More on “robust liturgies”

Webster offers several definitions for “robust.” Here are three:

1. strong and healthy; hardy; vigorous
2. rough, rude, or boisterous
3. rich and full-bodied

Which definition does the Diocesan Planning Commission have in mind when they use the term “robust liturgies?”

Unfortunately, there are far too many examples of poor liturgy in this diocese. When one can hear an entire sermon on an upcoming pasta dinner at the Cathedral or witness a Broadway showtune “blessing,” there is something seriously wrong. The Prayer for the Diocese of Scranton, penned by the Bishop and mandated for use as the concluding collect at the General Intercessions, is a long-winded intrusion into the Liturgy that does not even follow the basic format of a collect. The saga of bad liturgy continues with this little recommendation for one of the Wilkes-Barre clusters from the Planning Commission:

2. You re-evaluate the need for the “extraordinary form” of Mass in the Wilkes Barre area.

Just over one year ago, Pope Benedict issued a motu proprio, “Summorum Pontificum,” in which stated that priests have a right to celebrate Mass according to the 1962 liturgical books and that the faithful have a right to request that this Mass be offered in their local parish. The document established the 1962 Missal as an “extraordinary form” of the Roman Rite, while the 1970 Missal remains the ordinary form. It should be further noted that the current form of the Mass may always be celebrated in entirely Latin, although this happens rarely, if ever, in the Diocese of Scranton. Here are two articles from the Papal document:

Art. 5. § 1 In parishes, where there is a stable group of faithful who adhere to the earlier liturgical tradition, the pastor should willingly accept their requests to celebrate the Mass according to the rite of the Roman Missal published in 1962, and ensure that the welfare of these faithful harmonises with the ordinary pastoral care of the parish, under the guidance of the bishop in accordance with canon 392, avoiding discord and favouring the unity of the whole Church.

Art. 7. If a group of lay faithful, as mentioned in art. 5 § 1, has not obtained satisfaction to their requests from the pastor, they should inform the diocesan bishop. The bishop is strongly requested to satisfy their wishes. If he cannot arrange for such celebration to take place, the matter should be referred to the Pontifical Commission “Ecclesia Dei”.

Apparently, the Bishop of Scranton and his planning commission are very much out of touch with Pope Benedict’s desire to give both priests and the faithful the right to attend Mass using either set of liturgical books. So I ask the question once again, what are “robust liturgies?” And what will Mass in a “profoundly renewed” parish look like?

Evidence emerges in Milz termination scheme

The Times-Leader reports today further evidence that the leadership of the Diocese of Scranton conspired to terminate the position of social studies teacher and union activist Michael Milz. As always, the Diocese calls the claim “preposterous” and without merit. Who are you going to believe?

WILKES-BARRE – Contending that statements by the vice principal of Holy Redeemer High School back him up, Scranton Diocese Association for Catholic Teachers President Michael Milz said the diocese conspired to have him ousted from his teaching job, and sacrificed a second teacher to make sure it looked as if Milz was not targeted for his public push to unionize teachers.

The diocese and Holy Redeemer Principal James Redington flatly denied any conspiracy, and in a statement the diocese said “The accusations are preposterous and have no merit.” The vice principal, Robert Beviglia, said he could not comment and referred all questions to Diocese Spokesman Bill Genello, who referred questions to Redington.

Milz insists – and two parents with children attending Holy Redeemer back him up – that Beviglia had numerous conversations with them in which the academic vice principal told of what he perceived as a deliberate decision to orchestrate Milz’s removal and cover the effort by laying off other people.

According to Milz and the two parents, Beviglia said that:

• The original plan was to lay off the most junior teacher from each department at Holy Redeemer using the seniority system set up when the entire school system was restructured. That restructuring created four regional school boards that replaced numerous local boards, some of which had negotiated with the union. When the new boards were created, they rejected requests to unionize teachers, and Milz led a public campaign to reverse that decision.

