Nothing could be more removed from the truth! The laity still have the power of the purse and their sweat equity. Buildings and institutions don't perpetuate themselves. They require money and material assistance to continue. The mortgage, insurance, and utilities must be paid, repairs made, the property cleaned and maintained. The priest needs daily Mass stipends and his monthly salary to feed his shameless face. More importantly, "One-Hand" and the rector count on those regular "special" collections and management fees to see them through. Furthermore, the ill-trained and indolent clergy rely on the laity to perform any number of important duties, from taking the collection and managing records to cleaning the toilets and doing odd jobs.
The puppet masters no longer possess the cash safety-net they once enjoyed. Too many scandals have rumbled under the bridge. Most people with a conscience are sick of them. Therefore, when your chapel decides to withhold all support, the clergy won't be able to ride out the storm. With no money, the bills will go unpaid. With no helping hands, the property will deteriorate swiftly because most of the addled MHT completers are work-averse.
The cult masters may threaten to recall their knuckle-dragging clergy. If they do, then call their bluff. Tell them you are ready to establish a separate corporation and look elsewhere for a priest. They can't afford to take on extra mouths to feed -- and they probably don't want some of these grotesque characters hanging around anyway.
If a scintilla of reason prevails, they will break. If not, be assured that you have real alternatives.
After reading countless bulletins from St. Gertrude the Great (Cincinnati, OH), it has become apparent to me that the lay model is the most appropriate one for parishes during the current crisis.
ReplyDeleteAs a matter of fact, there are numerous parishes throughout the the country that have been run this way and which have been much more successful than those which are run by high-handed, autocratic members of the clergy. In these parishes, the priest is held accountable for his actions to the board and cannot allow himself to spend amounts of money which the parish does not have on useless expenditures such as Gammarelli vestments eating out at fine establishment.
I also believe that Pistrina Liturgica and "The Reader" are doing a great job in promoting this form of church governance.
I hope your work will bear fruit for Holy Mother Church in this trying time.
I'm curious: Where are these "numerous parishes throughout the country that have been run this way"? Would you cite specific examples? Please, no Polish National or similar groups.
ReplyDeleteHave you heard of Our Lady of Fatima in Spring Hill, Florida? It's about a stone's throw away from The Pest House in Brooksville, FL. It has been run by a lay board since the late 1970s when it was a part of the ORCM (Orthodox Roman Catholic Movement). One Bishop Fulham is doing a fine job there.
ReplyDelete"One Bishop Fulham"? I suppose two Bishops Fulham would be a crowd. Wouldn't happen to be Terence Fulham, singular or in multiples?
ReplyDeleteChris, you shouldn't try to be so arch. You embarrass yourself. The use of "one" as an indefinite pronoun defined by a substantive in apposition is well documented in English. The OED citations range from 1292 to 1885.
ReplyDeleteWhile we're here, we'll cite another chapel governed very successfully by a self-perpetuating lay board: Our Lady of the Sun in Arizona. The rector and his underlings continue to serve that lay body even after the board firmly rejected his ham-fisted attempt to take over. The people, not the clergy, retain all the chapel's considerable assets and property.
And you, Craig, shouldn't try to impute intention or meaning to someone's comment. As it is, it was a reference to 'Bishop' Fulham, whose episcopal pedigree isn't well known. However, as the latest incumbent at Spring Hill (and there seems to have been quite a varied line over the years), he is probably grateful for the gig, whatever length of tenure the people deign to grant him.
ReplyDeleteYou've cited two examples where lay 'control' is the rule, but whether it is 'successfully' so is a subjective matter.
We Readers measure success by whether or not the people who pay the bills have control of their assets and cash. According to that standard, these chapels are very successful. They also have priests, FYI.
ReplyDeleteAnd no, Chris, you were trying to be clever with the word "one," the usage of which you didn't understand, as is clear from your remark about "singular or in multiples."
BTW, if you're now impugning "episcopal pedigrees," why not start in your own back yard with "One-Hand" Dan. There's real doubt there, and Checkie's article with its erroneous translation doesn't settle anything. Also, just because Bp. Fulham's lineage isn't well known to you doesn't necessarily mean that others suffer from the same disadvantage.