Save St Mary's Malaga

(Link below.)

Again, the thing the Diocese just doesn't seem to get is that they are not giving any local demographic statistics to justify the trends they say exist. Just because a general trend is occurring nationally doesn't mean that that same trend can be applied to every specific region. This is a basic principle of sociology, of course. But apparently the bishop and Mr. Walton think that if they throw a bunch of numbers out to the population at large they'll be dumb enough to buy it. Many don't trust the bishops after they mishandled the sex abuse scandal or think fighting a bishop is useless since they'll run roughshod over the laity anyway. What difference will these misleading numbers make to them?

As I've said before, here in South Jersey, there are only two urban centers, by definition: Camden and Atlantic City. Even if there is a Catholic exodus from these areas, church closure is not necessarily the answer. At St. Bart's in Camden, for example, which is a parish that was established in particular for the Black Catholic population, parishioners drive from various locations to attend this church. In other words, just because the Catholic population in an area may shift, this does not always mean that the church is underutilized.* People are attached to their churches for many reasons, and it has been shown in recent years that the local (or most geographically expedient) church is not always the one people choose to attend. I myself drive past countless Catholic churches to attend the two churches to which I belong. My neighbors on one side attend one Catholic church, across the street another, and next door to me on the other side yet another. We all live in the same town on the same block and between the four houses we attend five different churches in a total of three different towns. At one church I attend, I don't think I know any parishioner who actually lives in that particular town.

About the most they give us in this article is the following: "Local shifts in population also have occurred." ??? They continue to fail to give any specific information about particular parishes which are situated in areas with significantly decreased Catholic populations. While I'm sure there are a few such parishes, I hardly believe the far-reaching changes the bishop proposes in any way meet the actual statistical data. I am so confident that they are wrong in their conclusions, in fact, that if I had all the time in the world I'd pour over the census data myself. (Unfortunately I have a job and two young children, so I don't anticipate this happening.)

There are at least two things the Diocese, intent on only sociological planning (and poor planning at that) rather than Godly action, have missed altogether:

1. These days, particularly due to the fact that there are churches that do not unapologetically embrace the fullness of the Church's teachings, people will drive to get to a Catholic church they want to and in conscience can attend. St. Mary's and St. Bart's are only two such churches in the diocese. There are definitely others: St. Peter's in Merchantville, the Cathedral in Camden, Mater Ecclesiae in Berlin, St. Catherine's in Clayton, St. Lawrence in Lindenwold, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Absecon, etc.

2. We are to evangelize! We are Christians! The bishop's answer to decreasing numbers of practicing Catholics is to close the churches they were baptized and received the sacraments in? Take away the only church that fallen-away Catholics have any attachment to and you take away their last remaining connection to the faith. Besides this, if population changes are truly occurring to the point where drastic action is needed, that drastic action is evangelization, not church closure!!! Maybe instead of investing all this time and money on how to close down churches and turn a profit from property sales, he should be thinking instead about how to win hearts and minds for Christ and his One, True Church. Fill up those pews again, then, don't take away people's houses of God! (Boy I bet they're glad they didn't pack it in in Europe when church attendance fell away. The tourist trade at all those old churches is quite lucrative.)

In any case, without exerting ourselves, we can use their own information to disprove their argument. In the past, the bishop has talked about major population increases in the Pitman area, for example. In fact, Bishop Galante has on several occasions sung the praises of the evanglelical protestant Gloucester County Community Church. Well GCCC is two blocks from the Pitman line, and yet he wants to close down Our Lady Queen of Peace in Pitman? That makes no sense. In just about every instance I can think of, Galante and McGrath are seeking to close churches in areas where there is significant population growth.

Again, take the Malaga and Waterford areas. Both these areas are experiencing development, population influx not decrease, and yet Galante and McGrath want to close both these churches (St. Mary's and St. Anthony's). The rationale given (among many depending on the day of the week) is that people don't live in these areas anymore and demographics are shifting. Huh? Just goes to show they haven't done their homework and actually explored these geographic areas. Have exploratory/preliminary studies been done? Doesn't seem like it. All you have to do is look around and see houses going up and know people are moving in, not out.

