[Magdalen] "Failing" parishes--Canada vs. USA

[Jim Guthrie]

From: Jay Weigel

>Am I seeing things correctly, or is this a misperception?

How many TEC parishes does TEC -- or even the dioceses order closed?  I don’t 
recall anything in the Canons on the subject, but I could be wrong. But in 
general,our polity is far different from our RC friends, and may be quite 
different than Canada.

Most parish closings I've seen seem to happen when they reach a point where they 
can’t afford a supply priest or the insurance or light bill and send the keys to 
the Bishop. Some try to put the arm on the diocese for money to keep going, of 
course, and some dioceses come through in special circumstances But most 
dioceses don’t have the money to do that anyway.

Some closed parishes leave their bishop/chancellor/diocese with a mess, 
including many unpaid bills.We saw that on Long Island in at least one case.

Cheers,
Jim.