Who Is Destroying Cleveland’s Catholic Churches?

Cleveland’s Catholic Diocese is dying a slow and painful death, and as a result, many churches in the Cleveland metropolitan area are being closed. If you listen to my mother, she thinks I am personally to blame, because I don’t go to church anymore. My argument is that the Catholic parish in my city (which has been spared from the chopping block) is growing and thriving without me, so I know it’s not just because of me.

The problem with the Cleveland Catholic Diocese is caused by more than one thing. Many people aren’t as disciplined about going to church any more, and that in itself has multiple causes. Most adults have to work, and spending time every Sunday at Mass can be a drain if you spend all a lot of energy on the job during the week, and you have to play catch up with everything else over the weekend. When I was growing up, most families had a stay at home mom, who took care of the kids and other things during the week, so spending time for church on Sunday wasn’t an issue. There are also many people like me who were raised Catholic but have long since lost the need for the structure and ritual of the church to remind them how to behave.

St. Procops, Cleveland Ohio West Side (Now closed)

In Cleveland, however, the issue is compounded by many Clevelanders fleeing to the suburbs in droves, something that started in the early 1960s and continued at a faster rate each year. Anyone who could afford to get out of the inner city got out, and over time, this left many churches without sustainable parishes. But this is not a new problem.

Everyone understands these factors, and everyone understands that a parish and church building cannot be financially sustained without money from parishioners. And this is where the Cleveland Catholic Diocese took a left turn. Rather than close churches as they became financially unstable over a period of several years, they allowed many to stay open. Bring in a new Bishop - Richard Lennon – who appears to be the designated hatchet man - to cut loose those parishes that cannot sustain themselves in one fell swoop.

Bishop Lennon, however, completely botched the execution of his church consolidation plan. He established “clusters” of parishes - usually parishes within close proximity - and had representatives from each church in each cluster put their heads together to decide which churches in their group stayed open, and which ones had to close. It sounds very nice on paper – you know, letting the people decide their own fate. Things were tough but seemed to be working out OK as each parish submitted their recommendations. The problem arose when Bishop Lennon ignored virtually every recommendation and closed very popular parishes, some which were not even losing any money, and some which also provided services to the community such as housing for the homeless and/or food for those who needed it. Adding insult to injury, some of the churches being closed by Bishop Lennon were some of the finest churches in the area, with not only stunning structures, but some of the finest religious art work and artifacts in the area. Many of those things are up for auction on an Internet web site, causing outrage with parishioners whose parents, grandparents, and great grandparents paid for those things out of their own donations to the church, in some case going back over 100 years, and when money was very tight. There is doubt that any of that money from the sale of those objects or even the church buildings themselves will be returned to the churches in the new communities, and many worry that it is a simple money grab by the diocese and the Vatican. Needless to say, Bishop Lennon has shown zero respect for not only the current parishioners, but for those people whose families worked hard to make those churches possible.

St. Casimir's, Cleveland Ohio (Now closed)

Local Catholics have protested in many ways, some making very vocal protests at church closings and also picketing churches. A group was formed called Endangered Catholics whose intent is to get justice and equal opportunity for parishioners. Protests are also working their way up to the Vatican. Sadly, I suspect that these protests will fall on deaf ears for the most part, although Bishop Lennon did reverse his decision for one parish. In some cases, Bishop Lennon’s competency has been questioned. The Cleveland Plain Dealer has devoted a lot of coverage to the issue and many, if not all, of the articles paint Bishop Lennon and the diocese in a poor light.

Even though I am not a church-goer, it does sadden me to see both the church in which I was baptized and the church in which I was married close. The church where I was baptized is also the church where my parents were married and also the church where my grandparents were married. The building did need a little repair, but the structure is sound and very well kept for the most part, and the parish was not losing money. This church also supported the poor in the neighborhood with a place to live as needed and meals for those who could not afford food. It is a huge loss for the neighborhood community.

When it all comes down to it, everyone knows these churches are just buildings. But, the diocese seems to have lost any concern for the parishioners who have kept many of these facilities afloat, the Bishop completely ignoring their recommendations. It is also clear that the diocese does not have enough priests to cover each parish, a problem easily solved if they would only discard their narrow-minded opinions about women becoming priests. While Bishop Lennon is driving the stake into the heart of the parishioners, it’s the Catholic Church and its dated practices that are driving people away. I have hopes that one day, the Church will have leadership at all levels who are willing to question the status quo and to have the courage to make changes, otherwise what is happening to the Cleveland Catholic Diocese will continue to spread throughout the faith like a malignant cancer, and more cities will see their beloved churches, and the history that goes along with them, die a certain death.

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Reaching The Social Media Breaking Point, How Much is Too Much?

Google recently announced Google Buzz , what PC World describes as “a social media sharing service built into your Gmail window. Buzz will let you share photos, links, videos, and status updates through your Gmail inbox or your mobile device's Web browser.” PC World also highlighted a whole host of privacy concerns with Google Buzz.

