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Diocese, parishes come together in restructuring meetings
By J.D. Long-García, The Catholic Sun
February 7, 2008
Local Catholic leadership had the opportunity to learn and ask questions about how the Phoenix Diocese’s comprehensive restructuring process will affect day-to-day operations at the parish level.
To help them understand this, a team of diocesan officials began meeting with parish staff and council members last month.
“It’s going to take a while to digest it all,” said Danny Hayword of St. Louis the King Parish in Glendale of the restructuring. “It sounds like something that needs to be done.”
Related: Parish Incorporation Resources
Hayword attended the Jan. 17 meeting at St. Elizabeth Seton in Sun City, the first of 10 gatherings scheduled in January and February at deaneries throughout the diocese. Each meeting is expected to draw several hundred parishioners.
The diocese announced last month that it will begin the process of separately incorporating each of the Phoenix Diocese’s parishes so that its civil organization will match up with its canonical structure.
As a corporate sole, the diocese currently is viewed, civilly, as one legal entity, consisting of a single incorporated office occupied by Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted. On July 1, the diocese will file articles of incorporation for over 90 parishes, thereby establishing each parish as its own non-profit corporation.
Bishop Olmsted addressed attendees through a recorded video.
“Under canon law, which is the law of the Church, parishes are recognized as separate juridic persons,” the bishop said. “In the end, no matter what our civil structure, we continue to be one, holy and apostolic Church.”
“We will continue to be in complete union with one another — with a newly recognized separate legal identity,” said Fr. Fred Adamson, vicar general and moderator of the Curia, who led all the meetings.
Fr. Adamson emphasized that the restructuring isn’t “being forced by any legal or financial proceedings.” Instead, he said, the restructuring allows the local Church to present itself civilly in the way it understands itself canonically, or through the laws of the Church.
“Who we are as Church has to drive all we do,” he said to the group gathered Jan. 22 at St. Andrew the Apostle Parish in Chandler.
That identity, Fr. Adamson explained, resonates with Pope Benedict XVI’s first encyclical, Deus Caritas Est.
“Love of neighbor, grounded in the love of God, is first and foremost a responsibility for each individual member of the faithful,” the pope wrote. “Love thus needs to be organized if it is to be an ordered service to the community.”
Spreading God’s love is the responsibility of the entire ecclesial community, from parish to diocese to universal Church, Fr. Adamson said.
Fr. Chris Fraser, judicial vicar and an expert in canon law, said the parish incorporation would provide the laity with an opportunity to recognize more fully their role in the mission of the Church, just as priests, deacons and religious have their specific roles.
“Your pastor is not supposed to be running the life of your family,” he said.
“Likewise, the bishop doesn’t want to micromanage a parish,” Fr. Fraser said. “When we cooperate with one another and let each other share our gifts, we grow as a community.”
A deeper understanding
Fr. Frank Bartel, pastor of St. Elizabeth Seton, said he hasn’t had many questions about the parish incorporation from his staff.
“Most people look upon this favorably, but they do have some questions with regard to finances and our savings with the diocese,” he said.
Joseph Anderson, chief finance officer for the diocese, explained that parish savings accounts, as well as any loans, would not be affected when the restructuring process is complete.
In general, the feedback has been positive.
“I don’t get the impression that it’s really going to change how we operate as a parish,” said Paul Trapp, chairman of Our Lady of Mount Carmel’s finance council.
One of the things that will change, according to John Kelly, general counsel for the Phoenix Diocese, is that parishes will have to strictly follow corporate procedures and will be civilly responsible for their own acts.
Robert De La Vega of the St. Edward Parish finance council thought the additional responsibilities would be difficult on smaller parishes.
“In a small parish you don’t have the personnel to take care of all that,” he said after the Jan. 22 meeting. “Smaller parishes aren’t going to have enough people to make the church go.”
Kelly said the diocese would address such issues through a service agreement with parishes, big and small alike.
“We’re not going to leave the parishes to fend for themselves when it comes to finance or legal matters,” he said.
Parishes can count on support from the chancery, and help will continue to be available from the finance, legal, educational, human resources, and property departments at the diocese, Kelly said.
Parishes will also be appointing separate boards of directors that will consist of diocesan and parish leaders. The board of directors’ role is to advise the pastor, particularly with regard to the proper and prudent management of parish assets.
“It’s not going to affect the mission of the Church,” said Kevin Murphy of Our Lady of Mount Carmel’s finance council after the Jan. 22 meeting. “In this litigious society you have to protect the gifts that are given by the laity.”
There are four meetings remaining, and the diocese recently launched a comprehensive informational Web site that hosts a detailed outline of the parish incorporation project as well as many common questions and answers. The site can be accessed through www.catholicsun.org.
“This is an exciting time to help us better understand the canonical structure of the Church and the way it guides us in participating in the mission of Jesus Christ,” Fr. Adamson said.
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