[Magdalen] Need to blow off steam

[Jim Guthrie]

From: ROGER STOKES

>This can be a major problem for some C/E parishes where the priest has to live 
>in the provided parsonage house.  One was let during a vacancy to the local 
> >prison chaplain.  I gather some of the locals were surprised at the language 
>the (female) chaplain used to them from the Vicarage.

Christ Church Bay Ridge has a Rectory next door once upon a time. When a 
long-term Rector retired in 1979,  he demanded that the Rectory be given to him 
as a retirement gift! They refused, and then sold the property before calling a 
new Rector ("He can find his own place and we'll pay the rent").

When they sold it, the Diocese stepped in and required them to put the money 
into an investment fund, which they were not allowed to tap without the 
permission of the diocese. That's because the parish had owned 8 or 11 
properties (not sure which -- told 11 but could only find 8 in the minutes) --  
all but one donated in estates, and all sold by a real estate agent on the 
vestry netting far less than the market price (hence the diocese stepping in) 
and then rather than setting up an endowment, used the cash for operating 
expenses so they "wouldn’t have to talk about money all the time."  Even better, 
they didn’t need any "new members" to crash the party.

The most interesting piece of property, I think -- was the 50 acres in Staten 
Island that was used as a Parish Summer Camp. Part was developed and part became 
part of a greenway after abandonment of expressway plans.

In any case, I learned an awful (emphasize AWFUL) lot about parish finance and 
dysfunctional "mission" while on that vestry and as warden -- long after all 
that happened.

Some of the old-timers (mostly widows of long-dead vestry members, along with a 
few others longed for those halcyon days. That's one of the main reasons I just 
chucked it all and walked away after a few years.

Cheers,
Jim Guthrie