Weekly Contribution for the weekend of April 27, 2014

Total Parish Pledges decreased by $325.

“From the Pastor’s Desk” May 4, 2014

Archdiocese survey finds diverging views among area Catholics

 

 

The majority of Catholics responding to a survey by the Archdiocese of Milwaukee do not accept church teachings that ban artificial contraception or prohibit divorced and remarried members from receiving the sacraments.

They believe the church should permit same-sex unions. And they do not consider the church as the moral authority on issues related to the family.

Those are among the findings of a first-of-its-kind survey of area Catholics solicited by Pope Francis and posted last month on the archdiocese's website.

The results of the survey, conducted at Francis' behest by dioceses around the world, will provide the context for an extraordinary synod on marriage and the family planned by the Vatican for October

The 1,300 respondents represent just a fraction of the 10-county archdiocese's reported 600,000 members. And the results aren't particularly surprising: They're in sync with those in other U.S. dioceses that have made theirs public, and research has long suggested that Catholics mirror the broader society on many social issues.

Read more from Journal Sentinel: http://www.jsonline.com/news/religion/milwaukee-archdiocese-survey-questions-church-on-family-issues-b99258971z1-257418241.html#ixzz30QnIbmcv

The survey results are available at:   http://www.archmil.org/ArchMil/Resources/COMM/2014ExtraordinarySynodResults.pdf

Council of Cardinals to meet with Francis for fourth time | National Catholic Reporter

 

Following their last meeting, held in February, Francis announced a sweeping reorganization of the church's financial structures -- creating a new central office for financial matters called the Secretariat for the Economy. Sydney Cardinal George Pell, a member of the Council of Cardinals, was appointed to lead the office.

Francis established the Council of Cardinals last year to "study a project of revision" of the Vatican's bureaucracy.

The Vatican has not indicated what the cardinals might be studying in their April meeting. But in a visit to the U.S. in early April, the group's coordinator, Cardinal Oscar Rodríguez Maradiaga of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, said Francis is seeking a "new way" of governing the church.

Click on the following for more details:  Council of Cardinals to meet with Francis for fourth time | National Catholic Reporter

Sesquicentennial Events

 

Weekly Contribution for the weekend of April 20, 2014

 

Three additional families pledged.  Total Parish Pledges increased by $115.

Archdiocese of Milwaukee bankruptcy plan to be put to vote | FOX 11 Online | WLUK-TV

 

The archdiocese has maintained that it is liable only for abuse committed by its priests, and people who were abused by religious order priests or lay people working in schools or parishes should seek compensation from those organizations. Victims believe the archdiocese has responsibility for all priests and lay people working within its boundaries.

Bankruptcy Judge Susan Kelley told the archdiocese’s lawyers to explain in documents going to creditors why the plan divided victims into groups to be paid or not paid instead of turning the money over to them and letting them decide how to divide it up, which is how other church bankruptcies have been handled.

Read the entire article by clicking on the following:  Archdiocese of Milwaukee bankruptcy plan to be put to vote | FOX 11 Online | WLUK-TV

Weekly Contribution for the weekend of April 13, 2014

 

 

Newark Archbishop's Pricey Pad Causes Controversy - Yahoo

 

A half-million dollar renovation to the "weekend" home of the Archbishop of Newark has sparked a major controversy, raising questions about how money donated by church members is being used.

An online petition created by a D.C.-based website, Faithful America, has received more than 23,000 signatures to stop the renovation process, claiming that Archbishop John J. Myers does not need a 7,500-square-foot home for when he retires.

Read more of the story by clicking on the following:  Newark Archbishop's Pricey Pad Causes Controversy - Yahoo

