From the 2009-10 Catholic Ministry Appeals allocation:
“Catholic Schools 5%
Support for programs, aid to students and schools
…
CMA Campaign Costs 6%
Campaign staff, materials, data processing and postage “
So let me get this straight… more money from the appeal is going into CMA overhead costs (including staff members and signs) than to our Catholic schools? No wonder the CMA appeal is growing larger each year, while our Catholic schools are closing. If the diocese truly cares about Catholic education, this percentage should read 50%, not 5%.
Tags: Bishop Clark, Catholic Schools, Keeping the Spirit Alive
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5% is a drop in the bucket. Thanks a lot, B.C.
Not one penny.
I have written channels 10 and 13 with this information and provided a link to the Diocesan website. Dr K, if you look at the way the funds are allocated, THREE times as much of the money allocated to schools (schools 5%) from the CMA campaign goes to "Pastoral Center Operations and Services – Operational and System Costs of the Diocesan Offices" (15%). ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Not that this should be at all surprising, but the schools are not even an afterthought, they are treated with disdain, when you see they spend more on postage for this campaign than the Catholic education of their youth! There are so many families who were affected by the school closings – many have not only left the schools themselves, but have left their parishes. They were angry and that was enough. I personally know families who were approached by members of Hope Lutheran (as I was as well) and now they are part of that church. I live in the area of Hope Lutheran in Greece and we often get flyers inviting us to attend there. They are actively recruiting families, and we have lost many. Note to the diocese: guitar playing folk singers and themed masses at the Cathedral will not bring these families back! I can't tell you how many mothers in our school say when my son or daughter is done with school thats it, we are done with the church. These families are aching for a reason to stay, they want the church they KNEW, they want their schools back, they want to be preached to by a priest about more than social programs they should be supporting. Our schools are what keep so many parishes alive and thriving and for generations to come. The breakdown of funds from the CMA is disheartening to say the least. I have a question for anyone here that I truly do not have an answer for: If Rome is aware of us, and the abuses, the decimation of our school system, the continued closing of our churches with more on the chopping block – WHERE ARE THEY? If this continues, what will be left in 3 years to repair?
"I personally know families who were approached by members of Hope Lutheran (as I was as well) and now they are part of that church."
Wow. Could it be that Hope Lutheran saw an opportunity to rip people away from the Catholic Church over the anger caused by school closings? A lot of these Protestant churches are growing because of dissatisfied Catholics (incl. the "Father's House" in Chili) who have had their hearts broken for one reason or another.
"They are actively recruiting families"
This is something that we as Catholics should be doing as well. I hope that ecumenism is not the reason that we have been doing a poor job in this department. The other Christian denominations are not playing by these rules, so neither should we. The diocese needs to get out there and bring in new Catholics, send around flyers, go door to door, use billboards and ads, and so on.
"These families are aching for a reason to stay, they want the church they KNEW, they want their schools back, they want to be preached to by a priest about more than social programs they should be supporting."
Very well said, and all true, in my opinion.
"Our schools are what keep so many parishes alive and thriving and for generations to come."
We have seen the evidence of this. The DoR Catholic blog frequently posts on the success/failures of churches that have kept their schools and lost them. The thing is, when a school is closed at a parish, many will leave and move to the parish that still has the school. This is part of the reason why parishes like St. Thomas, which have lost their Catholic School, have been hurting, while parishes like Christ the King, which has maintained their school, are somewhat better off.
"If Rome is aware of us, and the abuses, the decimation of our school system, the continued closing of our churches with more on the chopping block – WHERE ARE THEY?"
It is so rare that a bishop is removed. I'm guessing that since there are only three years to go, the Vatican does not want to stir up the pot in Rochester and risk a media/progressive firestorm by removing a bishop who is almost at retirement. If they were going to remove Bishop Clark, it would have been better for them to do so in 1998 after the Corpus Christi fiasco. Now it's basically wait for him to retire, and put in a successor who can get things stabilized in our diocese. I would not be shocked, however, to see him pressed into early retirement in 2011, but even that is two years away.
