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	Reconsider Changes, Catholics Ask Bishop By Kim Mulford Courier-Post April 18, 2008 http://www.courierpostonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080418/NEWS01/804180355/1006/news01 Upset by Bishop Joseph Galante's decision to trim 58 parishes from the Camden Diocese, some local Catholics are joining forces with a national effort to resist a wave of parish closings across the country. Led by parishioners from the archdioceses of Boston, New Orleans and New York, as well as the dioceses of Camden, Buffalo and Toledo, the newly formed Coalition of Parishes intends to share information with Catholics who want to reverse decisions to merge their parishes and close churches. Still in its infancy, the coalition plans to build a Web site as a resource for parishioners, said Peter Borre, spokesman for the coalition and president of the Council of Parishes in Boston. Fifty-nine parishes have closed in the Boston Archdiocese. Nine groups of parishioners there have appeals before the Vatican, Borre said. Five closed churches in the Boston area are occupied by parishioners around the clock; on the weekends at some padlocked churches, parishioners stand outside and pray. "We have learned a lot along the way," Borre said. "We are very familiar with the rights of Catholics when it comes to peaceful civil disobedience." In the Camden Diocese, some parishes have sent letters to Galante, asking him to reconsider his decision. Leah Vassallo, a parishioner at St. Mary in the Malaga section of Franklin, sent a letter to Galante on April 10 asking him to reconsider his decision to close St. Mary as a worship site and merge the parish with three others. The letter was signed by six parishioners and their pastor, Father Jerome Romanowski. Vassallo, a 34-year-old lawyer, is a local representative of the new Coalition of Parishes. She met with Borre and other members in New York last weekend, during a press conference to announce the group's formation. She said parishioners at St. Mary believe the merger is not justified. "We're prepared, if we need to at a later date, to file civil lawsuits and to protest in other ways," Vassallo said. "Basically, we're going to do whatever it takes to keep the parish open." Andrew Walton, spokesman for the Camden Diocese, said he has not seen the letter from St. Mary. En route from assisting at the papal visit in Washington, D.C., Walton said the diocese has received a number of letters and e-mail messages from parishioners about the reconfiguration announced on April 3. He said the diocese intends to respond. "There may be parishioners who are not happy with the announced configuration," Walton said. "They are well within their rights to make clear to the bishop their dissatisfaction and the reasons for that. The bishop will certainly read their letters and e-mails. He will hear their concerns and he's in the process of doing that now." Romanowski, the 73-year-old pastor of St. Mary, said he is praying things work out according to God's will. He said the church has spiritual value and he believes it should remain open. "We are right in a perfect location, where people come from all over the region to visit," said Romanowski, a diocesan priest for 44 years. "It's the perfect setup and we want to keep it that way." In other affected parishes, parishioners are considering their options. Jack Wilson, president of the parish council at St. Vincent Pallotti in Haddon Township, said his parish council sent a letter to the diocese last week, asking Galante to reconsider his decision. "I know a lot of parishes are asking that he reconsider," said Wilson, a 65-year-old Haddon Township resident. Members at St. Catherine of Siena in Clayton were puzzled by the bishop's decision to close their church and merge the parish with Nativity in Franklinville and St. Bridget in Glassboro, said Daniel Charnitsky, 63, of Elk, president of the parish council. Parishioners are waiting for more information from the diocese before deciding how to respond, he said. "It's frustrating," Charnitsky said. "We certainly don't want to go full out and overboard right now until we get some additional information . . . We're trying to be positive and professional about it." Reach Kim Mulford at (856) 251-3342 or kmulford@courierpostonline.com
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