Frustrated With Bishop

[VoTeckam]

I've removed my home town from my "location" in my profile as to not point fingers at my Bishop. He is a man that has my respect and loyalty for his faithfullness and service as he has made extraordinary steps to restore the diocese back to orthodoxy.

I received the annual Bishop's appeal in the mail a few days ago asking that we consider giving more this year to his appeal than we did last year. I obliged this request. The part of the letter that made the blood pressure begin to rise was a request that we find a way to be "increasingly generous even in this time of economic downturn by examining our lives and striving to live more simply." I wouldn't disagree with any of that. We should all be fighting materialism and wastefulness on the front lines. What I can not understand is how such a faithful man fails to see the hypocrisy in such a statement. Why does one man need to live in a 5 bedroom house in a rich neighborhood that is 20 minutes from the urban blight that surrounds our cathedral? Does his luxury sedan make this long commute more bearable? I can not imagine what a message the lifestyles of some of our Church leaders must send to the poor masses of our Holy Mother Church.

I understand the beautiful Cathedrals as they give honor to our Heavenly Father. But how does building a new house miles from the Diocesan seat glorify God or further the Kingdom when a perfectly suitable home sits steps away from the cathedral?

Does anyone feel this is worth discussing? Am I making too much of this?

[CatherineM]

The archbishop I worked for in OKC was a very good man. The first thing he did when he became archbishop was to sell the bishop's mansion downtown, and to build a modest ranch style house on the grounds of the pastoral center. I think that told us a lot about the man.

Our seminary/theological college is moving here. They are building a highway right through the chapel so, we kind of had to move. The province gave a bunch of money for the property, and the seminary and college are moving to the pastoral center grounds. Great idea. The old building are simple brick, with the seminary on one side, then the chapel, then the college, and the library on the other end. You can walk from one end to the other inside. I've had seminarians show up to class in their house slippers.

The new buildings will all be separate. They will build a separate seminary residence apart from the college. They aren't quite finished with the residence yet, and they have blown through every dime they got for the old property. The new buildings are glass marvels with lots of fancy architecture. I wouldn't have built it that way, but no one asked my opinion. We are moving the college into a former community college that just closed on the other side of town. They are going to rent it for a few years until they can raise the money to finish building the new college. I just don't understand these kinds of decisions. I know the Archbishop wants to make the new facility beautiful, but I always think the real beauty of a building comes from the people who inhabit them.

When I feel this way, I never publicly voice displeasure with the bishop's decisions. I have to trust that the Holy Spirit is guiding his actions, and that he is making the best decisions he can for all of us.

[dominicansoul]

i too believe bishops should live simpler. not only in the houses they live, and the cars they drive, but also when they are giving conferences...why must they stay in 4 star hotels and eat the finest foods?

i'm not bashing our bishops, i'm just agreeing with the OP, that maybe it would be something for them to consider as a symbol of simplicity and unworldliness....

back when the albigensians were having their way with the Church, St. Dominic took note of this same exact thing...the albigensians expressed poverty in radical ways, and compared to the Catholic Bishops, they came out looking more and more as true examples of Christ-like poverty...St. Dominic implored Bishops to take note and get rid of all their excess wealth...

[Lil Red]

[quote name='dominicansoul' post='1731426' date='Dec 18 2008, 02:21 PM']back when the albigensians were having their way with the Church, St. Dominic took note of this same exact thing...the albigensians expressed poverty in radical ways, and compared to the Catholic Bishops, they came out looking more and more as true examples of Christ-like poverty...St. Dominic implored Bishops to take note and get rid of all their excess wealth...[/quote]
+J.M.J.+
the difference being that the abligensians were heretics and the Bishops were shepherds and leaders of the Church.

[stlmom]

I'm with you on this; I wish more clergy would lead by example. I think Jesus called out the clergy of His day quite sharply when they said one thing and did another. I am very careful about where I donate within my diocese for this reason.

[dominicansoul]

[quote name='Lil Red' post='1731435' date='Dec 18 2008, 04:35 PM']+J.M.J.+
the difference being that the abligensians were heretics and the Bishops were shepherds and leaders of the Church.[/quote]
yes, that is completely true, but the albigensians were able to bring hundreds of souls to their side because their example appealed to many confused souls, and they seemed more Christ-like than the Catholic Bishops....

[StColette]

Not that I agree with extravagant lifestyles, but do you know all the reasons why they might be building a new house for the Bishop? I mean, has it been made public why they are building a new house? I wouldn't jump to conclusions about him until you are privy to all the facts. Our Bishops lives by himself in what I believe is a 6 or 7 bedroom home in a very nice victorian neighborhood. The extra rooms are used when there are visiting priests or when the seminarians come home during the Summer to work at the different parishes, so I see the need for more than 1 bedroom for a Bishop. So again I disagree that 5 bedrooms for one Bishop is a bad thing given the fact that they could be meant to be used by visiting priests or seminarians instead of having to have them stay at a hotel or something. As for the car, you would be surprised what priests get as gifts. A few priests I know have been given very very nice cars from parishioners who own car businesses. So I don't think it's that big of a deal.