• When the original plan was rejected, another was proposed. Milz would be laid off along with Jim George, the social studies teacher with the next lowest seniority, thus still creating the appearance that Milz was not targeted because of his union efforts. But George would later be offered his job back, after any furor regarding the layoff of Milz died down. Money was kept in next year’s budget for the extra social studies position.

• A religious sister was added to the social studies department as a teacher to further assure that Milz would have the least seniority. The sister had fewer years in the diocese system, but the diocese gives preference to religious sisters regardless of teaching time because of their history serving the diocese. That sister was added last school year, but did not teach because of health issues.

• Beviglia, who is responsible at Holy Redeemer for calculating how many teachers will be in each department, realized at one point that the school would be short at least one teacher after the layoffs. He raised his concerns with Regional Director Susan Dennen and Diocesan School Superintendent Joseph Casciano but was rebuffed. At one point Beviglia was called to a meeting with Casciano expressly “to make sure he was on the same page” regarding Milz.

• Beviglia also urged the diocese to find a way to keep Milz and George because they were both good teachers and taught higher-level courses. George had created a course only he could teach because of his experience, and Milz had taught advanced placement history. At one point, Beviglia suggested Milz be kept on part-time to continue teaching the advanced placement class, but Casciano said “If he’s gone, he’s gone.”

Read the entire article here.

Robust liturgies?

In addition to profoundly renewing our diocese, massive church closures will also result in “robust liturgies.” From the preliminary recommendations:

A new Mass schedule be developed that reflects good stewardship of priestly resources and maximizes opportunities for larger assemblies to provide a more robust celebration of the liturgy.

What exactly, is a robust celebration of the liturgy? Wouldn’t a more sacred celebration of the liturgy be a better goal?

Preliminary Recommendations

PRELIMINARY RECOMMENDATIONS SUMMARY – SOUTHERN REGION
JULY 16, 2008

INTRODUCTION
The following summaries are excerpts from the full Preliminary Recommendations made by the Planning Commission to each cluster. Four “further recommends” were made to all 50 clusters and are listed here.
1. The rich ethnic heritage of the people in your area be honored and celebrated whenever appropriate.
2. A new Mass schedule be developed that reflects good stewardship of priestly resources and maximizes opportunities for larger assemblies to provide a more robust celebration of the liturgy.
3. You share our Preliminary Recommendations and rationale with each of your parish communities, and invite their questions and feedback on an ongoing basis through September.
4. Upon reception of the Bishop’s directives for your cluster, please establish a Cluster Implementation Team to design ways to fulfill the directives.

All other recommendations are for each specific cluster.

CLUSTER # 1
PARISHES: Gate of Heaven, Dallas; Our Lady of Victory, Harvey’s Lake; St. Therese, Shavertown; St. Frances X. Cabrini, Carverton; Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Lake Silkworth
Recommendations
We recommend that as a cluster you enter into:
• Model Two: Linked Parishes between Saint Francis Cabrini, Carverton and Saint Therese, Shavertown leading to consolidation within three years at the St Therese site, pending the facility assessment results. A possible worship site at Centremoreland needs to be further considered.
• Model One: Consolidated Parishes or Model Four: In Solidum (Team), within three years among Gate of Heaven, Dallas, Our Lady of Victory, Harvey’s Lake and Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Lake Silkworth. If there is a consolidation, we recommend that Gate of Heaven, Dallas be the parish site, with additional worship sites at Our Lady of Victory, Harvey’s Lake and Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Lake Silkworth, which will be reviewed after two years.
• Model Three: Partnership Parishes among all the parishes in the cluster.

We further recommend that:
1. You consider cooperative efforts including areas of collaboration found on your Suggestion Form.
2. Serious consideration be given to studying current staffing patterns to eliminate duplication and enhance ministries.

CLUSTER # 2
PARISHES: Holy Family, Luzerne; St. Ignatius, Kingston; Holy Name/St. Mary, Swoyersville; Holy Trinity, Swoyersville; St. Mary Annunciation, Kingston
Recommendations
We recommend that as a cluster you enter into:
• Model One: Consolidated Parish between St. Ignatius, Kingston and St. Mary, Kingston at the St. Ignatius site, pending the facility assessment results.
• Model Two: Linked Parishes between Holy Name/St. Mary, Swoyersville and Holy Trinity, Swoyersville leading to consolidation within three years at the Holy Trinity site, pending the facility assessment results.
• Model Three: Partnership with Holy Family, Luzerne partnering with the consolidated parishes named above.

