do
know is that at least two New York faith communities
love their churches and are preparing to fight to protect
what they love.
As we work with affected parishes in the months ahead,
we should constantly strive to demand more information
and a greater voice in the future of our church in
New York. No one is going to give us that voice. We
need to seize it.
[As part of the mobilization to support the three
parishes slated for closing (in the poorest parts of
New York City) VOTF NY and SNAP are organizing Saturday
afternoon demonstrations at St. Patrick’s Cathedral.
Below is an excerpt from text distributed by VOTF NY
describing the Sat. Feb. 3 gathering:
This weekend, the coldest of the year, some thirty
demonstrators from Our Lady Queen of Angels demonstrated
outside the Cardinal’s residence on Saturday
afternoon, praying the Rosary and saying novenas. Simultaneously,
some fifty demonstrators from Our Lady of the Rosary
marched back and forth across Fifth Avenue from the
entrance to St. Patrick’s. On Sunday at 2PM,
Mary Help of Christians parishioners young and old
prayed the Rosary at the top of their lungs.
As in Boston, parishioners from all over the diocese,
not just those whose parishes were affected, took part
in the support process.]
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