{"id":100056,"date":"2019-08-27T16:29:24","date_gmt":"2019-08-27T23:29:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/?p=100056"},"modified":"2020-10-15T16:08:07","modified_gmt":"2020-10-15T23:08:07","slug":"close-and-raze","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/close-and-raze\/","title":{"rendered":"“Close and Raze”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

T<\/span>his past weekend, our parish received a letter<\/a> from the Archbishop of Seattle, His Excellency J. Peter Sartain. In it, he informed us that it was his decision to issue a decree<\/a> to “close and raze” our parish church of Holy Rosary<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Church, Tacoma<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

This is a terrible decision for a host of reasons. Indeed, the reasons given in the letter all involve the finances of restoration. And the number repeatedly quoted was the largest one, $18 million. This, we are told, is what it would take to fix the church. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Except that this does not match what the Chancery, the architects, and the restorers told us back in May. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were told that it would take $2.249 million to conduct repairs and erect scaffolding necessary to reoccupy the church. An additional $6.691 million would be required to make needed structural and roof repairs, which could be done over the course of several years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The $17.6 million figure includes earthquake retrofitting and a complete replacement of all electrical and plumbing systems<\/a>, to restore the church to essentially “as new” condition. None of which are pressing concerns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This letter was clearly written by beancounters and bureaucrats for the Archbishop’s signature, for it contains nearly nothing of the solicitude of a spiritual father. In fact, the choice of words seems in many cases to be calculated to inflict cruelty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Close and raze.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When the letter was read to the people gathered for the Vigil Mass, the Archdiocese sent a media relations person to speak with the press gathered here for the announcement. It was all about the beancounters and bureaucrats defending themselves, and not at all about the sadness and shock of a grieving people. And indeed, the spokesperson inflated the dollar amounts, making it seem like an inevitable decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What they did not send, however, was a bishop to speak to the parish community. What they did not do was to provide pastoral care for the emotionally shattered people of God. In fact, while the parish itself was not suppressed, a parish requires a church. And the subsequently published FAQ<\/a> speaks of replacing the church with low income housing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No church, no parish. Close and raze.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, Tacoma clearly needs more low income housing. And it was repeatedly pointed out that our parish is poor. But as a friend said on Twitter<\/a>, “we understand the need for housing but evicting Our Lord from our community is not the answer”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And this is the thing: Holy Rosary Church is not just a church. Holy Rosary is an icon of the Lord in Tacoma, evangelizing through beauty. It is a symphony of architecture, statuary, and stained glass. And surely the poor deserve beauty as much as the wealthy? My friend Toni Vercillo has written a lovely reflection on this, prompted by a man she met on campus yesterday, which I encourage you to read: “Costs Not Included: the Spiritual Dimension of Saving Our Lady of the Ho<\/a>l<\/a>y Rosary Catholic Church<\/a>“.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI hope they don\u2019t do it; I hope they don\u2019t bring in the wrecking ball and knock her down\u201d<\/em>, he said. …

This is his neighborhood. He had lived here, off and on, his whole life. During his \u2018bad years\u2019 he would look out his bedroom window and see the steeple with its cross on top and it made him feel \u2018warm\u2019. He said it had a way of \u2018talking\u2019 to him; of calming him down; of making him want to try again. I assured him that I did not think that that was weird at all when he expressed concern that I would. I told him I knew exactly what he was talking about because I experience such moments too.

\u201cDo me a favor\u201d<\/em>, I said, \u201cand promise me that when this fence is taken down and the Church is open again that you will come inside her.\u201d<\/em>

\u201cWhat? Really? Me?\u201d<\/em> he appeared incredulous that I would ask him such a thing and added, \u201cI don\u2019t belong in no Church.\u201d<\/em>

I reminded him that he had expressed the desire that the Church not be destroyed and asked him again that if his wish came true that he would come inside.

\u201cI will\u201d,<\/em> he said, \u201cI promise I will.<\/em>\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Holy Rosary is a catechism to the glory of God, towering over downtown Tacoma and I-5. But instead of looking at the transcendentals, instead of looking at the beauty and goodness and truth, the beancounters and bureaucrats looked at cold hard cash. They figured nobody would want to pony up the money to restore this glorious gem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Holy Rosary interior, 2018<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

And just in case somebody might think about trying, they exaggerated the cost in dollars and heaped contempt upon those who might wish to save it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, the parish was specifically and explicitly told months ago to make no effort <\/a>at fund raising or appealing for volunteers. Essentially, we were told not to try.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Close and raze.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The beancounters and bureaucrats have miscalculated. They thought nobody would care about this old church, or about its poor parishioners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As I write this, an independent organization is raising money for the restoration of Holy Rosary church and preparing the canonical appeal to the decree. This organization is called Save Tacoma’s Landmark Church<\/a> (STLC), and it’s a registered charity. They have retained the services of a Canon lawyer, as well as a raft of professionals as volunteers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yesterday, parish families began praying daily the Rosary in front of the closed church at noon and again at 7pm. These will continue throughout the appeal period. Please join us, or if you can’t, please pray the Rosary at home for the restoration of our church and our parish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the first of those Rosaries yesterday, STLC received $175,000 worth of pledges. This, in one day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The beancounters and bureaucrats have miscalculated. They thought cruelty and mockery would dishearten us, would break us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Marian Altar, Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Church, Tacoma; Solemnity of the Assumption 2015<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

