Sunday, June 27, 2010
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
A Time for Renewal
As I prepare for a transition of pastors at the parish where I am employed, I have been thinking about returning to finish my Master's degree in Divinity, thus paving the way for greater and varied opportunities for ministry in the future. Here in my diocese of Joliet, it has been an interesting and stressful year. Recently, two of our priests were removed from their pastorates because of an allegation of sexual abuse that surfaced from over 30 years ago. In the past few months, one of our newly ordained from last June tried to commit suicide after he was accused of sexual abuse while he was a seminarian. Three of our young associate pastors left their parishes to deal with vocational issues. One of them is thinking about coming back. Another of our younger pastors was put on leave in order to deal with personal issues. This past weekend, there were five new priests ordained for the diocese. It has been a rough year for the clergy and the bishop and also the faithful. This leads me to my question for this blog...where are we headed? What is going to happen to the church?
We keep hearing about bishops who are closing parishes and merging others due to a lack of priests and declining attendance, closing schools due to declining enrollment, etc. Meanwhile, a greater number of lay men and women are preparing for professional ministry in the church while pursuing graduate degrees in theology. More men are becoming permanent deacons. Perhaps it is time to rethink our vision of what it means to be "church." Most Catholics are somewhat removed from what goes on in the Vatican and the hierarchical church. The church is taking on more of a corporate and business attitude, instead of a pastoral and compassionate one. More bishops are acting like CEO's instead of like shepherds of the flock. The average Catholic is not having their spiritual needs met, though there are some wonderful parishes out there that already follow a new model of evangelization. The Catholic church is losing members to the non-denominational mega-churches like Willow Creek and places like it. The message is more practical and down to earth, and it is more bible-based and speaks to the life situation of those who attend. These non-denominational churches are also more mission-based; they really focus on service not only in the local communities, but also the global community.
I say it is time for a new vision of Catholicism. The old, hierarchical model is not working. If Jesus were to return to earth today, would he be impressed with the Vatican with all of its splendor and vast wealth? Yes, the Vatican does reach out to help the poor and the oppressed, but is all that oppulence and pomp and circumstance really necessary? Jesus does not care about what the temples (church buildings) look like. The building is not the church; the people are. What are we doing to advance the message of Christ and help to build his kingdom here on earth? The bishops are more concerned with "damage control" and staffing parishes with priests when it is becoming more difficult to do so. How about appointing qualified lay ministers as Pastoral Life Coordinators and keep parishes open, rather than closing them? If the lay person is married with a family, they could move into the empty rectory and use it as their house for the time that they are assigned. There is no doubt that many dioceses are beginning to face a clergy shortage as priests retire, die or leave the priesthood. What is being done to continue to provide for the christian faithful in this time of crisis and change in the church?
We keep hearing about bishops who are closing parishes and merging others due to a lack of priests and declining attendance, closing schools due to declining enrollment, etc. Meanwhile, a greater number of lay men and women are preparing for professional ministry in the church while pursuing graduate degrees in theology. More men are becoming permanent deacons. Perhaps it is time to rethink our vision of what it means to be "church." Most Catholics are somewhat removed from what goes on in the Vatican and the hierarchical church. The church is taking on more of a corporate and business attitude, instead of a pastoral and compassionate one. More bishops are acting like CEO's instead of like shepherds of the flock. The average Catholic is not having their spiritual needs met, though there are some wonderful parishes out there that already follow a new model of evangelization. The Catholic church is losing members to the non-denominational mega-churches like Willow Creek and places like it. The message is more practical and down to earth, and it is more bible-based and speaks to the life situation of those who attend. These non-denominational churches are also more mission-based; they really focus on service not only in the local communities, but also the global community.
I say it is time for a new vision of Catholicism. The old, hierarchical model is not working. If Jesus were to return to earth today, would he be impressed with the Vatican with all of its splendor and vast wealth? Yes, the Vatican does reach out to help the poor and the oppressed, but is all that oppulence and pomp and circumstance really necessary? Jesus does not care about what the temples (church buildings) look like. The building is not the church; the people are. What are we doing to advance the message of Christ and help to build his kingdom here on earth? The bishops are more concerned with "damage control" and staffing parishes with priests when it is becoming more difficult to do so. How about appointing qualified lay ministers as Pastoral Life Coordinators and keep parishes open, rather than closing them? If the lay person is married with a family, they could move into the empty rectory and use it as their house for the time that they are assigned. There is no doubt that many dioceses are beginning to face a clergy shortage as priests retire, die or leave the priesthood. What is being done to continue to provide for the christian faithful in this time of crisis and change in the church?
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