Bishop mandates Sacred Heart Wilkes-Barre Foundation be represented on Parish Core Team for Called to Holiness study
OFFICE OF THE BISHOP
DIOCESE OF SCRANTON
300 WYOMING AVENUE
PENNSYLVANIA 18503-1279
February 20, 2008
Mrs. Anthony S. Foti
770 Lantern Hill Road
Shavertown, Pennsylvania 18708
Dear Mrs. Foti,
Thank you for your visit with me and other officials of the Diocese on Friday afternoon, February 8, 2008. You and the other Foundation officers were most gracious in accommodating us at such short notice. I hope that you found the meeting as helpful as we did. While I believe we are in basic agreement on a number of fundamental issues, they seem nonetheless worthy of repetition here for the record.
It is important, first of all, to restate my own role in diocesan governance and planning. The law of the Church affirms that the diocesan bishop possesses all the ordinary, proper and immediate power required for the exercise of his pastoral office (can. 381 §1) and calls upon him to foster and coordinate all apostolic activity (can. 394 §1), encouraging the appropriate participation of the faithful in them (394 §2).
Specific to the matter we were discussing, the following norm of can. 515 §2 deserves verbatim citation: "The diocesan bishop alone is competent to erect, suppress or alter parishes; he is not to erect, suppress or notably alter them without hearing the presbyteral council." Please note die term "hearing", which in this context means "counsel" or "advice" which the law distinguishes from "consent" (cf. can. 127). In more general terms, can. 50 provides: "Before issuing an individual decree an authority should seek out the necessary information and proofs, and also hear those whose rights can be injured, insofar as this is possible." The whole program with which the Reid Group is helping us is designed to do just that.
I note further the following prohibition of can. 1265 §1, namely, that "private persons, whether physical or juridic are forbidden to raise funds for any pious or ecclesiastical institution or purpose without the written permission of their own ordinary and that of the local ordinary."
The role of the pastor in representing the parish in juridic and financial affairs is guaranteed by can. 532. The finance council assists him in this task, but its role is only advisory (cf. can. 537).
With respect to the rights and duties of all the faithful, including lay persons, Church law, after affirming that they "are bound by Christian obedience to follow what the sacred pastors, as representatives of Christ, declare as teachers of the faith or determine as leaders of the Church" (can. 212 §1), also acknowledges that the "faithful are
Mrs. Anthony S. Foti February 20, 2008 Page Two
free to make known their needs, especially spiritual ones, and their desires to the pastors of the Church" (can. 212 §2). The Code also guarantees in can. 215 the right of association. This right, of course, is always to be exercised in conformity with other norms of Church law. Your Foundation is such a private association, though not one formally recognized by ecclesiastical authority. I am unable to recognize that it speaks on behalf of anyone but its individual members.
The distinction made above about the relationship between consent and counsel is all the more applicable to situations in which private persons offer the advice. Hearing advice does not oblige the authority to follow it. Nor is the right of private individuals to be heard absolute. The "insofar as this is possible" clause of can. 50 is helpful in this regard. As Bishop of Scranton I am constrained by the limits of time and other duties from personally hearing everyone's opinion in the manner and with the frequency chosen by each. The Called to Holiness and Mission program allows for wide and comprehensive consultation with those whose interests are likely to be affected by pastoral planning decisions.
With those points made by way of summary, I am nonetheless committed to continued conversation between the Diocese and your Foundation. To achieve this objective, I have directed Monsignor Sempa to expand the parish core team by appointing one additional member of his choice from Sacred Heart Parish who also is a member of the Sacred Heart Foundation. In this way all parties will be assured of continued conversation and collaboration. Some of the issues raised last week should be excluded from further discussion. I would identify among them
Thank you again for your participation in Friday's meeting. I hope that future interaction will be characterized by an appropriate understanding of the rights and obligations of all involved and by a desire for authentic reconciliation and cooperation.
With every good wish, I am,
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Most Reverend Joseph F. Martino, D.D., Hist. E.D. Bishop of Scranton
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