Have you ever noticed how everybody has opinions about the Church? Well, I doubt that I am saying anything that you haven’t heard before and I am not trying to overstate the obvious, but it is nonetheless true. I guess we all feel passionate about the Church – and that is good. Feelings are all part of how human beings deal with basic events or issues that affect their daily lives in so many ways. Church issues, like political ones, certainly can stir up feelings – come, sit at my family dinner table on any holiday, you’ll see!The Catholic Times
So, I’m sure that recently announced reassignments involving so many of our faithful and dedicated parish priests have certainly roused some feelings around the diocese. I want to at least try to address the issue before letters start to arrive at my office. It’s not that I don’t like hearing from you, but this way I might be able to address some of the issues that might be of greatest concern.
First of all, why do we move priests around in the first place? This may be a question that many of the priests may be asking as well. It probably can work two ways. One, it helps the People of God to have a variety of different expressions of the Gospel message. We have the benefit of the variety of the talents and spiritual gifts shared so deeply in the lives of our faithful priests.
New styles of preaching, perhaps some new ideas and methods, can become part of the parish’s expressions in prayer, worship, and Scripture study. It allows for new ways of sharing of talents and ideas as a new pastoral administration becomes familiar with parish families and local traditions. It allows for diocesan guidelines and policies to be more fully inculcated in the existing patterns of administration of the parish, thus forming a more cohesive diocesan community overall. [ie. some priests don't follow diocesan guidelines.]
In a diocese as geographically large as ours, it gives us all a great sense of planning and using our priestly resources for the greatest good – the building of a stronger Catholic community by building local communities that will maintain support structures for greater sharing and collaboration.
I know that the union of a pastor and his parish is as unique and special as the pastor and the parish involved. The decision to move a much-loved priest from a parish is a difficult thing for a bishop to do – a difficult thing for the priest – and a difficult thing for the people. This is the first time that I am the one who is deciding the moves – all the other times, I have been the guy moving. It has always been with tears. I love being a parish priest – that’s a big part of what the priesthood is for me. I know it is the same for so many of our wonderful priests in our great diocese. We love our people; and, happily, many of you love us right back. Thank you for that; and God reward you for your continued patience and support for us. Speaking for all of the priests, I know we are grateful.
So, what of the moves? If priests are happy in parishes and people are happy with them – what gives? Why change?
Well, beyond the simple and practical reasons I have listed above, there is a deeper and more spiritual reason for terms and assignments. Priests are called to a life of simplicity and detachment. Our Blessed Lord, Himself, reminded us: “foxes have their lairs, birds of the air have their nests, and the Son of Man has not the place whereupon to lay His head.” (Matthew 8:20). [It seems His Excellency really does mean for this to help his priests grow in holiness. When I originally read the statement from the vicar for clergy I thought it was a very generic answer. But the more I read into this I think the intention really is to promote holiness with the clergy.]
Jesus expected his followers, that means all of us, would live simply and not take the things of this earth as our own. We only use them for a while. We are pilgrims on earth; our home is in heaven. Priests, who are called to follow Our Lord in so many aspects of His life on earth, are called to lead in this aspect as well. It is easy for us to sometimes become comfortable in places or with certain people; that is only human. It is important for us to keep in mind that we must truly strive to live in this world keeping in mind our first challenge: to follow Jesus and conform our hearts to His. This moving around, as difficult and sometimes painful as it may be, is part of that pilgrim life.
So, while I know that many of you may have some further thoughts and opinions and, yes, definitely, some feelings on the reassignments of your parish priests, I just thought that I would weigh in and offer some of my feelings for your consideration and consolation in the process.
I’ll see you at Sunday Mass! [If you're not there, you've got no right to complain. "Chris-sters" (Christmas-Easter only folks) need not apply.]
Not answered is why some priests and not others though. Why are some priests at the same parish for 20+ years and some not? It seems that some priests have found a place to lay their head. I think that's my impression from those upset is that if this is the policy of the diocese it should apply to all priests. Maybe those priests are in the next round of moves in the future perhaps.
My biggest concern is those who have tried to take a traditional approach to liturgy. Some of the assignments are taking a liturgical liberal(within the rubrics) and placing them in a liturgically sound parish. I hope the days are over where a parish priest can come in and begin wreckovations whether it be the music, rubrics, language, church architecture or any other part of the liturgy.
5 comments:
Indeed, your statement regarding "promote(ing) holiness with the clergy" makes perfect sense.
I recognized what the Bishop was saying, here, but I wish he would just come out and say it, rather than forcing us to 'read between the lines'.
And again, that ties in with the unanswered question 'why some and not others?'.
I wish our Bishop wouldn't leave us with unanswered questions. I feel he's short-changing us by doing so.
Forgive me for being frank, but your last statement ticks me off. Everyone in the Diocese has a right to an opinion about this. Are not we all God's children being led by this particular shepherd?
You may not now, nor never, know what lies in another's heart.
I thank you for your commentary.
Well if a person only attends Mass twice a year, then they need to get themselves back in shape. To me that's what the bishop was implying. If a person is not attending Mass regularly are they really a part of the diocese so to speak? Our public worship is how we identify ourselves as Catholics of this diocese. We've got to live the faith completely regardless of which priest is there.
I think the Bishop means well, but the diocese does not communicate to the public effectively. I'm not sure any diocese does though. It just seems like sometimes we're left to interpret what they mean instead of reading it clearly. Perhaps not everything can be disclosed for reasons we don't know.
Bp Callahan is a pretty straight-shooter on the Liturgy. If something's going wrong, he will be sympathetic, at the very least.
Bishop Callahan knows whereof he speaks. As a Franciscan living a Vow of Poverty for many years he knows about ‘attachment’ to things, people, places, etc. Granted, diocesan priests don’t take a vow of poverty, but like all of us they should not become too attached – to anything. That’s one lesson.
When Bp. Callahan was just “Fr. Bill” and parish priest of the St. Josaphat Basilica parish in Milwaukee he served his six years as PP and then was re-appointed for another six years (which is an option in the Milwaukee Archdiocese). I suspect his re-appointment had to do with the renovation of the Basilica. It had fallen into disrepair and he initiated a fund raising appeal to restore it to the splendor it enjoys today. The extension was likely to allow him to complete the work.
After his second six-year term expired, we were informed that he had been reassigned to a parish in Rockford, IL. Shortly thereafter he was called to Rome as Spiritual Advisor (?) at the North American College. I always thought this was Ab. Dolan’s doing, setting him on the road to the episcopacy and - voilà - not longer afterwards he was appointed an auxiliary to Ab. Dolan.
So he has seen both sides of the parochial ‘merry-go-round’…! As to why “some and not others” I suspect the “others’ will get their turn in due course.
This morning I woke up with the question your article addresses but one step further. Why are Bishops NOT moved with the frequency as priests? The same argument -- about growing in holiness -- could easily be applied to Bishops.
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