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The general process of pastoral planning has become very personal to parishioners of St. Cecilia's parish in Fonda and Sacred Heart in Tribes Hill.

The situation at the two rural Montgomery County parishes is an example of the kind of planning process that's happening all over the Albany Diocese. Bishop Edward B. Scharfenberger has assured the parishes that, as they meet with diocesan officials to figure out how they'll be staffed in the future, he is still "in listening mode."

Until last fall, both parishes were pastored by Rev. Patrick Gallagher, OFM Conv. He retired at the end of October, but, fortunately, another member of the Conventual Franciscan order was available to fill in: Rev. Mark Steed, OFM Conv., director of the nearby National Shrine of St. Kateri Tekakwitha in Fonda.

But Friar Steed was able to help only because the Kateri shrine closes during the winter. In April, he'll go back to his regular duties there - putting responsibility for the two parishes back on the Diocese, after decades of Franciscan leadership.

Holding meetings
On Valentine's Day weekend, Deacon Frank Berning, director of the diocesan Office of Pastoral Planning; Elizabeth Simcoe, diocesan chancellor for pastoral services; and Rev. David Berberian, the Diocese's vicar for clergy, held meetings after Masses at each parish to discuss staffing ideas.

Both parishes, the officials noted, are operating in the black, have stable numbers of parishioners and have "a reasonable amount of sacraments being celebrated," including liturgies, baptisms, weddings, funerals and the like.

Only a few miles apart from each other and from towns like Amsterdam and Johnstown, they nevertheless cover a large geographic area: Deacon Berning noted that "rural miles" are very different from "city miles" when it comes to traveling for Mass or other parish functions, particularly for elderly parishioners.

Sacred Heart and St. Cecilia's are "both rural parishes that have been there a number of years; they're kind of the heart of the community," Deacon Berning added. Though the two are separate parishes with separate finances, they share a faith formation program and coordinated Mass schedules, fundraisers and other activities: "They just work really well together."

In addition, he said, in rural communities, Sunday tends to still be considered very much a holy day; nearly the entire community attends Mass.

"I'm incredibly sensitive to that," the deacon said. "There's the emotional element of church and community being one."

Priest availability
But at the Fonda and Tribes Hill meetings, Father Berberian presented parishioners with some stark projections about priesthood in the Diocese:

•  There are currently 126 parishes in the Diocese's 14 counties, encompassing 10,000 square miles.

•  Of those parishes, 81 are served by a priest-pastor; 23, by a parish life director or parish life coordinator. Adding up those numbers points to the fact that many parish leaders are already serving more than one parish.

•  There are currently 95 active diocesan priests. Their average age is about 60. There are another 46 retired priests who are classified as "active retired," still able to provide some Mass coverage at parishes. (Another 46 retired priests are not active.)

•  The Diocese has a dozen seminarians studying for the priesthood and five "aspirants" who are discerning whether they have a vocation. Deacon Berning added that one new priest is scheduled to be ordained this year, two next year and three the following year.

•  By the year 2020 -- just five years from now -- the Diocese is projected to have only 57 active priests available for service.

Finding clergy
"We are significantly challenged because of this shortage," Deacon Berning stated.

"We're not the only ones having these issues," Father Berberian told The Evangelist. Religious orders of men are struggling with decreasing numbers, as well, including the Conventual Franciscans who are pulling out of St. Cecilia's and Sacred Heart: "They don't have people to go around, either."

The vicar for clergy did note that some "international priests" have expressed an interest in coming to the Diocese from places like India, Africa and Poland, but immigration rules make this a lengthy process. Priests from other countries also need to develop fluency in English, overcome any cultural differences that would make parish ministry difficult, and adhere to the U.S. bishops' Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People.

The Diocese is doing a good job of getting more men interested in discerning a priestly vocation, Father Berberian believes, but it will take at least several years to, hopefully, "turn a corner."

In the meantime
Parishioners in Tribes Hill and Fonda broke into small groups at the meetings to generate ideas for their parishes. "Nothing has been decided except that, most likely after Easter, the Bishop will appoint an interim parish leader," Deacon Berning said.

Ann Mahon is president of the pastoral council at St. Cecilia's. While she was happy to hear that an interim administrator would be appointed, she's worried about the short time frame for making a more permanent decision.

"We still don't know what the future holds," she told The Evangelist. "[We want to] make sure we have a place where our children can be educated in the faith. We're rural people and our parish has its own character that we'd like to maintain. We'd like a priest to be pastor," although parishioners understand the Diocese's situation.

Greg Rajkowski heads the pastoral council at Sacred Heart. Pastoral planning hits close to home for him: A retired state worker who was tasked with consolidating state agencies' data centers to save money during Gov. George Pataki's administration, he remembers dealing with upset people who didn't see why the changes were necessary.

With "all the statistics that are out there," Mr. Rajkowski said, "I just don't see how the Albany Diocese is going to be able to bring a priest in for this area when there are no priests."

Mr. Rajkowski worries specifically about his own church, which is younger than St. Cecilia's. "The people here poured their sweat into getting the parish built," he said, citing his family's contributions toward the church. "They really want the church to stay open - but they, too, understand."

List of ideas
At the meetings, parishioners from both churches brought up the possibilities of:

•  merging into one parish;

•  working more closely with the Fonda shrine and with the Shrine of Our Lady of Martyrs in Auriesville to get priests to help out;

•  finding a priest from another country to serve the parishes; or

•  having a parish life director and a sacramental minister.

From Deacon Berning's perspective, parishioners were telling the diocesan officials, "'We are self-sufficient; we meet our obligations; we need your help.'

"We were disappointed because we heard questions and not solutions," he said.

Varied views
From Mr. Rajkowski's perspective, parishioners wished they had gotten definitive answers from the officials about their parishes' future. "It's easier to swallow if you say, 'This is what we're going to do,' rather than prolong it," he said.

Mrs. Mahon is concerned that the whole process has taken solong. Sacred Heart and St. Cecilia's knew in September that their pastor would be leaving, she said, but still have "no specifics about how the transitions will take place.

"Everybody's parish is important to them," she added. "We have people who have joined our parish because their parish closed. We see what happens. It's a hard time - and we understand. The Diocese doesn't have enough priests. My daughter is a parishioner [at St. Francis of Assisi parish] in Northville, and they have a similar situation."

After the meetings, Deacon Berning and Mrs. Simcoe wrote a report that was given to Bishop Scharfenberger. The deacon said the Bishop and Rev. Donald Czelusniak, dean of the Fulton and Montgomery County deaneries, along with parishioners, "will be involved in the process" of decision-making "about how to best strengthen and grow the Catholic community in the Fonda and Tribes Hill area."

Bishop Scharfenberger told The Evangelist he's grateful for all the input and collaboration, and said that everyone has a common goal: "to ensure the viability and vibrancy of each of our parish communities and to support the generous sharing of our spiritual, material and historical resources -- a work in progress."[[In-content Ad]]

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