50th Catholic Parish is Closing in Cleveland

While pumping millions into anti-gay initiatives around the country, the Roman Catholic Church is allowing historic parishes to close and immigrant built churches to be sold and/or demolished. It's all part and parcel of the Church hierarchy's handiwork in driving away members by demonstrating utter moral bankruptcy in the form of the sex abuse scandal, rejecting modernity, and clinging to long ago debunked "science" and "natural law" doctrines dating back to the 1200's. Personally, as a former Catholic, the institutional church deserves to die because of all the evil it has done in terms of engendering anti-gay hatred, generating self-loathing by and groundless guilt on the part of I suspect a huge majority of Catholics, and causing interference in democratic government that should not be based on the religious views of some to the detriment of other citizens. It is also curious that the parishes that often are targeted for closing are either old ethnic parishes or those who stray from far right Church orthodoxy. In the feudal system based Church it's obvious that the laity - the equivalent of the Medieval serfs - have no power. It is also telling that the bishop needs a police escort when visiting parishes. The Washington Post looks at this phenomenon in Cleveland, but the same trend is happening across the USA - even as the Church invests in anti-gay and anti-religious freedom initiatives. Here are some highlights:
*
CLEVELAND -- A bell tolled solemnly as a man read the names of the fallen churches like a list of dearly departed saints. St. Hedwig's, recently sold to a drug rehabilitation agency. St. Andrew's, demolished months ago.
*
Now joining them is St. Emeric's, an old Hungarian parish, where about 100 parishioners gathered Wednesday to say goodbye. The church is the last of 50 parishes to close its doors, ending a massive downsizing of mostly older, ethnic parishes decreed by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Cleveland because of falling attendance, a priest shortage and financial problems.
*
Roman Catholic dioceses across the country have been struggling for years to maintain aging churches amid declining parishioners and financial problems exacerbated by the clergy sex abuse scandal. In Boston, dozens of parishes have been closed or consolidated in recent years.
*
Before entering St. Emeric's for the last time, the faithful gathered outside to sing Hungarian hymns and criticize Bishop Richard Lennon, who has overseen the closings. "We have done all in our power to keep our churches open," said Bob Kloos, vice president of Endangered Catholics, a local group that has tried to fight the closings. "And we witness the unacceptable loss of yet another vibrant, ethnic treasure."
*
The churches primarily serving Cleveland's ethnic groups, which include the Polish, Hungarians and Slovenians, claim that they are being unfairly targeted by the diocese. Amid rising anger from parishioners, [Bishop] Lennon has canceled plans for some farewell Masses and warned congregations not to set up "renegade" churches. When the bishop does attend Mass, he generally is escorted by police officers.
*
The fates of shuttered churches are slowly emerging. In Akron, St. Hedwig Church was sold to a drug rehabilitation agency for $399,000. Once past debts are paid, the money from the sale will follow St. Hedwig's parishioners to the nearby parishes they have joined, Tayek said. Twenty-one church buildings are currently for up sale, worth a total of about $10 million. Others are still in limbo. Fourteen churches, including St. Emeric Church, are waiting for the Vatican to rule on their appeals to stay open. Until then, the diocese must maintain the empty buildings and cannot put them on the market.
*
Clearly, had the hierarchy done its job and not allowed the sex abuse of children and youths go on for decades and decades, the billions of dollars paid out to abuse victims could have maintained parishes like St. Emeric's. Too bad more of the laity haven't figured this out and demanded the ouster of bishops, cardinals - and yes, Popes - guilty of criminal conspiracy and malfeasance.