"To whom shall we go?" is the motto on Archbishop Timothy Dolan's coat of arms, and he periodically posts to his blog, The Gospel in the Digital Age, under this excerpt from scripture.
The most recent of these posts, dated June 23, 2010, addresses the phenomenon of blaming "the archdiocese" for all of the discontents that we experience as Catholics in our parishes and localities. In this post he attempts to lightly dismiss common criticisms as myths and phantoms, providing a few factual cases to make his point. Two interesting quotes that made me scratch my head:AND"That’s because the perception is that the Catholic Church is a “top-down” organization — at least according to most newspapers, magazines, and radio/TV news — where decisions are always secretly made way at the top, and the “little guy” is ignored. That’s not only true of the secular media. In a recent edition of a prominent Catholic journal, published in New York, I counted six blasts at bishops and the Pope in the first six pages!"
"A decision to sell any parish property initially rests with the pastor of the parish, who should act in close concert with his parish and finance councils and must act in close concert with the parish trustees. In the current case, the pastor concluded after prayerful reflection that the sale would not be in the best interests of his parish and recommended its withdrawal."
- Didn't I once hear a representative of the archdiocese say that, because the Roman Catholic Church is hierarchical, Cardinal Egan had absolute power in the Archdiocese of New York and could do as he pleases?
- Who made the decision to close Our Lady of Vilnius and why?
- Why was Our Lady of Vilnius not included in the realignment?
If any member of our friendly and transparent archdiocese (at any level above the laity) would come forth with the true causes and supporting documentation, we would be very happy to collaborate in dispelling the popular myth of the opaque and omnipotent hierarchy that so vexes Archbishop Dolan.