Once a year, the Diocese of Gaylord runs a Catholic Services Appeal that allegedly funds the activities of the Diocese. It has come under significant scrutiny due to its well documented funding of organizations that are anti-Catholic.
It was recently announced in a parish that the Catholic Services Appeal has changed the structure for charging parishes. In the past, the Diocese would allot a certain amount of money each parish must give to the Diocesan coffers. This amount of money was based on the number of parishioners. Now, the formula will be based on the annual income of the parish. Therefore, solid growth parishes with generous donations will be taxed higher than a parish that is not well funded.
Although it can be argued that no formula is “fair” when it comes to taxing parishes, is this new formula reasonable? Does this new formula discriminate against parishes that are financially robust?
An even bigger issue is where the money from the CSA appeal goes. Many faithful in the Diocese refuse to give to the CSA due to CSA dollars going to anti-Catholic organizations. Others refuse to give to the Diocese due to a lack of transparency and accountability within the Diocese. We have reported on all of these concerns over the years.
This year, a separate collection is being requested in many parishes for Catholic Relief Services (CRS) instead of having Catholic Relief Services as part of the CSA. This comes after many faithful complained of the corruption related to Catholic Relief Services (CRS). Having a second collection ostensibly allows those who have problems donating to the CSA to now do so as their CSA dollars will not be going to Catholic Relief Services (CRS). This does not change the tax on individual parishes, however. What this means is that the Diocese will still expect the same donations from each parish for CSA dollars even though the budget for Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is no longer part of the CSA. With Catholic Relief Services no longer getting CSA dollars, this means that the Diocese would receive more money from the CSA while the Diocese still collects money separately for Catholic Relief Services (CRS).
But why is the Diocese collecting money for CRS despite mounds of documentation showing the inappropriateness of Catholic Relief Services activities? For specific information regarding CRS, please note the following links:
If you believe the Diocese should not be funding Catholic Relief Services (CRS), please let Bishop Walsh know:
Bishop Jeffrey Walsh
Diocese of Gaylord
611 West North Street
Gaylord, MI 49735