We further recommend that:
1. You begin immediately your collaborative efforts as outlined on your Suggestion
Form: Combining CCD programs; Participating in the Holy Family food pantry;
Developing a strong adult education program; Exploring ways to share administrative
staff, a business manager, groundskeepers, etc; Implementing a program for the
training of liturgical ministers; Exploring stewardship and justice programs .

CLUSTER # 3
PARISHES: Holy Rosary, Wilkes Barre; Maternity BVM, Wilkes Barre; St. Patrick, Wilkes Barre; St. Boniface, Wilkes Barre; Holy Trinity, Wilkes Barre; St. Joseph, Wilkes Barre Township
Recommendations
We affirm your suggestion and recommend that as a cluster you enter into:
• Model One: Consolidated Parishes among Maternity of the BVM, Wilkes Barre; Holy Trinity, Wilkes Barre; and Saint Joseph, Wilkes Barre Township. We also recommend that the parish site be at Maternity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, pending the facility assessment results.
• Model One: Consolidated Parishes among Saint Patrick, Wilkes Barre; Saint Boniface, Wilkes Barre and Holy Rosary, Wilkes Barre. We also recommend that the parish site be at St. Patrick, pending the facility assessment results.

We further recommend that:
1. You locate Hispanic Ministry at Saint Patrick in order to accommodate the growing numbers of Hispanics attending Mass.
2. You re-evaluate the need for the “extraordinary form” of Mass in the Wilkes Barre area.

CLUSTER # 4
PARISHES: St. Nicholas, Wilkes Barre; St. Mary Immaculate Conception, Wilkes Barre; St. Joseph (Slovak), Wilkes Barre; St. Aloysius, Wilkes Barre; St. Casimir, Wilkes Barre (Lyndwood); St. Therese, Wilkes Barre
Recommendations
We recommend that as a cluster you enter into:
• Model One: Consolidated Parish between St. Joseph, Wilkes Barre and St. Mary, Wilkes Barre at the St. Mary site, pending the facility assessment results.
• Model Two: Linked Parishes between the newly consolidated parish at the St. Mary site and St. Nicholas, Wilkes Barre in three years.
• Model One: Consolidated Parish in three years among the three Wilkes Barre parishes St. Aloysius, St. Casimir and St. Therese at the St. Aloysius site, pending the facility assessment results.

We further recommend that:
1. You collaborate on a religious education program for high school students.
2. You develop a collaborative adult education program

CLUSTER # 5
PARISHES: Blessed Sacrament, Wilkes Barre; St. Francis, Wilkes Barre; St. John the Baptist, Wilkes Barre; St. Dominic, Wilkes Barre
Recommendations
We agree with your suggestion and recommend that as a cluster you enter into:
• Model One: Consolidated Parish among St. Francis of Assisi, Wilkes Barre; St. John the Baptist, Wilkes Barre; Blessed Sacrament, Wilkes Barre; and St. Dominic, Wilkes Barre. We also recommend that the parish site be at St. Dominic, pending the facility assessment results.

We further recommend that:
1. You share your response regarding plans for evangelization which were not included in the current report.

CLUSTER # 6
PARISHES: Sacred Heart/St. John Evangelist, Wilkes Barre; St. Stanislaus Kostka, Wilkes Barre; Holy Saviour, Wilkes Barre
Recommendations
We recommend that as a cluster you enter into:
• Model One, Consolidated Parish between St. Stanislaus Kostka, Wilkes- Barre and Sacred Heart/St. John’s, Wilkes Barre at the St. Stanislaus site, pending the facility assessment results. However, we recommend that St. Christopher Mission, Wilkes Barre be closed.
Model Two: Linked Parishes between Holy Saviour, Wilkes Barre and the newly consolidated parish at St. Stanislaus, and be consolidated within three years.