“Close and raze” they said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I say, this is Our Lady’s Church, erected in her honour and to the everlasting glory of her Son. If Our Lady of the Holy Rosary wishes her parish to continue, she will find a way. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So let us, in the words of Saint Augustine, “pray as though everything depended on God, and work as though everything depended on you”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pray that this iconic church will be restored, so that the parish can continue and succeed in its mission to evangelize through beauty and truth and goodness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And work for that restoration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because at the end of the day, the decision is in the hands of the Lord, in which we place our hope and our trust, and not in the hands of the beancounters and bureaucrats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

How to help: Save Tacoma’s Landmark Church<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Edited to correct description of what $18 million buys.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This past weekend, our parish received a letter from the Archbishop of Seattle, His Excellency J. Peter Sartain. In it, he informed us that it was his decision to issue a decree to “close and raze” our parish church of Holy Rosary. Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Church, Tacoma This is a terrible decision for a host of reasons. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":91006,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"\"Close and Raze\" - a reflection on the immediate future of Holy Rosary church","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[92,27,24,90,3,19,17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-100056","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2019-transitions-in-tacoma","category-archbishop-sartain","category-community","category-holy-rosary-parish-tacoma","category-moments-in-time","category-pray","category-rant"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Holy-Rosary.jpg?fit=3600%2C2400&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1aGBK-q1O","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":100510,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/the-10-most-popular-posts-of-2019\/","url_meta":{"origin":100056,"position":0},"title":"The 10 Most Popular Posts of 2019","author":"Thom","date":"30 December 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"These are the top ten post hits on the blog for this past year. Not all of the posts receiving the hits were necessarily written this year. Apparently, their appeal is enduring. In addition, for posts that are part of a numbered series (Novena to the Holy Deacons, I'm looking\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2018 transitions in Tacoma"","block_context":{"text":"2018 transitions in Tacoma","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/2018-transitions-tacoma\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Holy-Rosary.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Holy-Rosary.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Holy-Rosary.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Holy-Rosary.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Holy-Rosary.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":86235,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/open-wide-the-holy-doors-and-announce-the-jubilee\/","url_meta":{"origin":100056,"position":1},"title":"Open Wide the Holy Doors and Announce the Jubilee!","author":"Thom","date":"08 December 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Today, on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of Our Lady, Pope Francis unsealed the Holy Doors at Saint Peter\u2019s Basilica, officially beginning the Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy. On this coming Third Sunday of Advent, all across the world, cathedrals, basilicas, and shrines in every diocese will bless and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Archbishop J. Peter Sartain"","block_context":{"text":"Archbishop J. Peter Sartain","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/archbishop-sartain\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/seal.jpg?fit=791%2C1020&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/seal.jpg?fit=791%2C1020&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/seal.jpg?fit=791%2C1020&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/seal.jpg?fit=791%2C1020&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":100104,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/today-im-just-here-to-pray-with-you\/","url_meta":{"origin":100056,"position":2},"title":"Today I’m Just Here to Pray with You","author":"Thom","date":"08 September 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"was out of town this weekend, so of course I missed Archbishop Etienne's first Sunday Mass as Archbishop of Seattle. It was celebrated, rather improbably and unexpectedly, at our parish of Holy Rosary. He reportedly began by saying, \"today I'm just here to pray with you.\" How I wish I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2019 Transitions in Tacoma"","block_context":{"text":"2019 Transitions in Tacoma","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/2019-transitions-in-tacoma\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/69889258_10156729006963262_5850791221559033856_o.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/69889258_10156729006963262_5850791221559033856_o.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/69889258_10156729006963262_5850791221559033856_o.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/69889258_10156729006963262_5850791221559033856_o.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/69889258_10156729006963262_5850791221559033856_o.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":69497,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/corpus-christi-procession\/","url_meta":{"origin":100056,"position":3},"title":"Corpus Christi Procession","author":"Thom","date":"29 May 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"This Sunday my parish will participate in an outdoor Procession of the Blessed Sacrament. If you are anywhere in the area, I hope you will consider joining us. Here is the press release as it went out: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: \u00a0 Archbishop of Seattle to Lead Corpus Christi Procession in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Archbishop J. Peter Sartain"","block_context":{"text":"Archbishop J. Peter Sartain","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/archbishop-sartain\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Rev Jacob Maurer with the Blessed Sacrament","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/eucharist-240x344.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":89629,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/funeral-mass\/","url_meta":{"origin":100056,"position":4},"title":"Funeral Mass","author":"Thom","date":"10 May 2018","format":"video","excerpt":"","rel":"","context":"In "2018 transitions in Tacoma"","block_context":{"text":"2018 transitions in Tacoma","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/2018-transitions-tacoma\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":107003,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/eucharistic-revival\/","url_meta":{"origin":100056,"position":5},"title":"Eucharistic Revival","author":"Thom","date":"18 June 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Jesus who was incarnated in Nazareth and born in Bethlehem is incarnated on every altar in the world in the Eucharist. The same sacrifice of the Cross that occurred two millennia ago in Jerusalem may likewise be seen on every altar in the world in the holy sacrifice of the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Archbishop J. Peter Sartain"","block_context":{"text":"Archbishop J. Peter Sartain","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/archbishop-sartain\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/cc01-by-Emily-Gossard.png?fit=825%2C551&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/cc01-by-Emily-Gossard.png?fit=825%2C551&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/cc01-by-Emily-Gossard.png?fit=825%2C551&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/cc01-by-Emily-Gossard.png?fit=825%2C551&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100056","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=100056"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100056\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":105906,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100056\/revisions\/105906"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/91006"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=100056"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=100056"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=100056"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}