Closure of St. Gerard’s warrants self-reflection

Dear Editor:

With the creation of a collaborative of St. Gerard’s and St. John’s back in June 2018, followed by the renaming of the churches into a single parish as St. Oscar Romero last fall, it was no surprise that the church decided this July to close St. Gerard’s and sell the property. As Father Rafferty noted in his announcement at Mass a few weeks ago, it was simply not financially viable for St. Gerard’s to continue with reduced attendance coupled with reduced donations. The writing was on the wall and, at least as a financial enterprise, St. Gerard’s had failed. After the last Mass is said in September, the church will be closed on October 1 and the real estate assets appraised, marketed, and ultimately sold.

Yet this was not always the case. Not that long ago, St. Gerard’s was thriving, the center of our Catholic faith, representing an active and involved community of the faithful led by the likes of Father Mac and many others who baptized our children, confirmed our teenagers, celebrated our marriages and holidays, helped us grieve our departed, and face our own limitations and ultimately our own mortality. St. Gerard’s of course was much more than simply a financial enterprise with real estate. It was not only a place of worship but also an anchor of community.

While St. John’s — or now St. Oscar Romero — offers to fill that role, for those of us who have known only St. Gerard’s, the loss is palpable. Knowing that the decision by the Church’s leadership to close St. Gerard’s was a difficult one is of little comfort.

What would help is some self-reflection and some hard truths. No doubt a shrinking actively practicing Catholic community is a fundamental issue. I for one could have and should have done more. I could have been more involved. I could have donated more. I could have been a better Catholic.

Yet attributing the decline in attendance and donations to parishioners alone ignores the failures in pastoral leadership to successfully reach and reengage those of the faithful who no longer see the relevancy of regular weekly worship, who have been disillusioned and understandably disappointed with the Church. It ignores the scandals that have tainted the Church’s moral authority and that continue to compromise its credibility — notwithstanding the light that has now been shined on that taint and the ongoing efforts to confront and correct it.

St. Gerard’s has not failed because of its people alone. The shepherds, locally, within the Archdiocese and within the Church, shoulder some of this burden. If the Church acknowledged this truth, it would greatly help parishioners grieve and heal from the loss of St. Gerard’s.

Richard Allen

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