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 For the Catholic Church in Connecticut, Easter came early this year. Our Lenten penances were unexpectedly exacerbated by a serious threat coming from the State Legislature, which attacked one of our most precious treasures, the free exercise of our religion.
Senate Bill 1098, introduced by the co-chairs of the State Judiciary Committee, Senator Andrew McDonald of Stamford and Representative Michael Lawlor of East Haven, sought to change radically the governance structure of all 378 Roman Catholic parishes in the State of Connecticut.
According to the provisions of the bill, our parishes would have been governed by boards of seven to 13 lay parishioners. Pastors would be excluded from the boards, and the Bishop or Archbishop might have a representative on the boards, but no vote. Incredibly, this was a frontal attack on the Apostolic nature of the Catholic Church, because it would have effectively disconnected Bishops and Pastors from their parishes.
The bill was also an outrageous violation of constitutional law. Professors in law schools of major universities have been quoted as saying they would not give the bill to a first-year law class for examination, even as hypothesis. As various attorneys have testified, giving the state the right to impose a governance structure on our parishes clearly violates the federal and state constitutions.The current state statutes, Section 33-279 and 281, are constitutional because they respect the internal governance structures of the churches to which they apply. They respect the teaching, practices, rules, and disciplines of these respective churches.They are enabling statutes. Section 33-281, for example, states that with respect to the Roman Catholic Church, the corporation shall be subject to the general laws and discipline of the Roman Catholic Church. The statutes date back to May 1866, and have withstood various attacks as to their constitutionality over the years. Only minor changes have been made; for example, in 1955, recognition was given to the fact that the Diocese of Hartford had been recently (1953) divided into the Archdiocese of Hartford, the Diocese of Bridgeport, and the Diocese of Norwich.Time and again the statutes have been affirmed as constitutional. They require no revision. They should be left alone.The corporate governance of our parishes is secured in the person of the (Arch)Bishop, Vicar General, Pastor, and two lay members of the parish. They are legally liable for the actions of the parishes. Of course, there are parish councils, finance councils (mandated by Canon 537 in the Code of Canon Law), school boards, committees, etc., which enjoy a consultative vote and have significant impact on parish life. Legal responsibility, however, is held by the five members of the corporation.his corporate structure complies with Church teaching and Church law and is constitutional. It provides, at the same time, stability and security for our parishes, facilitating mortgages, pastoral appointments, 60-year leases, etc.It is important to remember that for almost 100 years, Communist totalitarian governments in various places have established committees of laypeople to govern Catholic parishes as part of a strategy to destroy the Catholic Church. Many of our parishioners here in Connecticut today recall tragic experiences from these developments in their homelands. you know, the Bishops of Connecticut alerted our parishioners to this ominous threat to our Church at the weekend Masses on March 7/8. (Some legislators stated that the first time they heard about Senate Bill 1098 was at the Saturday evening Masses in their parishes.) We asked that you contact the members of the Judiciary Committee and other legislators to register your opposition to the bill. Your response was tremendous! Tens of thousands of e-mails, faxes, phone calls, and letters expressed your outrage. You achieved a resounding and successful effect. The Judiciary Committee hearing on the bill scheduled for March 11 was canceled and the bill was subsequently withdrawn.We did go forward with our rally on the steps of the Capitol, and an Informational Forum in the Legislative Office Building was conducted, both on March 11. Even though the hearing on the bill had been canceled and the weather was wet and raw, by police estimate 4,200 people participated in the rally and 800 people crowded into the Legislative Office Building. Spillover rooms were most helpful. Those who participated in person and those who watched on television were able to appreciate the distinguished roster of speakers who provided profound affirmation for our position.John Garvey, Dean of Boston College Law School and immediate Past President of the Association of American Law Schools, spoke early. He is the author of Religion and the Constitution, the leading textbook on the subject of law and religion, adopted at law schools across the country. His testimony was erudite and eloquent, too long to be reproduced here. He did provide a simple and compelling summary of the issue when he stated: Raised Bill 1098 is unconstitutional, then, because it violates the First Amendment rule that the legislature cannot dictate the structure of church government . . . Rarely have I seen a proposal advanced at this level of government that is so plainly unconstitutional.s I stated in my letter read at all the Masses in our parishes on March 14/15, I am deeply grateful to all who assisted in the work to stop Senate Bill 1098. Your prompt action and your prayers made an enormous difference. We are also appreciative of all those from other religious denominations and faiths who joined in the effort. They understood that while the bill was a particular attack against the Catholic Church, it had dangerous implications for other faith communities as well.It was a substantial victory. In the process, we experienced some important revelations. Many people at the rally reported that they had never participated in a demonstration before. Thousands copied me with letters and e-mails to legislators saying they had never written to legislators before. All around, we saw heightened awareness, elevated energy, encouraging vitality, new life. Easter did come early this year.As we prepare for the transcending Easter, the feast of the Resurrection of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, allow me to wish you all the transforming joy of the Easter Season.
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Archbishops Annual Appeal
As this is written, the total for the 2009 Archbishops Annual Appeal is $4,072,857.55. This is $67,563.72 higher than for the same period for last years Appeal. Your awareness of peoples suffering in these devastating financial times is profoundly edifying. While the challenges are more acute this year, your response is all the more impressive and powerful. Our Easter faith is very much alive, a hopeful illumination in the darkness of economic tragedies.
Be assured of my most grateful prayers and continued Masses for you and for all whom we serve.
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