NEWS AND VIEWS

On the amalgamation and closing of parishes in Philadelphia Archeparchy

Following is the text of Metropolitan Stefan Soroka's "Sharing on the Amalgamation and Closing of Parishes in the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia." The text was e-mailed on June 18.

My Brother Clergy, Reverend Religious, Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Praise Be Jesus Christ!

In recent months, we have all heard of the planned closing of parishes within various dioceses of the Latin Church. The most often reasons cited are the shortage of priests and the decreasing number of parishioners in the affected parishes. Our Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia is not exempt from the same pressures on some of our own parishes and on the archeparchy. Declining numbers of parishioners in some parishes have made it difficult for these parishes to financially meet the costs of operation, and has left few qualified and able parishioners to assist in the management and upkeep of the parish. The shortage of priests has necessitated some priests to serve two, or even three parishes, placing these priests under stress detrimental to their spiritual and physical well-being, and unable to properly serve all the respective parish's needs. The parishes are not able to benefit from the fullness of the gifts of the priesthood.

During the month of May 2004, two of our Ukrainian Catholic parishes have been permanently closed. It is anticipated that additional parishes will be closed. St. Andrew's Ukrainian Catholic Church on Pine Street in Philadelphia and the Protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church in South Philadelphia were both closed. Attendance at both parishes averaged below 10 to 15 people, and the costs of operation were necessarily subsidized from parish savings. Neighboring priests provided services for the parishes with much dedication, yet depriving time from their attention to their main parishes.

Understandably, worshipping in a small church with fellow parishioners whom you have come to know personally, is a special gift. The closing of these parishes brought sadness to the parishioners, who have since joined neighboring Ukrainian Catholic parishes. Parishioners of the South Philadelphia parish were already welcomed for all major feasts by the pastor of a neighboring parish for the past year. I have personally met with the parishioners of both parishes at or prior to their closing and appreciate their admirable understanding and cooperation.

The need to close these parishes and others raises some important questions and thoughts for all in the archeparchy. Among them are the following thoughts.

Priests often speed from one parish to another, to meet desired time of the faithful for services, leaving little time for the very important but often neglected time for personal contact with parishioners after the Sunday divine liturgy. How invaluable, needed and appreciated it is when the priest can greet his parishioners personally at the door of the church following the liturgy. It is also common for faithful to pass by one or more of our Ukrainian Catholic churches to attend a parish where they have become accustomed to worshipping. Sometimes, parishes are within a short driving distance of one another, or even within blocks of one another in some communities. Yet, we have come to expect a service in our own parish, even when attendance has radically declined and it is necessary for a priest to travel to meet our needs.

What about the priest's spiritual and physical well-being? The running between parishes takes a toll on the priest's psychological and physical health. His spiritual well-being is also challenged when he arrives at a parish, excited to offer a well-prepared homily, and is greeted with but a small handful of steadfast parishioners. Let's not fool ourselves that this does not have its own demoralizing impact. Yet, the parishioners desire that their parish be vibrant and have a future.

A positive and hopeful future for our Ukrainian Catholic Church in the Archeparchy of Philadelphia lies in our being able to devote ourselves to building a sense of community among ourselves as a Church. This necessarily means the uniting of some of our parishes into stronger worshipping communities of faith, where a priest may devote himself full-time to providing for the spiritual needs of that one community of faith and its parishioners. Some parishes will have to realistically and painfully accept the sacrifice of amalgamating into one main parish in the interests of our being a strong and vibrant Church. How can we realistically expect a priest to lead a community of faithful to be vibrant and alive, if we expect of him to divide his energies and giftedness among several parishes?

An attitude of proper stewardship among our faithful has not developed. Our faithful are very generous for the financial support of major projects and needs of their parish; yet, weekly upkeep support of the parish is relatively poor in all but a few of our parishes. The weekly donation of many parishioners has not kept up with the costs of maintaining a parish today.

This raises the question as to proper use of our financial and material resources. Uniting into stronger and more vibrant communities allows for the better use of limited financial resources. Not only is it easier to meet necessary expenses, excess resources can be utilized to offer increased Church programs and activities for children, youth and adults within our parishes. Most of our parishes are stretched financially to pay for necessary secretarial, financial and maintenance help. We are so desperately in need of offering spiritual and cultural programs for the development of our sense of community and of family.

There are the fortunate few parishes which have exceptional financial savings and rely on these resources to ensure their continued survival. The decision to close a parish, however, is primarily based on the vibrancy of that parish, and the number of active parishioners attending and supporting the life of the parish. In some situations, a parish may deservedly need financial help from the archeparchy as it struggles to develop itself among a potential membership in its community.

You and I face such challenges in our day-to-day lives. We are confronted with choices. Choosing to do nothing and continue to move along our present path is also a choice. In my humble opinion, such a choice would be most selfish and detrimental to the well-being and hope of our Ukrainian Catholic Church. We must, together, choose to develop our sense of community amidst our parishes. The development of stronger and vibrant parish communities where possible, including the amalgamation of some of our parishes, is essential for our survival and for our well-being as a Church. There simply will not be enough priests to serve every parish that exists today. Some parishes cannot support a priest because of their small size, and will be asked to look to amalgamation with one or more other parishes. This will minimize the all-to-easy tendency to require priests to attempt to serve a number of parishes, to the detriment of the priest's well-being and that of the well-being of the parishes involved.

For example, in Philadelphia, an area where over 800 families reside has no Ukrainian Catholic Church located in the immediate area. This has also become evident in some areas of New Jersey. This begs the question as to the need for our archeparchy to develop new parishes in some areas so as to ensure that the children and young people of these families develop a sense of community, a sense of belonging to a Ukrainian Catholic parish. This requires careful thought and planning as to the allocation of already stretched resources of priests. Choosing to continue to serve smaller diminishing parishes does not allow for reaching out in areas of new needs.

The quick pace of modern life and enhancement in technologies have presented their own demands for Church teaching and advising on moral and ethical issues faced by all of us in today's society. We need to be able to release priests for advanced study in such areas as canon law, morality, ethics, liturgy, etc. Our shortage of priests cannot perpetually justify our not facilitating opportunity for advanced education of our clergy. All of us need to appreciate the need for advanced education of our priests, and to be prepared to sacrifice our own best intentions and preferences in our parishes to enable it.

In summary, it is time for us to become a Church with a much stronger sense of developed community, able to reach out to its faithful in changing circumstances. The talents and gifts of the clergy can be manifest best when the priest's energies and time are not divided among several communities. The understanding and sacrifice of all of the faithful and clergy of our archeparchy is needed in this journey of developing our future. Our future can be hopeful and vibrant, if we together choose to dedicate ourselves to develop a sense of community and family within stronger parish communities, accessible to parishioners of a larger area.

I am confident that the Holy Spirit will guide us in our love and care for our holy Church, for its faithful and for all those who endeavor to serve. God bless you richly for your anticipated understanding and cooperation.

Stefan Soroka
Metropolitan-Archbishop

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, July 11, 2004, No. 28, Vol. LXXII

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