Belvidere Daily Republican: Construction project set to begin at St. James

By Tricia Goecks
Editor
BELVIDERE – When Bishop Thomas Doran was a seminary student in the late 1950s, he was told by Bishop Loras Lane that Belvidere needed a new church. The need was unmet ...for over 50 years until Father Brian Geary arrived at St. James Catholic Church in July 2008 and Doran gave the go ahead for the project to begin in earnest. “There has been a great need for it for all these decades,” Geary said.
The original plan was to tear down the church and rectory and build a larger church in its footprint. Following the retirement of Doran, Bishop David Malloy changed the scope of the project to add on to the existing church instead of tearing down and replacing the existing church.
St. James conducted a capital campaign to solicit pledges from its parishioners. Among the churchgoers, they have a 90 percent participation rate in the capital campaign. “It is very encouraging that we have that level of support,” Geary said.
Geary was encouraged and touched by the participation of the Catholic youth. “In the middle of our first campaign, three years ago there was a server. I think he was about 8th grade age and he said sheepishly he wanted to tell me something before Mass. For a kid it is hard to get up the nerve to ask the priest to ask a question or talk to him,” Geary said. “And he told me ‘Father I got $50 for my birthday party over the weekend and I want to give it all to the church.’ ”
“Children can be so generous and they are not as worried as adults about how am I going to make it.”
“There are people who live in very, very modest homes here in Belvidere and they have given very sacrificially and generously,” Geary added. “It tells there are people here who you wouldn’t think have the means or generosity and that this campaign and brought out this hidden virtue”
“I am grateful for that. “
Since Jan. 5, parishioners have volunteered their time and efforts to help prepare St. James for the construction project. In addition to demolition work, the pews, organ, Stations of the Cross, altar and relics were relocated and the carpeting torn up to the subflooring level. “It is going to save us a significant amount of money,” Geary stated. Due to the construction, Masses are being held in the gym.
Once the construction is complete, the seating capacity will increase from 320 people to 900 people. “The bishop has determined that if we build on to this church we could serve all of Boone County,” Geary said.
In addition to Geary, St. James is served by Father John Earl. Earl celebrates many of the Spanish language Masses at St. James. “His Spanish is much better than mine,” Geary added.
Geary and Earl are joined by retired priest Thomas Bartolomeo and Deacon James Olson.
The project that was over 50 years in the making will begin construction this week.See More

Ground Breaking

 

Click on the photocopy to enlarge:

Weekly Contribution for the weekend of April 6, 2014

 

 

Abuse victims call Archdiocesan bankruptcy plan 'repugnant'

 

The archdiocese has argued from the beginning that it has limited resources to compensate victims. It says it has already paid more than $33 million in settlement and therapy costs over the years, including $8.25 million of a $17 million settlement in a California case brought by victims of Wisconsin priests who had been transferred there.

So far, creditors have yet to obtain a single asset of significance for the bankruptcy estate.

Kelley ruled in December 2012 that creditors could not tap the assets of the archdiocese's parishes, which are separately incorporated; or $35 million in parish deposit funds the archdiocese moved off its books in 2005 — though she said there was arguably "something fishy about the transfer."

The parties have yet to litigate issues related to Faith in Our Future, the Cousins Center or the $11 million fixed income account.

Kelley ruled in January 2013 that forcing the archdiocese to tap some portion of its cemetery funds would not violate its free exercise of religion. But U.S. District Judge Rudolph T. Randa overturned her ruling, and Randa's decision is now on appeal before the 7th Circuit. That decision, whenever it comes down, is likely to generate an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Read more by clicking on the following:  Abuse victims call Archdiocesan bankruptcy plan 'repugnant'

Belvidere Catholic church expansion broke ground Monday - News - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

 

James began as a mission church in 1838. According to church historians, the church’s cornerstone was laid in 1886 and the completed church was formally dedicated in 1889.

November is targeted for completion of the new addition, Geary said. In preparation for the construction, volunteers have conducted some pew and church furniture removal.

The priest said those endeavors should save the parish a significant amount of money. So far, the parish has raised $3 million in pledges for the project. Geary said he’s planning another fundraiser for the fall to finance the difference. He’s not sure what the goal will be.

The Diocese of Rockford has contributed a matching pledge of $75,000.

Read the entire story by clicking on the following:  Belvidere Catholic church expansion broke ground Monday - News - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

St. James Catholic Church groundbreaking ceremony - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

 

A stained glass window featuring St. James, pictured Monday, April 7, 2014, at St. James Catholic Church in Belvidere, was discovered when the church’s pipe organ was removed.

St. James Catholic Church groundbreaking ceremony - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

Belvidere's St. James Catholic Church breaks ground - WREX.com – Rockford’s News Leader

 

BELVIDERE (WREX) -

St. James Catholic Church of Belvidere is getting bigger.

Church leaders, staff, parishioners, and students gathered Monday to break ground on a new addition. An extended auditorium is being added to allow the church to seat 850 parishioners. Bishop David J. Malloy was on hand to bless the new project.

"A parished church is so much a place that it brings people together. It's a part of life, it's a part of our faith," Bishop Malloy said. "And for a community like Belvidere, it's a part of the history of the culture of the community itself."

The addition is expected to be completed by Thanksgiving.