CLUSTER # 7
PARISHES: Our Lady Help Christians, Dorrance; St. Jude, Mountain Top; St. Patrick, White Haven
Recommendations
Given the various sizes of the parishes in your cluster, we recommend that you study the following options and in your response respond with one that will make better use of priestly presence in your cluster:
• Model Two: Linked Parishes with all three parishes St. Jude, Mountain Top; Our Lady Help of Christians, Dorrance and Saint Patrick, White Haven to be served by one pastor with assistants.
OR
• Model Four: In Solidum (Team) with all three parishes St. Jude, Mountain Top; Our Lady Help of Christians, Dorrance and Saint Patrick, White Haven to be served by a team of priests.
OR
• Model Two: Linked Parishes between St. Jude, Mountain Top, and Our Lady Help of Christians, Dorrance, while another Model Two: Linked Parishes between Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, Freeland, and Saint Patrick, White Haven.

We further recommend that:
1. You activate the finance and pastoral councils to be more effective.
2. You explore the sharing of pastoral staff.

CLUSTER # 8
PARISHES: Holy Trinity, Nanticoke; St. Stanislaus, Nanticoke; St. Mary Czestochowa, Nanticoke; St. Francis, Nanticoke; St. Joseph (Slovak), Nanticoke; Holy Child, Nanticoke

Recommendations
We affirm your suggestion and recommend that you enter into:
• Model One: Consolidated Parish among Holy Trinity, Nanticoke; St. Stanislaus, Nanticoke; St. Mary’s Czestochowa, Nanticoke; St. Francis, Nanticoke; St. Joseph (Slovak), Nanticoke; and Holy Child, Sheatown. We also recommend that the parish site be at Holy Trinity, pending the facility assessment results. There will be an additional worship site which will be reviewed after two years.

We further recommend that:
1. You continue this process of collaboration in all areas of ministry.

CLUSTER # 9
PARISHES: St. Cecilia, Exeter; St. John the Baptist, Exeter; St. Anthony Padua, Exeter; Our Lady of Sorrows, W. Wyoming; St. Joseph, Wyoming; Immaculate Conception, W. Pittston; Holy Redeemer, Harding
Recommendations
We affirm your suggestion and recommend that as a cluster you enter into:
• Model One: Consolidated Parish within three years between Holy Redeemer, Harding, and Immaculate Conception, West Pittston. We also recommend that the parish site be at Immaculate Conception, pending the facility assessment results.
• Model One: Consolidated Parish within three years among St. John the Baptist, Exeter; St. Cecilia, Exeter, and St. Anthony, Exeter. We also recommend that the parish site be at St. Anthony, pending the facility assessment results.
• Model One: Consolidated Parish within three years between Our Lady of Sorrows, West Wyoming, and St. Joseph’s, Wyoming. We also recommend that the parish site be at Our Lady of Sorrows, pending the facility assessment results.
• Model Three: Partnership Parishes among the three consolidated parishes immediately to accomplish your stated goals.

CLUSTER # 10
PARISHES: Blessed Sacrament, Hughestown; St. Mary Help of Christians, Pittston; St. Mary Assumption, Pittston; Our Lady Mt. Carmel, Pittston; St. Rocco, Pittston; St. John Evangelist, Pittston
Recommendations
We affirm your suggestion and recommend that as a cluster you enter into:
• Model One: Consolidated Parish within three years among Blessed Sacrament, Hughestown, St. Mary’s Assumption, Pittston and St. Mary Help of Christians, Pittston. We also recommend that the parish site be at St. Mary Help of Christians, pending the facility assessment results.
• Model One: Consolidated Parish within three years between Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Pittston and St. Rocco’s, Pittston. We also recommend that the parish site be at Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pending the facility assessment results.
• Model Three: Partnership Parishes among St. John the Evangelist, Pittston and the two newly consolidated parishes listed above.