So far as I can tell, the real reason for the destruction of the Diocese is that Galante, McGrath, and Volmer simply do not like traditional Catholic churches, particularly not small ones. It's an issue of preference. They embrace a different model of church altogether and wish to radically change the face of Catholicism in South Jersey. Just look at the churches the bishop seems to like: Gloucester County Community Church and St. John the Evangelist in Naples, FL. One is protestant and the other a liberal McMegachurch. But if they gave their true reasons, who would be behind them? Hardly anyone is now, can you imagine if they were administered a truth serum and were forced to lay bare their real motivations? We must pray for their conversion, it's our best hope and their best hope. Bishop Galante is the bishop of our Diocese, we must pray for his soul and those who will be affected by these actions!

*Of course, while claiming to promote "unity within our diversity," according to the mission statement of the Diocese, Galante plans to close the only Catholic church in the diocese that was established for the Black population. What an insult. But that is another matter.


Read here if you want to waste your time with more propaganda.

Quote:

Local Catholics continued to speak out against diocesan plans to consolidate parishes by holding another demonstration at a local church Wednesday.... "We are going to be here until he reconsiders his illogical, inane decision," said Charlotte Ryan, council [Council of Parishes] co-chair and member of Our Lady Queen of Peace in Pitman.... "If we all stick together we can stop this process in its entirety," said Leah Vassallo, council co-chair and member of St. Mary's in Malaga.

Not a bad article at all, and very favorable to us, in my opinion. The media tide has turned dramatically away from the Diocese, it seems, and the Diocese is increasingly grasping at straws. It's a shame that those who oppose the movement to save God's true Church and churches in South Jersey don't realize that they are on the wrong side of the struggle.

Read the article here.

Receiving the Eucharist kneeling will be the norm at papal masses

Read the story here on CNS.

On my traditional Catholic calendar I saw that tomorrow's saint was Anthony Mary Zaccaria, a saint I knew nothing about. Since I like to learn about the more obscure saints, I thought I'd look him up. Although I haven't explored it at length yet, I stumbled on wonderful site dedicated to him. (I have sent you to the "preface" section. There is also a novena, a thirteen-part "spiritual theme" section, a ten-part "life of" section [actually 12 if you count the preface and intro], a "daily lesson in holiness" section for everyday devotions, pictures, and more.) This saint is especially relevant since our Holy Father declared the Year of St. Paul, and St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria founded religious and lay societies dedicated to St. Paul. The website and book put online were both put together by Fr. Robert B. Kosek, CRSP, PhD. It is a treasure. Check it out.

About the saint: After having finished medical school at the young age of 22, he became a priest and founded the Congregation of the Regular Clerks of St. Paul, sanctioned by Pope Clement VII in 1533. Their rule bound them to "regenerate and revive the love of the Divine worship, and a truly Christian way of life by frequent preaching and the faithful administration of the sacraments." He also founded an order of nuns called the Angelicals of St. Paul and also the Laity of St. Paul. The saint also helped reform certain nuns, helping bring their congregations into a stricter and more rigorous religious life. Notably, heresies were running rampant in northern Italy at this point in time, including the Lutherans. St. Anthony and his fellow missionaries sought to correct these heresies, preaching often. To read more about his life, go to newadvent (see this entry) or the site dedicated to him (see above).

...no matter how excellent a quality knowledge is, it, too, is of very small advantage, as Solomon can prove to you by his own story. For, notwithstanding his great public and world wide reputation for having superior knowledge, he is believed by some to have ended up at the bottom of hell. Even if this were not true, he cannot be cleared of the fact that, despite all his great wisdom, he committed countless and grave sins of lust and of idolatry. Indeed, the servant who knows his master's will and does not do it, will be punished more severely, as Christ says (Luke 12:47). (From the saint's fourth sermon)

Since we have chosen such a great apostle Paul as our guide and father and claim to follow him, we should try to put his teaching and example into practice in our lives. (St. Anthony to the Barnabites)

You have decided to give yourselves to Christ and I desire that you do not fall victims to lukewarmness, but rather that you grow more and more fervant. (Letter to Mr. Bernardo Omodei and Madonna Laura)

 

This one is by James Stephenson. I was handed the letter but I'm not sure to which newspaper(s) he sent it. I'm impressed with several of his points, since they are ones not often stressed, and he is speaking from the point of view of a senior.

