And miles to go

Plan for Parishes:

Avoiding Closure, Affirming Collaboration

My first pastorate was assigned to me in 1985. St. Patrick’s Parish in Union Lake was tucked away in the northwest corner of the Archdiocese of Detroit. We had around 3,000 families with a Catholic grade school (K-8) and a large religious education program. We also had the most popular Bingo night in the area.

The week I arrived I checked the liturgical schedule and was surprised to see that there were two mornings a week when a Communion Service replaced the daily Mass. When I asked the staff about this I was told, "We are preparing the people for the day when we won’t have sufficient priests for daily Mass." "Yes," I responded, "but you now have two priests who are fully able to celebrate Holy Eucharist on those days." Needless to say, daily morning Masses were reinstated. Plans for a "theoretical" future were put on hold.

This episode came back to me as I reflected on the initial feedback that resulted from my October column. What I and the Committee on Parishes are proposing does not involve some theoretical future, but rather a future that is rapidly closing in on us. This past spring we were barely able to cover all of the present priest assignments. Three priests will be of retirement age before June of 2003. Five more will reach 70 years before the end of 2004. And four more will reach that point before the end of 2007. Now hopefully we will have four more new priests before 2007. And hopefully many of the above mentioned priests will continue to serve as their health permits. But the future is upon us, knocking at the front door.

This is why changes are being proposed. Nobody, myself included, wants to see the present situation of our parishes altered. I have come to appreciate the closeness of our smaller parishes and the sense of community they provide. But reality is saying that things are going to change whether we like it or not, whether we are prepared for it or not.

I was rector of the Detroit Archdiocesan Seminary when the announcement was made that 34 parishes would close all at once. Even though the handwriting had been on the wall for years and a task force had been sending warnings for months, this news took everyone by surprise. The pain that ensued was intense and its residual effects continue thirteen years later. I would not want to see us experience a similar trauma. I know there must be a better way to plan for our future.

One of the real success stories from the above incident, however, involved a priest classmate of mine who was pastor of an Eastside parish. His neighboring parish to the south, St. Martin’s, was scheduled to close. My classmate immediately began meeting with the pastor and then with the Parish Council and then with the Parish Councils meeting together. On the day of the church closing, the people of St. Martin’s gathered on their church steps for a liturgical procession of candles and cross that would lead them to their new parish home. The neighboring parish did likewise and met them half way, then accompanied them to St. Ambrose and set the cross and candles in the sanctuary to begin celebrating the Holy Eucharist. A warm welcome, provided by careful planning, made the difference. Hardly anyone even noticed that the majority of the St. Martin parishioners were black while those of St. Ambrose were white. Yes, change is always painful, but with the eyes of faith that pain can be managed through acceptance into a welcoming community of believers.

Many of the comments my former articles elicited have been helpful. We now distinguish between Area Parishes, each of which have identifiable Pastoral Leaders, but perhaps shared staff and an Area Parish that has one Pastoral Leader with a larger staff. We learned that a major effort will have to be made to see that older parishioners have transportation to church sites of some distance. We learned that Mass schedules and finances are the most challenging areas to arrange. We learned that the support for our Catholic schools must also be a shared responsibility. We learned that quality of liturgical celebration, educational opportunities and service outreach cannot be reduced, but must be maintained and enhanced. We learned that putting the concerns of bringing people together first before discussing what to do with buildings is probably the right priority to have.

The Committee on Parishes and I have sent a draft of a "Diocesan Plan for Parishes 2002-2007" to all Pastoral Leaders on December 7, 2002. We ask that this draft be discussed by Parish Councils, Finance Councils and, where appropriate, Parish Staff prior to regional feedback sessions with the Pastoral Leaders in January and February. We hope to amend the document in light of those discussions and then have a refined proposal to discuss again in the spring.

Obviously this is a work in progress, but it is also God’s working through us, calling us to greater fidelity and a stronger unity. I pray that we can see the presence of God in the planning and in one another.

Oh, and finally, let’s continue to work, pray and sacrifice for priestly and religious vocations. That, too, is a part of the answer.

God love you!

January, 2003

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