Closing of the catholic churches
Downsizing and the Catholic Church
Communities across America are now witnessing the unusual tendency: a number of, parishes, schools, community centers and hospitals affiliated with the church are being closed. So, it is not a big wonder that the whole thing has aroused much anguish. Still, taking into account the above mentioned circumstances, filing for a lawsuit can be regarded as rather an unwise step. The situation is largely reasoned by the fact that the major part of the religious decisions is left to the church. All these institutions are known for providing the foundation — as well as provided for the faith — of urban neighborhoods and immigrant communities.
The example may serve Manhattan's East Village, where St. Brigid's foundation was closed in 2001. The organization wasbuilt as the institution that was supposed to serve as a spiritual home and social haven for refugees from the Irish potato famine. New time has brought many new changes. One of these was the plan to tear down the church. There is even the evidence that a number of preservationist groups have been suing Cardinal Edward Egan and tried to block the demolition. (Downsizing and the Catholic Church)
The problem was often solved by means of litigation. Litigation is the usual thing for Americans, who got used to righting perceived wrongs through the courts. However, there is one thing that prohibits court from intrusion into such personal thing as religion – Americans’ constitutional commitment to religious freedom. The whole idea can be summarized in the following way - “some hard decisions are just none of judges' business”.
Stories about these closings are often accompanied by angry reactions. The most widely discussed issue in the papers was the close of Saint Michael the Archangel. For quite a long period this institution has been serving as a place for Polish-Americans in Boston. The institution was joined by more than 60 area parishes. The whole event was described by the Boston Globe. According to the paper, the final Mass was emotional and was marked by prayer and protest.
The year 2005 has been marked by the closing of the last Catholic hospital in Brooklyn. St. Mary's Hospital was closed after after 123 years of service. No less harm to the catholic heritage was brought with the launch of New York reorganization plan. The launch of the reorganization plan threatened to end in the closing of more than 30 parishes and a dozen schools. About 170 parochial schools nationwide were reported to close during the past years. In general, the amount of churches that have been closed has reached the number of 1,600. These churches have been closed during the past two decades. The data has been voiced by the National Catholic Educational Association.
The above described situation is largely reasoned by the following facts:
- Demographic changes (the last decade has been marked by the movement of Catholics to growing suburbs. As a result, many of the institutions that initially were under the governance of Catholic Church were left unobserved. The level of the church attendance has fallen down.
- The changing attitudes of Catholics. New time brought new tendencies to the society. The whole thing pertains both to the clergy and the people alike. The other factor that matters is the protestant religion that is gaining power and popularity especially among the younger generation. No less important thing that must be mentioned in this paper is the decrease of popularity of Catholic education. Also, one must mention the fact of the declining number of priests and religious sisters. The evidence shows that less people show the will to become priests. Although the number of Catholics in America continues to grow, the churches face the need to somehow attract people into priesthood.
- One more thing that matters is the development of pressures and increasing costs. A great number of the financial challenges are associated with the aftermath of the clergy-sex-abuse scandal, and old-fashioned mismanagement.
People may sympathize with those for whom the churches are closing. I think the whole thing is very painful for the community. As a result, many people do suffer because they have to forget about their customs and traditions, and it is not always right thing to close churches from the humanistic considerations. Closing of a parish is painful because of family memories and the prevalence of ethnic traditions.
I have been a member of my parish for more than 15 years. I certainly do not feel positive about the need to attend mass at another church. When visiting other places I feel betrayed, and deprived of the things that have been naturally considered as my own. This is certainly not right, and I am very unhappy about the whole thing. The situation is largely reasoned by the shortage of Priests. The situation is largely problematic, and I think that certain things must be done to improve the typical way of things. First and foremost thing that must be done is the need to push priests to marry. Also, the Catholics must change attitude to this world. I still think that Catholics are too strict in reference to the other people. These and many other changes account for low attendance of the church.
Why should we care?
Why we should care. Before giving answer to this question I would say that Catholic schools do play a big role for Catholic religion. I still hold to the idea that Catholic Church do play a big role for urban Catholic schools. The church educates people in the way so as to give them a chance to get hope, safety, opportunity and values that are important to vulnerable and marginalized children of all religions, undependable of their ethnicities and backgrounds. Similarly, Catholic hospitals have also played a big role for the community. For long these institutions cared for underserved and disadvantaged people in both urban and rural areas. The presence of Catholic hospitals helped to fill glaring gaps in the availability of health care.
I think that the evidence presented above is enough to reassure you that certain actions must be taken for preservation of Catholic institutions. People should remember that these institutions changes public opinion for good.
