Concerned Guam Catholics Want Transparency, Audit of Church Money

By Jasmine Stole
Marianas Variety
December 9, 2014

http://www.mvariety.com/cnmi/cnmi-news/local/71858-concerned-guam-catholics-want-transparency-audit-of-church-money

The Concerned Catholics of Guam, Inc. yesterday said that a proper audit of the Agana Archdiocese’s finances should be conducted and that it plans to investigate the of the Neocatechumenal Way’s practices on Guam.

Concerned Catholics of Guam, Inc. Vice President, David Sablan, said Archbishop Anthony Apuron has been entrusted with the finances of the Church and, according to Canon Law, the finances of the Church should be disclosed to the public.

“There’s a business part of this organization and questions related to it: ‘What are you doing with the money? Where is it going? What are you doing with the assets?’” Sablan said. “Why do we have two different seminaries? Do we have that many young men wanting to be priests? These are some of the questions that need answering and it all leads back to funding and money and where’s it all going?”

Sablan said the group does not know if the money is going to the Neocatechemunal Way. “I don’t know, is there something going on that we’re not aware of? We’ll find out what the truth is,” he said.

The group expects to pay for a proper audit of the church’s finances, Sablan said, adding that since Concerned Catholics of Guam is a recognized 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, comapanies that wish to donate to the group can deduct the donation from their taxes. “We’re going to be a formidable voice to represent the laity,” he said. “The hierarchy should be leading us correctly, based on precepts handed down by our Lord through the Pope and the Vatican, and not going in a different direction.”

Members of the Concerned Catholics of Guam yesterday spoke at a press conference about a church divided between the traditional Church community, the archbishop and the followers of the Neocatechemunal Way.

Apuron is a known member Neocatechemunal Way, an organization within the Catholic Church formed in 1964 by Kiko Arguello and Carmen Hernandez in Spain.

The Neocatechemunal way follows different practices from the traditional Roman Catholic Church, according to members of the Concerned Catholics of Guam, Inc. One example Sablan spoke of was the Neocatechemunal practice of a closed-door mass.

It’s the NCW’s changes to the traditional customs of the church that is causing such discord among local Catholics, said member Gil Shinohara.

In addition to pursuing an audit of the church’s finances, the Concerned Catholics plan to launch an investigation into the Neocatechemunal Way’s statutes and precepts to determine if they comply with the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church.

Lujan, the organization’s secretary, said there are Catholics on Guam who feel their concerns have fallen on deaf ears and the Concerned Catholics of Guam, Inc. was organized to become a vehicle for those concerns to be heard and brought to the archdiocese.

“I think what a lot of people are expressing is that they have lost respect for and confidence in the existing leadership,” Vangie Lujan said. “I think the problem that we’re all experiencing is that although the large majority of the people of Guam are not within the Neocatechumenal Way, our voices are not heard. Theyseem to fall on deaf ears….More importantly our concerns are not being addressed.”

Lujan said there is no longer a sense of joy among the Catholic community. She said that the archbishop should address parishioners’ concerns. “In the past, traditionally, you would go to your priest or you would go to the archbishop, but over the last few years we have all had experiences where you would like to talk to your priest or your archbishop but you’re not being heard,” she said.

Sablan said he sees the church’s membership is dwindling based on how many people attend mass at his parish and other parishes.

Tommy Tanaka, a parishioner of St. Francis Catholic Church in Yona and another member of the Concerned Catholics of Guam, said the divide among members of the Neocatechemunal Way and nonmembers is wide. Tanaka’s parish drafted a petition against integrating the Neocatechemunal Way’s practices and having a Neocatechemunal Way priest in their parish.

Tanaka said the parish has yet to hear back from the archbishop about the petition.

The group said their main goal is to heal the church of this divide between the two groups and while the did not say one of their objectives is to oust the archbishop, they said there needs to be some rebuilding or reorganization in place.

“Ultimately we want to see the healing of the church more than anything else, so this group got together to achieve that purpose,” Tanaka said.

The group said they are not against the NCW but there must be changes made within the Church and the community needs to be rebuilt.

President Greg Perez said the group will meet occasionally to discuss the issue within the church and find possible solutions for the issues.

Contact: jasmine@mvguam.com