After discussing this with some people, and looking at the details once again, I am beginning to wonder whether the planning team for the Northeast Rochester cluster has truly selected the three best churches to be a part of the new parish. Their recommendation was to keep open St. Michael, Corpus Christi, and Annunciation. I think the better option would have been to keep St. Andrew in place of Annunciation, though I can somewhat understand their reasoning if it was based largely on the cost of operating a smaller church structure versus a large one. I’ll be doing a post on this in the coming days.
Well readers, I would like to hear your opinion. Which three churches should be a part of the new N.E. Rochester parish? In this poll, you must choose one of the options. “All should stay open” is not a possible answer when the DoR is planning to eliminate two churches.
I’m not sure Our Lady of the Americas can overcome their debt.
I will say this. From St. Stanislaus, it took me less than a minute to get to OLPH. And it took me less than 5 minutes from St. Stanislaus to St. Andrew. Although they were not part of the plan, St. Stanislaus had to have been considered when deciding worship sites.
Don’t buy into the story that it is the troubled finances of a parish that is forcing it to close. That is just the bishop trying to put a spin on the story.
I don’t believe any of the financial information “provided” by the diocese. They fix most of the numbers to their benefit.
How much money is in the parish savings account? How many stock certificates have been left to the parish during the last 5 years? How much cash and real estate has been willed to the parish? How much rental income does the parish receive each month?
The average parishioners only hear what the pastor feels like telling them and the diocese is capable of taking money out the back door without the parishioners knowing it.
When was the last time that you heard about Bishop Clark standing before a parish in financial trouble and saying “you have to increase your donations or we will be forced to close the parish”. When was the last time Bishop Clark put out a call to the whole diocese to save one parish in financial trouble?
Light of Christ is the only parish in the cluster that publishes other sources of income.
The big benefactors left for the suburban churches years ago. Some still contribute to the city churches but don’t attend a city church.