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Defending The Faith, Saving Sacred Space

2-Part Video: Digesting Draft Models and Pastorates: Calling it by a different name doesn’t change the end result

The Archdiocese knew all along that the Canon Law process that we were suggesting was legitimate. They admit it on the Second Draft Model section of the All Things New website. Now, they scrapped their original 42 models for a whole new set of “draft models” based on “Pastorates.” Their definition of pastorate includes a single pastor over many parishes or many merged parishes. That means 88 pastors will run the show for the entire archdiocese. Decisions will be on a “case by case basis” which means it will be totally subjective. All Things New talks about evangelizing every square mile of the archdiocese. In Planning Area 15, the proposed plans would change the current approximate square miles per parish from 35 square miles per parish to 438 square miles per parish, a 1280% increase. In Planning Area 14, it will grow to 600 square miles per parish!!! There are certain Planning Areas with NO stand-alone parishes, where all parishes will experience mergers/closures through “Pastorates”. These Planning Areas are: 1, 4, 12, 13, 14, and 15. Planning Areas 5,6, and 8 through the central corridor of St. Louis City/County have almost ALL stand-alone parishes.
We know that hundreds, if not thousands sent in their questions to the Archdiocese. No one has gotten answers. This question (#6 on the Top 10 list) is a popular one we hear: “Explain to us in writing, under Archbishop Rozanski’s own signature, why we could not “pilot” any “pastorate” a/k/a merger/closure process envisioned by All Things New, before doing 80-100 parishes all at once. In other words, why can’t we “test pilot” an area now, with far fewer mergers/closures, and see if your “evangelization” plan or strategy works? IF it will work so well, wouldn’t that help us all “see” it working, and help unify Catholics in the Archdiocese of St. Louis to accept All Things New.” Will 90 pastors just go away after May 2023? No, but they will become “associate pastors” or “senior associate pastors”. This takes away many of their canon law rights as priests. Do the priests understand this? There are Order priests and Missionary priests that can help with the supposed lack of priest availability! What are the standards used to decide the winners and losers? What did it take to get a “golden ticket” to stay a stand alone parish?

The following are answers from the FAQ section on allthingsnew.archstl.org, and below those is the Sacred Heart-Troy bulletin excerpt and PDF of the bulletin itself:

Blog posts…

VIDEO: Where is the accompaniment, the dialogue and the synodal process for the laity here in the Archdiocese of St. Louis right now or during the entire All Things New process???

People are seeking the truth. We are built for Truth. We all have an internal radar when there is a lack of honesty. When the Archdiocesan leaders refuse to have a dialogue at all about the closures and changes happening now, then you know they don’t want to be up front and honest about their…

VIDEO: Truth, Transparency and Accountability

Our money is going to anti-Catholic groups through the Archdiocese and its Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD), and many other ways. Send emails to Fr. Chris Martin at chrismartin@archstl.org or Marie Kenyon at mariekenyon@archstl.org and ask them to respond specifically to the decade-long investigation into the CCHD and how they continue to support anti-Catholic…

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