[Lil Red]

[quote name='dominicansoul' post='1731440' date='Dec 18 2008, 02:39 PM']yes, that is completely true, but the albigensians were able to bring hundreds of souls to their side because their example appealed to many confused souls, and they [color="#FF0000"]seemed[/color] more Christ-like than the Catholic Bishops....[/quote]
+J.M.J.+
i'm not nitpicking on you on purpose i swear...

but 'seemed' is the key word here. we should be careful of who 'seems' more Christ-like than those who have been appointed the shepherds of our souls. (i'm not trying to absolve bishops who have led people astray )

[Lil Red]

[quote name='StColette' post='1731446' date='Dec 18 2008, 02:48 PM']Not that I agree with extravagant lifestyles, but do you know all the reasons why they might be building a new house for the Bishop? I mean, has it been made public why they are building a new house? I wouldn't jump to conclusions about him until you are privy to all the facts. Our Bishops lives by himself in what I believe is a 6 or 7 bedroom home in a very nice victorian neighborhood. The extra rooms are used when there are visiting priests or when the seminarians come home during the Summer to work at the different parishes, so I see the need for more than 1 bedroom for a Bishop. So again I disagree that 5 bedrooms for one Bishop is a bad thing given the fact that they could be meant to be used by visiting priests or seminarians instead of having to have them stay at a hotel or something. As for the car, you would be surprised what priests get as gifts. A few priests I know have been given very very nice cars from parishioners who own car businesses. So I don't think it's that big of a deal.[/quote]
+J.M.J.+
on the cars thing - i know some priests who drive (quite honestly) very nice cars. but they are cars that stand up to the abuse that is given them. i live in a diocese where many priests have at least one parish and 4-5 mission churches. meaning they drive many, many miles in just a week.

[StColette]

[quote name='Lil Red' post='1731450' date='Dec 18 2008, 04:53 PM']+J.M.J.+
on the cars thing - i know some priests who drive (quite honestly) very nice cars. but they are cars that stand up to the abuse that is given them. i live in a diocese where many priests have at least one parish and 4-5 mission churches. meaning they drive many, many miles in just a week. [/quote]


Exactly! We are a mission diocese so our priests are stretched very thin and they are constantly on the go. I wouldn't give them a clunker of a car and expect it to last very long.

[VoTeckam]

[quote name='StColette' post='1731446' date='Dec 18 2008, 05:48 PM']Not that I agree with extravagant lifestyles, but do you know all the reasons why they might be building a new house for the Bishop? I mean, has it been made public why they are building a new house? I wouldn't jump to conclusions about him until you are privy to all the facts. Our Bishops lives by himself in what I believe is a 6 or 7 bedroom home in a very nice victorian neighborhood. The extra rooms are used when there are visiting priests or when the seminarians come home during the Summer to work at the different parishes, so I see the need for more than 1 bedroom for a Bishop. So again I disagree that 5 bedrooms for one Bishop is a bad thing given the fact that they could be meant to be used by visiting priests or seminarians instead of having to have them stay at a hotel or something. As for the car, you would be surprised what priests get as gifts. A few priests I know have been given very very nice cars from parishioners who own car businesses. So I don't think it's that big of a deal.[/quote]

Thanks for the response. Yes, visiting priests stay with the Bishop (not seminarians however). But the house next to the cathedral also has extra bedrooms. I also had not considered that he was given the car as a gift. Now I can pray for the person who decided that was the best use of their money.

I kid. haha

[VoTeckam]

[quote name='Lil Red' post='1731450' date='Dec 18 2008, 05:53 PM']+J.M.J.+
on the cars thing - i know some priests who drive (quite honestly) very nice cars. but they are cars that stand up to the abuse that is given them. i live in a diocese where many priests have at least one parish and 4-5 mission churches. meaning they drive many, many miles in just a week. [/quote]


As someone who drives a Honda with over 200,000 mi I can assure you that there are more reasonable options than a luxury car if reliability is the issue.

[StColette]

[quote name='VoTeckam' post='1731453' date='Dec 18 2008, 04:55 PM']Thanks for the response. Yes, visiting priests stay with the Bishop (not seminarians however). But the house next to the cathedral also has extra bedrooms.[/quote]

Again are you privy to why a new house is being built? I mean if the current home is an older one, which most likely it is, there could be structural problems, etc. or utility efficiency problem which could be more cost effective to not repair. My aunt remodeled a Victorian home that was more than 100 yrs old, nice 3 story home, it costs her more to remodel that thing than it would have cost her to build a house.

btw what do you consider a luxury car?

[CatherineM]

Up here, I wouldn't be surprised if the bishop needed a humvee. When I moved to Canada, I expected everyone to be driving jeeps. Instead they all drive little toyotas or mini-vans or old pickup trucks.

[VoTeckam]

[quote name='StColette' post='1731456' date='Dec 18 2008, 06:00 PM']Again are you privy to why a new house is being built? I mean if the current home is an older one, which most likely it is, there could be structural problems, etc. or utility efficiency problem which could be more cost effective to not repair. My aunt remodeled a Victorian home that was more than 100 yrs old, nice 3 story home, it costs her more to remodel that thing than it would have cost her to build a house.

btw what do you consider a luxury car?[/quote]

The house is now being used for another priest who serves the Cathedral (the second rectory for the cathedral). Even if structural issues were the cause for the move (they are not) there are much more affordable housing options even closer tot he cathedral. I think it would be an appropriate and beautiful act of solidarity with the poor of our dicoese and the larger Church if all of us would live modestly and simply. As a Bishop who has lead by example in the most ways, I wish he would do the same in the aspect.

Edited December 18, 2008 by VoTeckam