A parishioner of St. Thomas the Apostle just informed us of something interesting that we missed about Fr. Tanck’s most recent bulletin article. As you may recall, we posted on the article a few days ago. In it, Fr. Tanck discusses what priests will be serving the IPPG parishes and which will be reassigned/retiring.
Here are the names mentioned in the article:
Active priests
Fr. Timothy Horan
Fr. William Leone
Fr. Norm Tanck CSB
Fr. Morgan Rice CSB
Retired priests
Fr. Joseph Trovato CSB
Fr. Walter Cushing
Fr. Thomas Erdle
Fr. Jack Rosse
Fr. Robert Bradler
Departing priests
Fr. Richard Beligotti
Notice the glaring omission? Where is Fr. Peter Abas, the parochial vicar of St. Cecilia? Here is a snipet from the recent DoR pastoral assignments, and it clearly states that Fr. Abas is returning from Borneo to offer his services to St. Cecilia once again:
Was this intentional, unintentional, or perhaps a slip of the tongue of what is to come? Time will tell.
Tags: Church Closings, IPPG
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The list seems to have quite a few (I hate using a political term) “conservative” priests.
Fr. Abas IS back in Rochester. He was the celebrant at a St. Cecelia mass I attended in June.
So including Father Abas, we have 5 priests, 5 parishes that want to stay open, and 5 retired priests who could help out if needed.
Hmmmm
What I previously heard is that Fr. Rice CSB will only be in Rochester for one more year. This article suggests otherwise: “Fr. Morgan Rice, CSB has been appointed to the Basilian Community in Irondequoit and is available to serve our new parish.”
If Fr. Rice is here for the foreseeable future, this should have an impact on the number of churches that will close. Meaning, of course, that we can keep one more open than what the DoR had previously planned (St. Thomas the Apostle).
This new parish could be comprised of four worship sites, with a staff that includes 3 active priests (Fr. Tanck, Fr. Rice, and -insert third priest-) assisted by the five retired priests. The active priests who would not be selected as the #3 priest (chosen from Frs. Horan, Leone, and Abas) would be reassigned to some other parish.
Couldn’t a weekend schedule be assembled that has 3 Masses at CTK/SS/SMM and 2 at STA using three active priests and five retired?
Is that not reasonable?
Father Peter Abas has been jerked around enough!
Another interesting omission: Several of us have received form letters from the bishop replying to our entreaties to keep St. Thomas the Apostle open. Bishop Clark states that his decree “contained no specifics concerning which churches would close or remain open.” If that is the case, why is the Irondequoit transition committee planning for the closing of St. Salome and St. Thomas? Is the bishop deliberately not putting anything in writing so our appeal to the Vatican can not go forward?
Maureen,
Very interesting question!
In the original announcement, read in the parishes at the Saturday night Mass, no mention at all was made of parish closings, only that the IPPG proposal to merge the 5 parishes into 1 parish with multiple worship sites. It was later that evening (around 10pm) that YNN reported that STA & SS would be closing?
It was my impression, that the IPPG plan was that the parishes would consolodate into 1 entity with multiple worship sites and that the IPPG was recommending, as part of its proposal, that STA & SS close. Does anyone out there know for sure?
This newest “development” is most perplexing. If it was not true that STA & SS were closing, why didn’t the DOR have YNN (or the D&C for that matter) recant their stories on the closings.
I will admit, I think that sometimes there are people who are way too quick to vilify Bishop Clark and his staff. However, when you pull stunts like this, you tend to get what you deserve!
Bishop Clark wrote to Maureen (and others, including myself) that his decree does not dictate which churches would be open or close. However, in a June 22 article on Archbishop Dolan’s visit, the website for the DOR’s own publication, the Catholic Courier, states that Bishop Clark “recently affirmed an Irondequoit Pastoral Planning Group decision to close St. Salome and St. Thomas the Apostle parishes in Irondequoit.” In Bishop Clark’s letter read at all the Masses in the Irondequoit parishes on the weekend of May 29 and 30, the Bishop stated that he “will accept the recommendations of the Irondequoit Pastoral Planning Group as presented to me…” The IPPG proposed consolidation the five parishes AND physically closing St. Salome and St. Thomas the Apostle. So, what is he accepting–just the consolidation or the consolidation and closure of SS and STA?
Maureen, et al.
See new post here: http://cleansingfire.org/2010/07/games-people-play/
Father Peter is an excellent priest and should treated better
than he has been. He is doing the Diocese a favor by being here.
Is it Buffalo Road or is it the Bishop who have lost their brains?