MASSACHUSETTS
Western Massachusetts Catholics
a. What Is The Petition?
b. Why Is This Petition Important?
c. How Can I Help?
a. What Is The Petition?
The owners of the Western Mass Catholics blog (Robert Kelly and Brody Hale) started a petition on Change.Org.
You can sign the petition here.
The petition asks Massachusetts Secretary of State William Francis Galvin to reinstitute a requirement that the Corporation of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield, Massachusetts provide annual financial statements to state officials.
It is critical to understand two things:
1. this petition is NOT directed at religious organizations in general; it is directed at the Corporation of the Springfield Diocese.
2. this corporation is NOT a religious entity.
Corporate sole gives the diocese civil standing. Through corporate sole, diocesan officials buy and sell property, file lawsuits (see links below for five recent lawsuits), lobby the state legislature, and donate to political parties and special interest groups. Deed restrictions on real property are especially important in the Springfield Diocese because they are by far the most restrictive in the state. If the requirement for “annual returns” were reintroduced, citizens would learn about:
– source and list of diocesan money and assets.
– what the money and assets are used for.
– how much money is used for civil suits and political donations.
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