| Friends
of Saint Peter Lithuanian Parish – Update # 18
June 17, 2005
Dear Friends,
A little over a year ago, we received the devastating news
that our beloved St. Peter Lithuanian Parish was going to
be closed! Yesterday, on June 16th, 2005, the Archdiocese
removed the threat of extinction by announcing that our Parish
will stay open!
We all deserve to breathe a sigh of relief and we all deserve
to feel a great amount of satisfaction at having its ill-conceived
decision reversed. We banded together to save a part of our
heritage. We stood shoulder to shoulder in our determination
to keep our Parish open. We demonstrated, we wrote letters,
made phone calls and helped the cause in countless ways. We
contributed monies to launch a legal and canonical challenge
to the threat of closure. We worked hard, we sacrificed time
and energy and we can exult in the news proclaimed by the
Archdiocese.
However, there are still unanswered questions. We shall pursue
answers and clarifications with the help of our canon law
attorney. News reports offer different threads of information.
For example, the Boston Globe proclaimed on its front page
(June 17, 2005) that St. Peter Lithuanian Parish would remain
open along with four other parishes. The news release published
on the website of the archdiocese of Boston offers a slightly
different tone. This news release clearly states that two
parishes will remain open, two others will have their closing
dates rescinded and St. Peter Lithuanian Parish will not have
a closing date established.
We are not sure what this means and we hope to find out.
We shall be requesting clarification from the archdiocese.
Fr. Zukas has been named principal contact concerning the
status of the Parish so perhaps he will receive clarification
that he can share with us.
We know that at least for now, we are open and the imminent
threat of closure has been removed. We should celebrate this
victory and we can afford to be guardedly optimistic about
our future. It remains a very real possibility that the archdiocese
will revisit this whole issue of reconfiguration at some later
time and we may be faced with a similar threat of closure.
Time will tell. But for now, enjoy the serenity that comes
with the removal of the threat of closure. Let’s enjoy
our Parish life as never before. Let’s recommit ourselves
to making our Parish more vibrant and thriving than ever before!
Plans are being considered for a mass of Thanksgiving and
Celebration in the early fall. We shall keep you informed
of any information about our future. Enjoy the day! Enjoy
the news! Pray that the archdiocese does not consider reconfiguration
again for a very long time!
Until next time,
Gloria R. Adomkaitis for the Friends
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/06/17/archdiocese_lifts_plans_to_close_five_parishes/
http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=89757
http://www.rcab.org/News/releases/statement050616.html
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