Re: CLOSING CATHOLIC CHURCHES

I've been reading with interest the heart breaking stories from people who are having their churches closed. I agree with them for the most part. I, though, have a different concern. Is this bishop truly Catholic? What true shepherd would insult the greater portion of his flock by calling their churches "Wawa churches"? Then he insults seniors by saying we only go to church to socialize. No, your Excellency, we go to church to praise, honor, glorify, and worship God in general and Jesus Christ in particular. I have to wonder why he goes to church!

No, we donot need his day care either! Most of his daily communicants are seniors who are also responsible for much of the upkeep of the buildings and grounds.

1. What bothers me more is his remark about needing mega-churches with paid ministries,not small churches that focus on celebrating liturgies. Is he trying to get rid of the mass? The mass is about the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist. Get rid of liturgy, whether mega or small church and you have no Catholic faith.

2. Also, his remark about faith being about relationships, not about rules. Once again, the Catholic Church is all about rules. The rules that Jesus Christ gave us to run his Church, that is what sets us apart from other faiths.

3. This one really makes me wonder where His Excellency is coming from! He says the traditional hierarchy of the  churches must change--the hierarchical setup that's been in place for two thousand years--just because Bishop Galante says so. And he wants to replace it with lay people?I repeat, is he truly Catholic? Is he trying to destroy the Camden, New Jersey Diocese with his grand scheme of mega-churches?

If we have a shortage of priests,he is part of the problem, not the solution. To date he has removed at least twenty good, orthodox priests from their parishes, some of whom have served under three and four other bishops with no problem.

Why not return them to active church service? And why has he only removed orthodox priests???

Most of the remarks that I refer to are in the 02/04/08 Courier Post.*

James Stephenson
Malaga, New Jersey

*I think he means the remarks of Galante to which he refers are taken from an article published in the Courier Post. Would it have been 04/02, though?

Last week someone handed me the "mission statements" of both the Camden Diocese and Philadelphia Archdiocese, asking me to place them both online as a means of comparison, line by line. Personally, I am not a big fan of mission statements, particularly for religious bodies. I think they are too corporate and, after all, we have creeds so I'm not entirely sure I understand the point of the mission statement. But it is definitely interesting to note the differences.

Archdiocese of Philadelphia                              Diocese of Camden
We, the faithful of the Roman Catholic                    We, the Catholic Church of South
Church in Philadelphia                                                  Jersey

in communion with our Holy Father,                       envision growing ever more into
shepherd of the universal Church, and                    dynamic community of faith,
our Archbishop, shepherd of the Church                 hope, and love wherein we reveal
in Philadelphia, proclaim to everyone                      the mind and heart of Jesus through
the Good News that Jesus Christ is                             our actions and worship.
the Light of the world, who offers to all
who follow Him the light of life.

Baptized into Christ Jesus and confirmed               Empowered by baptism, inspired
by the gift of the Holy Spirit, we desire                     by the Holy Spirit, and formed by
to share this Light with all by proclaiming               the Word of God and the sacraments,
the Gospel of forgiveness and reconciliation          especially the Eucharist, we will--
to every person.                                                                 with Jesus living in us--reach out
                                                                                                    with love:

We are one in our Church's teachings
and in the variety of gifts, services, and
ministries that we employ to help build
up the Kingdom of God. We therefore
commit ourselves to:

-worship God in spirit and truth through                  -To proclaim and teach the truths
"prayer without ceasing," and particularly                 that save,
through the celebration of the Eucharist
and the other sacraments of the Church;

-create and nourish Christian community               -To welcome back those who have
in the domestic church of the family, in                    left our family of faith,
the life of every parish, and in society
as a whole

-proclaim in word and deed the Good News           -To forgive and seek forgiveness,
of Jesus Christ to all persons, inviting each
of our sisters and brothers in the human
community to share our faith and our mission;

