Staying power
One month after St. Albert's closure, parishioners' sit-in gathers strength
WEYMOUTH -- Here's the drill these days at St. Albert the Great: If you want peace and prayer, you go upstairs. If you want coffee and camaraderie, you go downstairs. Most people want both.
A month after St. Albert's was officially closed by the Archdiocese of Boston, there are fresh flowers on the altar, money in the bank, a kitchen full of food, and a church full of people. Floors are scrubbed clean, bushes clipped, utility bills paid. Despite the archdiocese's description of the church as closed or "suppressed," life continues apace inside the brick church on a busy street in East Weymouth.
It has been four weeks since a regional vicar arrived at St. Albert's to take the keys to the church and rectory, supposedly ending the life of the 54-year-old church born in a bowling alley down the street. The church's pastor, the Rev. Ron Coyne, hugged tearful parishioners and drove away, headed for his family home in West Roxbury.
But parishioners have steadfastly refused to leave; they've occupied the church since the final Mass on Sunday, Aug. 29. They have hired attorneys to sue the archdiocese. They have filed a canon appeal to the Vatican, after a similar one to Archbishop Sean O'Malley failed. So far they have raised $110,000 in a legal fund.
Their cause has been publicized coast to coast. Stories have appeared in The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times, and on most of the television networks. Another suppressed church, St. Anselm in Sudbury, has begun its own sit-in. A third, St. Bernard in West Newton, which is scheduled to close next month, has indicated it will follow suit. According to the grapevine, other churches are considering the same course. Calls are coming in from such churches: How do you keep the lights on? Are you able to get mail?
St. Albert's holds three prayer services daily, one each on weekends. The services are lay-led; parishioners also provide the music. Twice a day, at 9 a.m. and 7:30 p.m., Susan Lynch shows up with her guitar. "They told me they needed music for the services, so I fit it in around my work shift," said the computer software specialist.
The church is among 82 churches slated to close under an archdiocesan reconfiguration plan resulting from dwindling attendance, financial problems, the poor condition of many churches, and a shortage of priests. Even though St. Albert's is a vibrant parish, with full pews and coffers, the archdiocese said Weymouth could no longer support five churches. St. Albert's pastoral council has rejected that argument, noting in its canon appeal that Weymouth has the same number of churches as Braintree, but with 80 percent more residents.
As of yesterday, 28 parishes have closed, according to the archdiocese's website. In response to questions from the Globe, the archdiocese issued a one-sentence statement via fax: "We are very hopeful that through mediation, conversation and prayer we will be able to reach a peaceful and respectful resolution at St. Albert the Great Parish."
Last week the archdiocese, which appears stymied over an ecclesiastical and public-relations debacle, sent a priest and a nun to begin talks with St. Albert's parishioners. Little has apparently come of the two meetings; a third one with representatives of the pastoral council is set for Sunday night.
Meanwhile, parishioners have kept the faith -- and the building. They come in to pray and sing, dust and sweep, mop, and vacuum. There's a guy who replaces the fluorescent lights, a woman in charge of the flowers. One parishioner, a recent amputee, wanted to help. He was assigned to wipe the tables after each hospitality hour. "I come here and pray," said John Kane, who uses a wheelchair. "But I also want to do something. These tables are the perfect height for me. I wipe them, and I do it very gladly and very gratefully. This is like my home."
Rallying to the cause
Parishioners are putting out a weekly bulletin, a pared-down version without a pastor's message. Last weekend's missive included an update with this ending: "We've come a long way, but at the same time, our journey is now just beginning. Our roller coaster ride continues!!"
The Voice of the Faithful chapter continues its sessions in the parish hall. The next parish meeting is scheduled for Tuesday. A clean-up session Saturday drew plenty of people with rakes and clippers to spruce up the grounds. To thank parishioners who have pitched in, an Appreciation Day will be held Sunday at Hajjars restaurant and function hall, the building down the street where parishioners first met in 1950 while the church was being erected.
The church's pastoral council, which is coordinating the vigil, has organized nearly a dozen committees for everything from greeters and ushers to maintenance. To make sure that they -- and not the archdiocese -- get the mail, they've rented a post office box for Friends of St. Albert's. Their cause has attracted notice from all over. People from throughout the Boston area, Catholic and Protestant alike, have dropped in to spend a few hours, or the night.
At last week's pastoral council meeting, the telephone rang at 10 p.m. It was a woman from Newton calling to say she'd made a pan of macaroni and cheese and would bring it over in the morning. Last week an anonymous check for $2,600 was found in the altar flowers. A priest from Idaho stopped last week and gave the church his blessing.