CLUSTER # 11
PARISHES: St. Martha, Fairmont Springs; St. Mary, Mocanaqua; Ascension, Mocanaqua; Corpus Christi, Glen Lyon
Recommendations
We affirm your suggestion and recommend as a cluster that you enter into:
• Model One: Consolidated Parish among St. Mary, Mocanaqua; Ascension, Mocanaqua; St. Martha, Fairmount Springs. We also recommend that the parish site be at St. Mary with an additional worship site at St. Martha, Fairmount Springs, pending the facility assessment results.
• Model Three: Partnership Parishes among Corpus Christi and the newly consolidated parish noted above for a three year time period.
• We also recommend Model One: Consolidated Parish – At the end of three years, the newly consolidated parish at the St. Mary site will consolidate with Corpus Christi. There will be one worship site in each of the three communities: Fairmont Springs, Mocanaqua and Newport Township, to be chosen based on the facility assessment results and geography. The worship sites will be reviewed in two years.

We further recommend that:
1. You develop a strong evangelization program to reach out to the unchurched moving into the area.

CLUSTER # 12
PARISHES: Holy Family, Sugar Notch; St. Charles Borromeo, Sugar Notch; St. Leo, Ashley; Exaltation Holy Cross, Hanover Twp. (Buttonwood)
Recommendations
We affirm your suggestion and recommend that as a cluster you enter into:
• Model One: Consolidated Parish between Holy Family, Sugar Notch and St. Charles Borromeo, Sugar Notch. We also recommend that the parish site be at Holy Family, pending the facility assessment results.
• Model Three: Partnership Parishes among the consolidated Sugar Notch parishes, the Exultation of the Holy Cross, Hanover Township and the recently consolidated St. Leo, Ashley.
• We also recommend Model Two: Linked Parishes – Exaltation of the Holy Cross, Hanover Township linked to the newly consolidated parish in Sugar Notch.

CLUSTER # 13
PARISHES: Holy Rosary, Duryea; Sacred Heart, Duryea; St. Joseph, Duryea; St. Mary, Avoca; SS. Peter & Paul, Avoca; Sacred Heart of Jesus, Dupont

Recommendations
We recommend that as a cluster you enter into:
• Model One: Consolidated Parish within three years among Holy Rosary, Duryea; Sacred Heart of Jesus, Duryea and St. Joseph, Duryea at the Holy Rosary site, pending the facility assessment results.
• Model One: Consolidated Parish within three years between St. Peter and Paul, Avoca and St. Mary, Avoca at the St. Mary site, pending the facility assessment results.
• Model Three: Partnership Parishes with Sacred Heart of Jesus, Dupont, partnering with the newly consolidated parishes named above

We further recommend that:
1. You consider cooperative efforts including all the ways you have planned to work
together as stated on your Suggestion Form.

CLUSTER # 14
PARISHES: St. Maria Goretti, Laflin; St. Mark, Inkerman; SS. Peter & Paul, Plains; Sacred Heart, Plains; St. Joseph, Hudson
Recommendations
We affirm your suggestion and recommend that as a cluster you enter into:
• Model One: Consolidated Parish among Saints Peter & Paul, Plains; Sacred Heart, Plains and St. Joseph, Hudson. We also recommend that the parish site be at Saints Peter & Paul, pending the facility assessment results.
• Model One: Consolidated Parish between St. Maria Goretti, Laflin and St. Mark, Inkerman. We also recommend that the parish site be at St. Maria Goretti, pending the facility assessment results.
• Model Three: Partnership Parishes between the newly consolidated parishes named above.

CLUSTER # 15
PARISHES: All Saints, Plymouth; St. John Baptist, Larksville
Recommendations
We affirm your suggestion and recommend that as a cluster you enter into:
• Model Three: Partnership Parishes between All Saints, Plymouth which has recently consolidated and St. John the Baptist, Larksville.

We further recommend that:
1. After three years, All Saints, Plymouth and St. John the Baptist, Larksville, study the demographics and financial statistics for viability and consider whether linkage or consolidation might be an option.

