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	Angry Parishioners Withhold Donations By Chase Davis Boston Globe [Newton MA] October 23, 2005 Still angry that their much-loved pastor was forced to resign, parishioners at Our Lady Help of Christians Catholic church in Newton say they plan to establish an escrow account to accept donations from those who refuse to donate at Mass because they feel betrayed by the Archdiocese of Boston. Since the Rev. Walter H. Cuenin resigned last month following archdiocesan allegations that he accepted a leased car and a monthly stipend in violation of church policies, parish leaders said weekly donations at Our Lady have fallen more than 30 percent. Mass attendance, too, has dwindled, said Maritzie Rudden, a member of the church's pastoral council. "The people in the pews feel they do not have any tools with which to express their displeasure," Rudden said. Withholding donations "is one of the few outlets they have." A parishioner group, Our Lady's Friends, is working to create an escrow account by the end of next week for parishioners unhappy that Cuenin was replaced by the Rev. Christopher J. Coyne, a former archdiocesan spokesman, parishioners said. Margaret Roylance, a member of the organization's steering committee, said the account will be used to independently fund parish projects. None of the money will be routed through the archdiocese, she said. "There are a number of people who said they cannot and will not in good conscience give to the collection basket," Roylance said. Terrence C. Donilon, spokesman for Archbishop Sean P. O'Malley, said the archdiocese does not approve of the fund and he doubted the parish's ability to stay solvent if it relied too heavily on it. "People have to understand that Father Cuenin is not coming back. It's not going to happen," he said. "We're just asking that people give Father Coyne a chance." In the month since Cuenin resigned, Our Lady's Friends has filed papers to be incorporated as a nonprofit organization and has worked with lawyers to create the escrow account, Roylance said. The group has also launched protests and petition drives to get Cuenin reinstated. The audit completed in August led the archdiocese to conclude that Cuenin had violated policy by accepting use of a leased Honda Accord and a $500 monthly stipend, expenditures that had been approved by lay parish leaders. Archdiocesan officials said priests are allowed to receive only a $5 stipend per Mass. Cuenin has agreed to pay between $75,000 and $80,000 back to the archdiocese. But many parishioners say they believe Cuenin was ousted over his controversial embrace of divorced Catholics and gays and lesbians, as well as his vocal criticism of Cardinal Bernard Law and the church's sex abuse scandal -- charges the archdiocese has repeatedly denied.
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