The guest book in the church foyer is another gauge of support. "St. Mary's of Hanover wishes you well!" "You are our inspiration for us in our fight to stay open," reads an entry from Sacred Heart in Lexington. From Abington: "You are truly loved." There are messages from Daytona Beach, Fla., and this one from Niantic, Conn.: "We came to offer our support and share in your prayers for your beautiful church."
Many of the greetings are addressed to Coyne, the popular priest who came to the church during the priest sexual-abuse crisis and is credited with transforming it from a dying parish with lonely pews to a lively one with sports teams, outreach programs, book groups, and a Voice of the Faithful chapter. "We will continue until we have you back here leading the flock," wrote one woman. "P.S. Staying all night wasn't all that bad except for the snoring."
The rectory remains empty and dark. But the people of St. Albert's know that this is their fight, priest or no priest. The pastoral council, whose 12 members range from a college student to a senior citizen who was married in the parish 50 years ago, meets weekly to plan strategy. Last week's agenda included a legal update, parish finances, the new website, the upcoming appreciation day, and, of course, the sit-in. George Itz, whose son helped develop the website, reported that e-mails have arrived from all over the country, including one from the Gulf Coast of Florida. "People there are praying for us, even in the wake of Ivan," Itz said.
'So many doers'
Before, when St. Albert's was officially open, hospitality hour was held once a month. These days it's always hospitality hour in the parish hall, with people sitting at tables, drinking coffee, eating warm banana bread, and talking.
Barbara Conant is in charge of the committee. She's there by 5 a.m. every day to make the coffee and tea. On a recent weekday, Conant went over the lunch menu: French onion soup and chicken salad sandwiches. "Tomorrow we're having baked macaroni and cheese. It's getting scary. We should have blue-plate specials," she said, laughing. Strangers have dropped off hams, pots of clam and corn chowder, salads, deviled eggs, and casseroles.
Mary Lou Madigan and Mary Norton have spent many nights and mornings at St. Albert's. Sipping coffee on a recent day, Norton joked about how they're eating so well they're going to start a Weight Watchers chapter at St. Albert's. "There are so many doers here," she said. "But it's a very quiet sense of doing. People have just been remarkable."
Mary Burns, who helps with hospitality, periodically leaves a wish list of things her committee needs. "You leave a note, and things appear," she said. The wider community has pitched in, too: Stop & Shop of Weymouth gave a gift certificate, and
Many St. Albert's parishioners who did not know one another well before the church closed have become good friends. To keep the unity, they're meeting once a month for lunch at Hajjars. Last week, at a lunch that drew 100 people, parishioner Carol Murphy introduced a Harvard graduate student who is doing his doctoral dissertation on suppressed churches, using St. Albert's as a case study.
She reminded folks about the upcoming appreciation day, another Hajjars lunch in November, and a field trip to LaSalette Shrine in Attleborough in December. Describing the outpouring of grass-roots effort, she said: "I honestly believe we were chosen to do this."
Facing issues
Anna O'Leary, a member of the pastoral council, described the mail pouring in from all over. "This morning, we got checks from Louisiana, Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, you name it. There are a lot of people out there who are behind us 100 percent."
Still, there are issues: People miss Father Coyne, they miss the consecration -- and a few of the prayer books have disappeared. The pastoral council worries about volunteer burnout.
But most believe they will get back their church -- and their pastor -- despite the fact that the archdiocese has said no decision will be overturned. "I think by All Saints Day everything will be resolved," said Debbie Doyle, who headed the church's color guard team. "It will be like Aug. 29 never happened."
Others believe that even if their church isn't saved, a point has been made: The reconfiguration process was flawed. "Our selection was clearly wrong . . . and we will continue our prayer vigil indefinitely," said Sharon Harrington, an attorney who helped write the appeal to Rome. "Closing vibrant parishes should not happen, period. The archbishop should come to see for himself and hear us. He should correct a clear wrong."
John Reilly has been a greeter at the 11 a.m. Mass for 20 years. A retired arbitrator, he has negotiated contracts all his life. "Certainly there's got to be a meeting of the minds someplace," he said. "Somebody's got to blink, and I hope it will be the archdiocese. There's no doubt in my mind our resolve is strong." Reilly, who continues to greet at the Sunday service, noted that St. Albert's, even though it is officially closed, draws more worshipers than some "open" churches.
In some ways it seems that people at St. Albert's are settling in for the long term -- talking about a family-style Thanksgiving dinner, the December field trip to LaSalette, and a Christmas tree and party. "If that's what it takes, that's what it takes," said Burns.
Downtairs, Conant was busy putting away more food donations, including a chocolate torte. "Tomorrow," she said, "we're having American chop suey and homemade bread."