Disturbing news from Camden

Not everyone loses when a church is closed. From the New York Post:

A New Jersey bishop who spent five years in Rome under Pope John Paul II sold his beach house to Raffaello Follieri last year, even as the accused con man’s alleged scheme to steal millions of dollars from investors began to unravel. Bishop Joseph Galante, a former undersecretary at the Vatican and current head of the Camden Diocese, pocketed $400,000 for his four-bedroom townhouse in North Wildwood, NJ, in the sale to Follieri in February 2007, The Post has learned.

Last week, the property changed hands again, as the now-jailed Follieri, scrambling to raise the $21 million necessary to free him on bail on federal fraud and money-laundering charges, resold the house for an unknown sum. But Galante and Follieri had more in common than a beach getaway: Both were keenly interested in the sale of church property. Follieri is accused of exaggerating his ties to the Vatican in a scheme to fool investors into thinking he had first dibs on buying shuttered properties. The feds claim Follieri went so far as to pay two monsignors to accompany him on business trips and used his ill-gotten gains to fuel a jet-set lifestyle and lavish gifts on his then-girlfriend, actress Anne Hathaway.

Meanwhile, Galante has actively pushed a controversial plan to close half the churches and schools in the Camden Diocese since his arrival in 2004 and personally introduced Follieri to several parish priests, sources said.

Read the entire article.

Meitler strikes again

Save St. Mary’s reports that the infamous Meitler Consultants have been hired by the Diocese of Camden to justify impending school closures.

The latest propaganda they’re spewing says that there’s a “study” that’s been done that “proves” people want to close down their schools in favor of the mega-high school. Did you ever hear that old saying from Shakespeare that says, “The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose?”* It’s very much like that with the Diocese. Like pharmaceutical companies that want to peddle a drug conduct their own “studies,” so does the Diocese.

In this case, they’ve hired Meitler Consultants, commonly known as “the wrecking ball.” They’re the brains behind the “studies.” Funny, unless I’ve missed something, they don’t seem to ever have found a school or church they thought worthy of keeping open. They’re who various American Catholic diocese bring in when they want to justify the wreckage they’re about to unleash on the unsuspecting faithful.

Read the entire post.

Diocesan Spirituality?

“They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers.” Acts of the Apostles 2:42

Today’s edition of the Catholic Light contains yet another article by Monsignor Grimalia on “Called to Holiness and Mission.” This time, the focus is on diocesan spirituality. According to Grimalia, “Bishop Martino continues to promote a ‘diocesan spirituality’ and an ‘authentic diocesan spirit,’ as encouraged by Pope John Paul II. Bishop Martino began by focusing our attention on Acts 2:42 and published a Diocesan Mission Statement, inspired by this passage, at the start of the formation of Parish Finance and Pastoral Councils; he ordered the development of Parish Mission Statements, and our diocesan pastoral planning process.”

Bishop Martino’s “diocesan spirituality” is antiquarian. In the mission statement, prayer for the diocese of Scranton and other campaign literature, the early church is mentioned over and over again. We hear of the “fidelity, love and zeal of the early church” and of worship “in spirit and in truth.” While the early church was certainly a time of courageous discipleship, it cannot be replicated over 2,000 years later. The world is a very different place; Christianity has developed and matured. We have two millenia of Tradition, customs and doctrine.

Because of its newness (and fear of persecution), early Christians worshipped not in churches, but in homes, catacombs and other secret places. An overzealous fascination with the early Church is dangerous in that it downplays the role of churches. The ultimate end of “Called to Holiness and Mission” is a drastic reduction in the number of parishes and structures. “Through prayer, ongoing faith formation and a variety of activities we can grow in the understanding and implications of diocesan spirituality as we live and put into practice our diocesan mission in the 21st century,” noted Grimalia. “We can grow in the understanding of the parish as mission and communion, and move beyond a mentality of maintenance of structures as we deepen our understanding of Church.”

Grimalia’s article concludes by stating that “The diocesan mission statement, Called to Holiness and Mission and the observance of the Year of Saint Paul can all work together for the profound parish renewal and reconfiguration of our parishes for effective mission in the 21st century.” But will closing dozens of parishes really prepare us for the 21st century or the 1st century?