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	Archdiocese $46.3 Million in Hole By Emelie Rutherford Milford Daily News [Boston MA] April 20, 2006 http://www.milforddailynews.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=90242 Catholics fighting the Boston archdiocese's plans to shutter their parishes largely applauded church officials for opening the organization's books yesterday, though some parishioners said the financial data does not answer all of their nagging questions. Responding to calls to divulge the archdiocesan finances in the wake of the priest sex abuse scandal and parish closings, Cardinal Sean O'Malley released an audit and other financial data about the last two fiscal years that paint a bleak financial picture. As of last June 30, the archdiocese was grappling with a $46.3 million deficit, a $135 million shortfall in the clergy pension fund and declining donations. "When we look at the decrease in revenue over previous years, we see clearly that our programs and ministries are at risk," O'Malley wrote in a letter to parishioners. He said the revenue numbers reflect "the anger over the sexual abuse crisis and the closing of parishes." The data shows donations have decreased as the archdiocese has had to come up with $150.8 million for priest sex abuse lawsuit settlements and related costs. Parish collections and other fund raising dropped $4.7 million, or 3.3 percent, from fiscal year 2004 to 2005. "I think it's good that the cardinal made this information known, but it's not the end of the story, it's not even the beginning of the story, it's just an opening remark," said Mary Beth Carmody, who is helping battle the archdiocese's plans to close St. Jeremiah's in Framingham. Parishioners have staged a round-the-clock vigil since May 2005 at the North Framingham parish. Catholics at nearby St. Anselm's in Sudbury also have been in a nonstop vigil since September 2004. Carmody said the newly released financial data does not include a bit of data she thinks is vital. "It doesn't show what the financial impact is of closing parishes like St. Jeremiah's," she said. Carmody said the archdiocese's embattled plan to merge St. Jeremiah's and St. Anselm's with St. George's in Framingham has forced costs on the archdiocese, some of which are intangible and cannot be quantified. Peter Borre, co-chairman of the Council of Parishes, said he wanted to see more detailed financial data to determine what happened to donations for clergy pensions parishioners made in past years. "I don't care if it's the worthiest reason in the world, you don't mess around with pension funds. That's the lesson from Enron," said Borre, whose group is opposed to the church closings. Cynthia Deysher, chairwoman of St. Anselm's parish council, said she is pleased with the breadth of the information the archdiocese disclosed. "Catholics in general in the archdiocese can feel they have more information than they did before," Deysher said. "I think they did a very admirable job in moving forward in terms of financial transparency." The archdiocese has a goal to balance its budget by fiscal 2008, which starts in July 2007. In addition to trying to increase fund raising, it plans to reduce the number of cabinet secretaries and reorganizes its administration. (Emelie Rutherford can be reached at 617-722-2495 or erutherford@cnc.com.)
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