Go to the following to see the video:  Belvidere's St. James Catholic Church breaks ground - WREX.com – Rockford’s News Leader

Poland’s Black Madonna, Our Lady of Czestochowa, to visit Rockford - News - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

By Jennifer Wheeler
Rockford Register Star

— An international icon known for being the protector of the most vulnerable will be be brought to Rockford next week as part of a movement to reinforce the importance of life.

A replica of Our Lady of Czestochowa will be part of Masses and prayers from 8:30 a.m. Monday to 8:30 a.m. Tuesday at Holy Family Catholic Church, 4401 Highcrest Road.

The 5-foot-tall, 3-foot-wide painting of the Blessed Virgin Mary and baby Jesus is honored by Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches, uniting the Christian faith.

Read the entire article by clicking on the following:  Poland’s Black Madonna, Our Lady of Czestochowa, to visit Rockford - News - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

Abuse victims call Archdiocesan bankruptcy plan 'repugnant'

By Annysa Johnson of the Journal Sentinel

The Archdiocese of Milwaukee's reorganization plan for exiting its bankruptcy is "morally repugnant," not in the best interest of its creditors and should be rejected by creditors and the court, a committee representing clergy sex abuse victims and other creditors said in a document filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court on Friday.

That objection, submitted in advance of an April 17 hearing on the plan's disclosure statement, takes issue with myriad assertions made by the archdiocese in the reorganization plan submitted to the court in February. And it telegraphs the committee's intention to continue to pursue certain assets, including $60 million the committee says was fraudulently transferred into a cemetery trust, proceeds from a $105 million capital campaign and the archdiocese's sprawling lakefront headquarters campus, known as the Cousins Center.

Click on the following for all of the article;   Abuse victims call Archdiocesan bankruptcy plan 'repugnant'

Pope Francis Gives Queen Elizabeth Present for Prince George - Yahoo

 

The queen was given an antique parchment, which dates back to May 1679 with an “Urbi et Orbi” message by Cardinal Cesare Facchinetti. The pope traditionally gives a "urbi et orbi" message - meaning "to the city and the world" - at Easter and Christmas.

The queen gave the pope a hamper of what the Vatican said was "jams and drinks" produced on lands owned by the royal family. One of the drinks was a bottle of whiskey.

As a pair, the queen and the pope are leaders to billions of people around the world.

Read the entire story by clicking on the following;  Pope Francis Gives Queen Elizabeth Present for Prince George - Yahoo

Weekly Contributions for the weekend of March 31, 2014

New stewardship appeal for 2014-15 is beginning.  No further figures given for 2013-14 stewardship.

Pope confirms heads of Vatican curial agencies. Published in the 3/31/2014 edition of The Pilot

 

-- Pope Francis confirmed the head of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life and named among its new members Australian Cardinal George Pell, Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet, and Archbishop Joseph W. Tobin of Indianapolis.

The new members also include: Cardinals Norberto Rivera Carrera of Mexico City; Luis Tagle of Manila; Bishop John Corriveau of Nelson, British Columbia; and Bishop Kieran O'Reilly of Killaloe, Ireland.

Pope Francis also reappointed 11 members to another five-year term, including: Cardinals Francis E. George of Chicago; Wilfrid F. Napier of Durban, South Africa; Sean P. O'Malley of Boston and Jesuit Father Adolfo Nicolas, superior general of the Jesuits worldwide.

Read all of  the article by clicking on the following:   Pope confirms heads of Vatican curial agencies. Published in the 3/31/2014 edition of The Pilot

The Georgia Archbishop responds to criticism of building a $2.2 million residence -

By ARCHBISHOP WILTON D. GREGORY, Commentary | Published March 31, 2014

 

“We are disturbed and disappointed to see our church leaders not setting the example of a simple life as Pope Francis calls for. How can we instill this in our children when they see their archdiocesan leadership living extravagantly? We ask you to rethink these decisions and understand the role model the clergy must serve so the youth of our society can answer Jesus’ call. Neither our 18- or 14-year-old sons understand the message you are portraying.”

So went just one of many of the heartfelt, genuine and candidly rebuking letters, emails and telephone messages I have received in the past week from people of faith throughout our own Archdiocese and beyond. Their passionate indictments of me as a Bishop of the Catholic Church and as an example to them and their children are stinging and sincere. And I should have seen them coming.