Downsizing and the Catholic Church
Communities across America are now witnessing the unusual tendency: a number of, parishes, schools, community centers and hospitals affiliated with the church are being closed. So, it is not a big wonder that the whole thing has aroused much anguish. Still, taking into account the above mentioned circumstances, filing for a lawsuit can be regarded as rather an unwise step. The situation is largely reasoned by the fact that the major part of the religious decisions is left to the church. All these institutions are known for providing the foundation — as well as provided for the faith — of urban neighborhoods and immigrant communities.
The example may serve Manhattan's East Village, where St. Brigid's foundation was closed in 2001. The organization wasbuilt as the institution that was supposed to serve as a spiritual home and social haven for refugees from the Irish potato famine. New time has brought many new changes. One of these was the plan to tear down the church. There is even the evidence that a number of preservationist groups have been suing Cardinal Edward Egan and tried to block the demolition. (Downsizing and the Catholic Church)
The problem was often solved by means of litigation. Litigation is the usual thing for Americans, who got used to righting perceived wrongs through the courts. However, there is one thing that prohibits court from intrusion into such personal thing as religion – Americans’ constitutional commitment to religious freedom. The whole idea can be summarized in the following way - “some hard decisions are just none of judges' business”.
Stories about these closings are often accompanied by angry reactions. The most widely discussed issue in the papers was the close of Saint Michael the Archangel. For quite a long period this institution has been serving as a place for Polish-Americans in Boston. The institution was joined by more than 60 area parishes. The whole event was described by the Boston Globe. According to the paper, the final Mass was emotional and was marked by prayer and protest.
The year 2005 has been marked by the closing of the last Catholic hospital in Brooklyn. St. Mary's Hospital was closed after after 123 years of service. No less harm to the catholic heritage was brought with the launch of New York reorganization plan. The launch of the reorganization plan threatened to end in the closing of more than 30 parishes and a dozen schools. About 170 parochial schools nationwide were reported to close during the past years. In general, the amount of churches that have been closed has reached the number of 1,600. These churches have been closed during the past two decades. The data has been voiced by the National Catholic Educational Association.
The above described situation is largely reasoned by the following facts:
- Demographic changes (the last decade has been marked by the movement of Catholics to growing suburbs. As a result, many of the institutions that initially were under the governance of Catholic Church were left unobserved. The level of the church attendance has fallen down.
- The changing attitudes of Catholics. New time brought new tendencies to the society. The whole thing pertains both to the clergy and the people alike. The other factor that matters is the protestant religion that is gaining power and popularity especially among the younger generation. No less important thing that must be mentioned in this paper is the decrease of popularity of Catholic education. Also, one must mention the fact of the declining number of priests and religious sisters. The evidence shows that less people show the will to become priests. Although the number of Catholics in America continues to grow, the churches face the need to somehow attract people into priesthood.
- One more thing that matters is the development of pressures and increasing costs. A great number of the financial challenges are associated with the aftermath of the clergy-sex-abuse scandal, and old-fashioned mismanagement.
People may sympathize with those for whom the churches are closing. I think the whole thing is very painful for the community. As a result, many people do suffer because they have to forget about their customs and traditions, and it is not always right thing to close churches from the humanistic considerations. Closing of a parish is painful because of family memories and the prevalence of ethnic traditions.
I have been a member of my parish for more than 15 years. I certainly do not feel positive about the need to attend mass at another church. When visiting other places I feel betrayed, and deprived of the things that have been naturally considered as my own. This is certainly not right, and I am very unhappy about the whole thing. The situation is largely reasoned by the shortage of Priests. The situation is largely problematic, and I think that certain things must be done to improve the typical way of things. First and foremost thing that must be done is the need to push priests to marry. Also, the Catholics must change attitude to this world. I still think that Catholics are too strict in reference to the other people. These and many other changes account for low attendance of the church.
Why should we care?
Why we should care. Before giving answer to this question I would say that Catholic schools do play a big role for Catholic religion. I still hold to the idea that Catholic Church do play a big role for urban Catholic schools. The church educates people in the way so as to give them a chance to get hope, safety, opportunity and values that are important to vulnerable and marginalized children of all religions, undependable of their ethnicities and backgrounds. Similarly, Catholic hospitals have also played a big role for the community. For long these institutions cared for underserved and disadvantaged people in both urban and rural areas. The presence of Catholic hospitals helped to fill glaring gaps in the availability of health care.
I think that the evidence presented above is enough to reassure you that certain actions must be taken for preservation of Catholic institutions. People should remember that these institutions changes public opinion for good.