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

[Jon Egger]

My favorite bishop (he ordained me) was firm in his conviction that no
church would close during his episcopate.  Our new bishop (who I also like)
is far less generous in his feelings regarding the same.  I agree with him,
having served on one such parish myself.  It is highly dysfunctional.

Grace and peace,
brud

On Sun, Nov 22, 2015 at 2:30 PM, Marion Thompson <marionwhitevale at gmail.com>
wrote:

> I can't speak for Alberta, but combining and closing seems to be flavour
> of the month around here as we all stagger along with dwindling numbers and
> revenue and too many churches in the wrong places.  Happy in our
> classification of 'strategic' rather than 'unsustainable' because of the
> food bank and our location in the poor part of town away from the cluster
> of four others uptown, we may yet survive.  But I wonder why in heaven's
> name we were issued with a Protestant priest rather than someone more
> aligned with our A-C tradition.  That sure isn't helping us grow!  We have
> yet to hear what has come of our approach to the only possible uptown
> church whose priest unfortunately retires in January and may, therefore, be
> reluctant to make a deal on the way out.
>
> I dunno.  Maybe my blowing a gasket the other week has had an effect -- he
> left the prayers alone this week, including the BVM.  Or maybe, who knows,
> he did speak to the bishop and she backed me up, even a little, as the
> licenced lay reader.
>
> The ways of Mother Church are passing strange.
>
> Marion, a pilgrim
>
>
> On 11/22/2015 9:37 AM, Jay Weigel wrote:
>
>> Clarissa's prayer request led me to wonder about the varying position of
>> TEC vs. the Anglican Church in Canada regarding what are considered
>> "failing" parishes. Marion's recent experience, too, has made me wonder. I
>> realize it varies from diocese to diocese, but ISTM that the Canadian
>> church, at least in these instances, is behaving far more like the RCC in
>> abruptly closing these churches or pretty much setting them up to fail (in
>> the case of Marion's) rather than encouraging them along or "yoking" them.
>>
>> Am I seeing things correctly, or is this a misperception?
>>
>>
>