Please understand that I had no desire to move; however, the Cathedral Parish has a problem, albeit a happy one. The Cathedral of Christ the King is one of our largest, most vibrant and fastest growing parishes—but it is landlocked. The site of the current rectory could be used for expansion if the priests could be moved to a new rectory nearby. Because of the proximity of the Archbishop’s house to the Cathedral and the way it is configured with separate apartments and common space, the rector of Christ the King one day summoned the courage to ask me if I would give some thought to letting the parish purchase the residence from the Archdiocese to repurpose it for its rectory. It made more sense for them to be in walking distance to the Cathedral than I, so I said yes, knowing full well that literally left the Archbishop without a place to live.

Soon thereafter, the Archdiocese and the Cathedral Parish received a generous bequest from Joseph Mitchell, including his home on Habersham Road, to benefit the whole Archdiocese, but especially his beloved parish, the Cathedral of Christ the King. Through the extraordinary kindness of Joseph Mitchell, we had a perfect piece of property nearby on which to relocate the Archbishop’s residence.

Some have suggested that it would have been appropriate for the Cathedral Parish to build a rectory on the Habersham property and have the priests each drive back and forth, and in retrospect that might be true. At the time, though, I thought that not giving up the Archbishop’s residence, which was so close to the Cathedral Parish, would have been perceived as selfish and arrogant by the people at the Cathedral Parish and might damage my relationship with them!

So I agreed to sell the West Wesley residence to the Cathedral Parish and set about looking for a different place for me and my successors to live. That’s when, to say the least, I took my eye off the ball. The plan seemed very simple. We will build here what we had there—separate living quarters and common spaces, a large kitchen for catering, and lots of room for receptions and other gatherings.

What we didn’t stop to consider, and that oversight rests with me and me alone, was that the world and the Church have changed.

Even before the phenomenon we have come to know as Pope Francis was elected to the Chair of Peter, we Bishops of the Church were reminded by our own failings and frailty that we are called to live more simply, more humbly, and more like Jesus Christ who challenges us to be in the world and not of the world. The example of the Holy Father, and the way people of every sector of our society have responded to his message of gentle joy and compassion without pretense, has set the bar for every Catholic and even for many who don’t share our communion.

As the Shepherd of this local Church, a responsibility I hold more dear than any other, certainly more than any configuration of brick and mortar, I am disappointed that, while my advisors and I were able to justify this project fiscally, logistically and practically, I personally failed to project the cost in terms of my own integrity and pastoral credibility with the people of God of north and central Georgia.

I failed to consider the impact on the families throughout the Archdiocese who, though struggling to pay their mortgages, utilities, tuition and other bills, faithfully respond year after year to my pleas to assist with funding our ministries and services.

I failed to consider the difficult position in which I placed my auxiliary bishops, priests, deacons and staff who have to try to respond to inquiries from the faithful about recent media reports when they might not be sure what to believe themselves.

I failed to consider the example I was setting for the young sons of the mother who sent the email message with which I began this column.

To all of you, I apologize sincerely and from my heart.

We teach that stewardship is half about what you give away, and half about how you use what you choose to keep. I believe that to be true. Our intention was to recreate the residence I left behind, yet I know there are situations across the country where local Ordinaries have abandoned their large homes, some because of financial necessity and others by choice, and they continue to find ways to interact with the families in their pastoral care without the perception, real or imagined, of lavish lifestyles.

So where do we go from here?

It is my intention to move deliberately forward and to do a better job of listening than I did before. When I thought this was simply a matter of picking up and moving from one house to a comparable one two miles away, we covered every angle from the fiscal and logistical perspectives, but I overlooked the pastoral implications. I fear that when I should have been consulting, I was really only reporting, and that is my failure. To those who may have hesitated to advise me against this direction perhaps out of deference or other concerns, I am profoundly sorry.

There are structures already in place in the Archdiocese from which I am able to access the collective wisdom of our laity and our clergy. In April I will meet with the Archdiocesan Council of Priests, and in early May our Archdiocesan Pastoral Council (a multi-cultural group of Catholics of all ages, representing parishes of all sizes, who serve as a consultative body to me) will convene. I will ask for the Finance Council of the Archdiocese to schedule an extraordinary meeting. At each of these meetings I will seek their candid guidance on how best to proceed.

If it is the will of these trusted representative groups, the Archdiocese will begin the process of selling the Habersham residence. I would look to purchase or rent something appropriate elsewhere.

It has been my great privilege and honor to be your Archbishop for the past nine years. I promise you that my service to you is the reason I get up each day—not the house in which I live or the zip code to which my mail is sent. I would never jeopardize the cherished and personal relationships I have built with so many of you over something that personally means so little after all.

I humbly and contritely ask your prayers for me, and I assure you, as always, of mine for you.

Above is taken from:  The archbishop responds - Georgia Bulletin