By Michael OMalley
Plain Dealer
December 16, 2009
http://www.cleveland.com/religion/index.ssf/2009/12/catholic_protest_group_urges_b.html
A grassroots group fighting the ongoing closing of churches in the Cleveland Catholic Diocese, is urging parishioners to boycott Sunday collections.
The group, Endangered Catholics, has begun circulating forms that parishioners can fill out, saying they are withholding their money until Bishop Richard Lennon reconsiders some of the closings.
The form, to be signed by a parishioner and placed in a Sunday collection basket, reads in part:
"I will withhold any further financial contributions to any Roman Catholic Church until Bishop Richard Lennon agrees to mediation with each parish protesting its closing."
Members of the protest group plan on circulating forms at Masses this Sunday. The forms also are on the group's Web site, endangeredcatholics.org.
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| People start to arrive for a Saturday mass at St. James Catholic Church in Lakewood this past Saturday. Members of the Endangered Catholics are cirulating a petition asking Catholic church members not to give money during collection at Mass until some of the church closings are reconsidered. |
Endangered Catholics, organized in the wake of Lennon's orders last March to close 50 churches in the eight-county diocese by the end of June, is made up of parishioners from 14 parishes, four of which are already closed.
"We feel an injustice is being done because these churches are being closed without our consent," said Dave Hoehnen of Mayfield Village, a key organizer of the boycott. "The bishop has abused his power. But we have power too -- the power of the purse -- and we don't want to abuse our power by failing to exercise it."
The diocese, which has painted Endangered Catholics as a small fringe group, responded with a prepared statement by spokesman Robert Tayek:
"The diocese and its parishes have been blessed with the generosity of Catholics throughout these especially difficult economic times in northeast Ohio and during the diocesan reconfiguration process. . . .
"The diocese and its parishes are most grateful for the continued support of all the faithful."
Hoehnen said parishioners who are uncomfortable putting the form in a basket can elect to put contributions in escrow, donate to a charity or designate their money specifically to a parish. That way, he said, none of the money will go to the diocese, which takes a percentage of parish collections.
"There's a groundswell of disenchantment with the diocese," said Hoehnen. "This is really a power struggle."
Active members of Endangered Catholics come from churches including:
St. Adalbert, St. Barbara, St. Emeric, St. Lawrence, St. Patrick (West Park), St. Peter, St. Wendelin, all of Cleveland; St. James, Lakewood; St. John the Baptist and Sacred Heart of Jesus, Akron; St. Joseph and St. Stanislaus of Lorain; St. Mary, Bedford; St. Margaret of Hungary, Orange Village.
Four of those churches – St. John the Baptist, St. Stanislaus, St. Mary and St. Margaret of Hungary – have already closed.
To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: E-mail: momalley@plaind.com
216-999-4893
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