~Dr. K
Dr K, thanks for your note. Regarding Hope Lutheran: I think their evangelizing to our families was them doing their part to save souls according to their beliefs and some may have seen the school closings as an opportunity to do that, but knowing these families who followed them, and having some friends who are not Catholic and have always gone there, they are good people who truly preach what they believe and they definitely know how to market that. The number of young families there is astounding! Each spring I still get at least 3 glossy mailings from them inviting my children to their extremely popular free vacation bible school. I know a number of catholic families whose children go to it yearly and have for years. Once they are too old to go, the now teenage children are asked to come back and help run it. I get a knock on my door once or twice a year in my neighborhood from a family on my street who attends there inviting me to come for sunday service and handing out pamphlets etc. I regularly receive mailings and invitations from Lakeshore Community Church, a large and growing community of young families. There is definitely active recruitment, at least of young families in my area with grammar school age children. There are many Catholics leaving, and I truly hope there is a way to get them to come home – 2 or 3 years seems like a long way away.
"Each spring I still get at least 3 glossy mailings from them inviting my children to their extremely popular free vacation bible school."
lol, yes, I have seen those signs on many a lawn in Greece.
~Dr. K
WOW! Sheep stealing! I think Yank hit a major point "good people who truly preach what they believe"…in their own way, those Lutherans are out to save souls for Christ…Exactly what Catholics should be doing…however, the DoR never seems to be teaching true Catholic doctrine. They teach a very liberal spin on doctrine, so Catholics are confused exactly about what the church does in fact teach. Lutherans apparently don't equivocate about their teachings.
IMHO, we should preach more about Christ crucified and the wages of sin is death. I know it's extremely out of style now, but I'm always up for a really good Catholic fire-and-brimstone sermon, especially like the Passionists used to do when they gave those great Lenten missions.
The CMA won't be getting my money, that's for sure. Not until they get their priorities straight, and also stop funding the school of heretics on French Road.
I too have an issue with administrative costs for the CMA being a larger percentage that what is going to Catholic schools, I may even use some of my contacts at Buffalo Road to find out who made such a terrible decision. I myself, have issues with the CMA in general, but will not go into that here- maybe in my own blog soon.
That said, I take issue with Rob?s comment regarding the ?school of heretics on French Road?. As a student there, I resent the implication that I am a ?heretic?. While I will agree that the school is very liberal leaning, and that I too also tend to lean a little more to that side, what I have learned while there is that the liberal leanings of SBSTM have made me want to look at the more ?traditional? side of things, and in doing so, many of my attitudes are changing and I find myself embracing some more traditional views, which would not have happened had I not been taking classes there.
I would have a lot more respect and tolerance for more traditional-minded Catholics if they would dispense with these rude, derogatory labels and ?teach? more than they condemn.
Hi Persis,
I tend to refer to St. Bernard's in a derogatory way. And it really, really irks me when I see that our church provides scholarships to this school. There are a quite a few people from my church who have attended St. Bernard's and I have to say, what they report learning frightens me. I am very intolerant of a revisionist approach to our Catholic faith and that's what I feel is happening on French Rd. I have not attended any classes myself, but from course descriptions and the conversations I've had with students there, I don't have much confidence in the teaching.
I did attend a "Faithful Citizenship" discussion with Sr. Patricia Schoelles (sp? – I believe she is the head of St. B's) where she declared going to Mass can sometimes be classified as a "sin" and tried to argue that abortion is sometimes a necessary option. I have no patience for sophistry like that.
I'm glad that your eyes are being opened to consider the more "traditional" side of things. Surely, the Holy Spirit is at work. Just as you would have more tolerance and respect for traditional-minded Catholics if they would dispense with labels, I'd have alot more respect for progressives who call me "rigid, pharisaical, pre-Vatican II, intolerant, right-wing, latin-loving" Catholic. The knife cuts both ways. And I'm not saying you did any such thing, but that it happens all the time.
Name calling doesn't advance discussion at all. But there are also issues that are not open to discussion and I think many progressives are not willing to accept that some things are actually settled. Forever. Never to change.
Thanks for sticking with me for this long-worded post.
I look forward to reading about your view of the CMA.