-teach the saving message of Christ so that             -To care for our sisters and brothers
all believers may come to deeper                                  in need,
understanding, conversion and personal
witness to Christ;

-serve all our sisters and brothers,                             -To work for peace within our families
particularly the poor and needy, by                              and communities,
generous acts of charity and by working
together with all people of good will for                   -To promote respect and justice
justice and peace.                                                                for all people,

                                                                                                   -To strengthen unity
                                                                                                   within our diversity,

We pray to the Father, Son, and Holy                      And to celebrate the sanctifying
Spirit, through the intercession of Mary,                  love of God that heals and trans-
the Immaculate Conception, to whose                    forms the world.
care the Archdiocese is consecrated,
and through Saints Peter and Paul, the                 -Most Reverend Joseph A. Galante,
Archdiocesan patron. May the Lord of                    D.D., J.C.D., Bishop of Camden
Light guide us in our earthly journey
and to our heavenly home.
                                                                                       

St. Paul Intercession

They are the ministers of Christ (I speak as one less wise): I am more; in many more labors, in prison more frequently; in stripe above measure; in death often. Of the Jews five times did I receive forty stripes save one. Thrice I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned; thrice I suffered shipwreck; a night and a day I was in the depth of the sea. In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils of the sea, in perils from false brethren: In labors and painfulness, in much watchings, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness: Besides those things which are without; my daily instance the solicitude for all the churches (2Cor11:23-28)

St. Paul relates the hardships he has undergone to evangelize. He reminds us that he is an instrument of the Lord who lives in him. So, too, our hardships are an important part of the assault against the paganism of this world. We consecrate everything because Our Lord so wills in order to give honor and glory to God who is the foundation and essence of all that is good, pure and holy. All praise and honor to Jesus Christ, our Savior. The life we have in the Lord we recognize something totally beyond our merit. We only listen to the Spirit who confers life on us continually through the most powerful intercession of the Blessed Mother. If we keep that fixed in our hearts through divine grace we never have to worry (didn't St. Pio say so?) about any crisis in our life or in our parish.

Praised be Jesus Christ!
Now and Forever.
Fr. Jerome Charles Romanowski

We need to involve one of our nearest neighboring diocese. We need to CALL CARDINAL RIGALI and not let up until he agrees to meet with us.

His number is: 215-587-4538

Why should Cardinal Rigali intervene?

Because we are not little mini-churches in vacuums. The Church that we belong to is the ONE, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church. If the bishop in one diocese falls into error and is intent on bringing all the souls of the diocese with him, something must be done. There is not an option to do otherwise than intervene. Cardinal Rigali is a successor to the Apostles in the Apostolic Church. The job of a bishop or archbishop is to tend the Lord's sheep and keep them from wolves! "We cannot interfere" is an unacceptable and indefensible position. It is certainly no reason to fail to stand up for what is Right and True. Church leaders must be held accountable.

We want Cardinal Rigali to intervene on our behalf, but the least he could do is hear us out. Bishop Galante cannot close half the diocese, ship off many of its priests, and institute general chaos without a word from his colleagues. We are Christians--lay and religious--and it is our duty to speak the Truth. Where are you, faithful shepherds of the Lord? Priests, Bishops, Archbishops, what do you have to be afraid of besides the justice of God?!

Look for this over the next couple days. Any information you may have you can email to me. Thank you again to all people who have contributed information and stories to savestmarys. Keep it coming! For the love of God, united we stand, divided we fall.

This article was written 2 years ago.

Quote:

While winning the hearts of the liberal faction, Bishop Wuerl ran roughshod over the faithful and the parishes they and their families had built. Bishop Wuerl had managed to cut a million dollars from the operating budget his first year and his concepts for the consolidation of school and parishes became the "model for bishops facing similar problems nationwide."

While the reporter, Ann Rodgers-Melnick, in the March 12, 1989 article enthused over the bishop's controversial closing of parishes and schools, Pittsburgh Catholics found themselves at the mercy of the diocesan machine as it moved full throttle over the heartfelt concerns of the laity who were stunned at the numerous closings and mergings of churches into "worship sites," including the financially and spiritually sound parishes.

