Christ the King, Tyendinaga, ONThis is 13 groups that have closed over the eight-year life of the North American ordinariate. The official total of ordinariate groups listed on the website is currently 40, The ordinariate has previously claimed totals in the mid-40s, so it hasn't been able to make up the overall deficit caused by losing the 13 above -- and more are likely to close in coming months.
Our Lady of Mt Carmel, Savannah/Augusta, GA
St Anselm, Corpus Christi, TX
St Anselm, Greenville, SC
St Augustine, Pinecrest, FL
St Augustine, San Diego [in hiatus]
St Bede, St Louis Park, MN
St Bede, Halifax, NS [still shown on website, but no PA or scheduled services]
St Edmund, Kitchener, ON
St Gilbert, Boerne, TX
St Gregory the Great, Stoneham, MA [still on website; some members worshipping with St Athanasius PP parish, Chestnut Hill, MA]
St Gregory the Great, Mobile, AL [in hiatus]
St Margaret, Katy, TX
My regular correspondent comments on the question I raised yesterdy about whether Houston makes any attempt to provide for the continued pastoral care of these groups in the Church:
In some cases (St Anselm, Greenville; St Augustine, Pinecrest) the decision to fold was made collectively by the congregation and their priest. Both groups wanted more in the way of “parish life” than their communities could provide.After seven years as a Catholic, my view is that I was baptized as a Protestant, but the Catholic Church recognizes my baptism, and overall, I've grown as a Christian throughout my life. Conversion to Catholicism was an important milestone, but it wasn't something black-to-white. Passing from Presbyterianism via Episcopalianism to Catholcism was a gradual transition in which I slowly began to recognize the importance of liturgy and the sacraments.Msgr Steenson was sent as a temporary replacement for Vaughn Treco in St Louis Park, MN and presumably communicated with the St Bede community his recommendation that it be closed. But in the cases where a priest died, retired, or transferred and no replacement was provided there did not seem to be any effort made to assist Ordinariate members with finding a new place of worship.
Small groups which have survived the departure of their priest seem to have relied on a committed layman or, in the case of St Joseph of Arimathea, Indianapolis a supportive diocesan clergyman. Latter is interesting in that it has been gone from the OCSP website since Luke Reese’s flameout, but Fr Jeffrey Moore was appointed to the (nameless) OCSP community this summer Probably more about the situation at OLA, Fr Moore’s previous assignment, than any desire to meet the needs of the community in Indianapolis. A post from happier times.
Anglicanorum coetibus sets up a highly artificial distinction. It seems to suggest that Anglicans are very close to Catholics, but they're so close that they need a special constitution. The informal impression I get from chatting now and then with ELCA pastors is that there are also "high church" Lutherans for whom a transition to Catholicism would not be drastic.
So the other side of the Anglicanorum coetibus coin is the implication that conversion is such a difficult matter for Anglicans that they need something to sweeten the deal. But think about it: people are socially mobile all over North America. Not only do their Protestant pastors retire or their Protestant parishes dissolve, but they move to a different community, and they may find a parish in a different main line denomination closer and easier to attend than the one in their former town. Changing clergy and changing denominations is not a big deal. (The big deal is church on Sunday at all.)
So I'll be interested to hear if members of these closed groups, having become eligible for Catholic sacraments, have had this explained to them and have been brought to see that the Church is what's important, and the Church is what continues to be available to them.
As I said yesterday, I'll be most interested to hear any experiences from members of closed ordinariate groups.
