The ACA -- Who's Affected? -- II

Two things pop out when you start to look more closely at the ACA. One is how few parishes are in anything like metropolitan areas -- even in the densely populated Northeast, the largest parishes seem to be in also-ran cities like Portland, ME or Concord, NH, and these are by any normal standards very small. The Rector of St Paul's Anglican Portland noted in a recent newsletter,

Oh, did I mention that last Sunday, the 13th of February, we had 17 at the 8 o’clock Mass and 38 at the 10 o’clock Mass? It’s probably a record for any Sunday other than Easter-day. And in February, in the midst of all the cold and snow!

So a total Sunday attendance of 55 at one of the largest parishes in the Diocese of the Northeast is exceptional! (And that includes choir and altar party at the 10:00, which means the nave must have been pretty forlorn. Reminds me of a former Episcopal parish, where we had to lean across two rows of pews to exchange the peace.) The news item in the Concord, NH Monitor that discussed "Christian" Tutor's ordination said that parish had a membership of 45 and worshiped Sunday afternoons in a Lutheran church, itself a rather sad-looking A-Frame.

Very little in the Tri-State area around New York City -- the parish in Elizabeth, NJ comes up on Google Street View as a parking lot; maybe someone can clarify this. St Joseph's Brooklyn is the only substantial building, but not large, while the Queens parish appears to be in a storefront. So much for the biggest urban area in the US.

Pretty much every other parish in the Diocese of the Northeast is in exurban or downright rural areas. A puzzle is St Elizabeth's Chapel Tuxedo Park, which began as a family chapel of the J.P.Morgan banking family. The history here must be intriguing, since J.P.Morgan himself was an enthusiastic Episcopalian, and the chapel must have been a TEC institution until fairly recently. I also assume it has an endowment, which must be among the few actual sources of income for the ACA.

Pretty much the same goes for the Diocese of the Eastern US -- what of Atlanta, Philadelphia, Wilmington, Washington, Richmond, Pittsburgh, etc etc etc? Again, a scattering of little storefronts and prefabs in rural areas, the parish in Allentown, PA about the only exception.

Same for the Diocese of the Missouri Valley, roughly a dozen little prefabs or storefronts with just a few substantial buildings anywhere. And the Diocese of the West is simply moribund, a few converted residences, a couple of rentals in funeral parlors and whatnot, and two real buildings where they can't seem to hold onto supply priests.

In 2012, I estimated an average size of 60 for ACA parishes in good standing. Thirty is probably generous. To be nice, I estimated 19 as an average mission size. Ten may be closer to the truth.

Where is the membership? And following on that, where are the pledges? Where are the diocesan tithes? Where is the money? How would even seizing St Mary of the Angels, obtaining title outright, and selling the place, do anything at all for this sorry little denomination? What do Marsh and his cronies really have in mind?