The usual "blarney" about  consultation with the laity, who for the most part saw it as a "done deal," was published in the local Catholic paper, which ranted on and on, inferring that the suffering Catholics were disobedient and causing disunity when they felt their spiritual world crumbling. Uppermost in the minds of many were concerns about the losses of Mass availability, ethnicity, and the sense of community. The allowance, by the diocese, of "polka Masses," and the parading of Catholics in ethnic costumes in the Civic Arena was apparently an attempt to show "respect" for the many heritages represented in Pittsburgh's Catholic community.

The diocese attempted to give the appearance of cooperation and harmony toward the people, but the laity felt betrayed and disillusioned by the strong-arm tactics employed under Bishop Wuerl's rule. Many elderly Catholics were no longer able to continue their custom of attending daily Mass due to limitations set by the distance to the nearest church, since their "worship site" may or may not have a scheduled daily Mass.

Money from one parish, totaling three million dollars, donated by hard working parishioners, was confiscated by the diocese. This was only one instance of what is thought to be an enormous amount of money ending up in diocesan coffers from parish accounts and property sales. The diocese claims that the money will be returned to the merged parishes, but many of Pittsburgh's Catholics do not believe that and wonder about the total sum of money taken in, diocesan-side. Having nowhere else to turn, some displaed members of parishes are suing Bishop Wuerl in civil court for closing their parishes.

Other parishioners have watched helplessly as pastors spent large sums of money on unwelcome "renovations" such as the installation of "immersion pools" for baptisms, and the removal of tabernacles from places of prominence to hidden positions.

(all emphases mine)

SOUND FAMILIAR??? It should! It's happening all around the country. It happened in Pittsburgh. We're the next recipient of the insidious infestation. There will be no surprises--it's all been done before. They're just following a program that's been used again and again. It's no "process"--that is a lie. (Yeah, Ms. Volmer, you heard me right.) It's a program that's being implemented, corporate-style. (And at the moment, Galante's outsourcing, but that's another piece altogether.)

So, got your crucifix? Some holy water? Hope you're wearing your scapular, folks, because it's gonna be a rough ride. Ain't easy to be Catholic these days, especially when the powers-that-be are discouraging us from being precisely that. Of course, if being a faithful Catholic was easy, then everybody would be one. And of course, we are running the race for the prize, which is Christ Himself, so we must take up our crosses and follow Him.

In short (I know, too late!) you simply must read this article, written by Matt C. Abbott. Have no doubt that this is the very same liberal agenda--which is in no way Catholic--that is running rampant and attempting to destroy the Diocese of Camden, its faithful priests, and the parishes within it. Have no doubt that what is at stake here is our souls and the souls of countless people in our diocese and beyond. Have no doubt that money is a motive (remember when Christ said that you can't serve both God and mammon?) and that the intent is to steal it just as was done in Pittsburgh. Most of all, have no doubt that the ultimate goal is to make us less Catholic and therefore further from the Eternal Truth! If you have any doubt of what's really happening here or if you simply want to be better informed, read the piece.

And remember, we must resist the plans of the bishop and preserve Catholicism throughout South Jersey! We must pray for the bishop's conversion. Be sure and find a good and faithful priest who is unafraid of the Truth, even if it appears to be in opposition to the whims of our current bishop. It's about obedience to our Faith and our Church! We are never allowed to fall into sin, even when we are commanded to by a superior. Consider what dire fates the English martyrs faced. In our case we do not risk martyrdom, but we could be risking our souls. Truth is Truth, Right is Right, and wrong is wrong no matter where or when we live.

While it is true that even poor church leaders may come and go, they can cause a lot of destruction during their tenures and will drag down souls with them when they fail to do the Will of God. So when you find a good priest who is faithful to the ancient teachings of the Church--as we have found in our dear Fr. Romanowski--stay close to him! He is a gem! Most of all, stick with Christ, who will never lead you astray!

Click here to read the article.

PS: This article was printed and given to me. Thank you so much for all your contributions to the site and your positive feedback.