Maybe it’s me, but I am not sure how many more different ways of keeping in touch with people that I can handle. I grudgingly set up Facebook accounts under my real name and for some of my blogs. After resisting Twitter at first, I set up Twitter accounts and found that - being a person who like to get information in short bites - I actually have come to like Twitter quite a bit; Facebook, not so much. Besides maintaining my 7 blogs and two Twitter accounts, I don’t think I want to have one more place where I have to input information. Time is precious to everyone these days, and who wants to have to follow people in several different places?

So, take no offense if you want to “friend” me on Facebook and I decline, or if you follow me on Google Buzz and I don’t follow back, or if you want to be my friend on YouTube and I ignore you, or if you try to connect with me on Linked In and I really don’t know who the heck you are that I don’t wish to connect, and so on. It’s not personal, it’s just that in order to stay focused on providing good content on my blogs, I’ve decided to limit the amount of “socializing” that I do through social media sites. I’m picking an choosing on where I decide to connect with people in order to make sure that when I DO have something to say, that it means something or provides value to somebody, and doesn’t simply get lost in a flood of minutia.

So please continue to follow my blogs either through Blogger and Twitter. I will be on Google Buzz just because my Blogger posts go there automatically, but it is highly unlikely that I will post separate “buzz” topics there. My time is valuable, and I am sure yours is too, and I don’t want to readers feel the need to follow me in too many places. At some point, everyone will reach the on-line social media limit, and begin to wonder how much on-line social media is too much? Who knows, maybe someday people will go back to actually talking real time with each other. If so, I'm sure someone will send a tweet to tell us about it.



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The iPad: idon’t care, iThink iWillpass

Apple’s Steve Jobs announced the iPad today , the much rumored and anticipated Apple tablet device. And you know what? I could care less. I don’t care that Apple thinks that it could be a rival to the Amazon Kindle, or that it could be good for gaming, or for whatever other things a computer can do. I think the iPad is just another toy made to siphon money out of one’s pocket, in this case, $499 for the iPad.

Seriously now, how many electronic toys can a person use? Some people need to have the latest in anything having to do with Apple, but not me. I guess I am just one of those people that never drank the Apple kool-aid. The iPod is nothing more than a simple MP3 player, and MP3 players are practically given away now and are included with most cell phones. I’m not into gaming, so the iPad doesn't grab me on that feature. I do a lot of typing so I like a full size keyboard. I also like to see what I’m typing, or reading, so a full size screen that I don’t have to hold in my hand works just fine for me. Maybe I am in that demographic that is a little wiser about spending my money and am able to control myself from buying something that I may not really need. But I am sure there are some people out there who are already lining up somewhere to buy an iPad, even though they aren’t actually selling them as yet.

For me, I’m taking a wait and see approach. After all, sometime in the early 1990s I was trying to get the company that I worked for to use the GridPad, a tabled style computer. It’s nice to see that Apple has caught up to a 1990s concept, and is making it into a product that consumers, not businesses, may shell out the money to buy for entertainment purposes. But the question remains – with many people having personal computers or Macs, cell phones, netbooks, laptops, etc., does one really need a tablet too? The size also is a turn off; if I can’t fit it in my purse, I’m not going to carry it with me. And if I’m home, I’d rather be using my full size computer or laptop. I still like to read a book by actually turning the pages, and I love to page through my three daily newspapers. Sure, I still get plenty of news or do a lot of reading off the internet, but there is still something for the relaxing feeling one can get by sitting back and leafing through the newspaper or a book. It’s just not the same experience reading it on a Kindle, and I suspect it would be the same for me using an iPad - a sterile experience.

For me, I think I already have plenty of electronics toys to keep me occupied, entertained, and informed. Sorry Steve, but I think I will pass on the iPad.


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The Haiti Earthquake Disaster: Horrific and Real, Relief Needed

I’m not a big fan of Hollywood disaster movies as they treat big disasters as a vehicle to entertain, often desensitizing people to the reality of the effects of a major catastrophe caused by earthquake, tsunami, flood, weather, etc. When one sees the enormity of the massive earthquake in Haiti, Hollywood disaster movies seem almost sickening in their desire to make money off massive human tragedy, even if it is fictional.

In real disasters, people die, people are seriously injured, food and drinking water are scarce, basic utilities are out of order, and hospitals or medical services are stretched to the limit, if they are even available at all. An earthquake such as Haiti's could happen anywhere in the world, and could happen right in your home town. While one shouldn’t necessarily live as if disaster looms every moment, it is good to be as prepared as you can, realizing that one can’t always prepare for anything. The people in Haiti, however, were already living in serious poverty, and the devastation they are facing now makes it all that much harder to overcome the country’s problems. This is the time where we can all help in the effort by donating to the The American Red Cross and it can be as easy as sending a text message on your cell phone. Complete instructions can be found at this link: The American Red Cross Haiti Donations. Please consider making a donation!


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Roll Over or Get Tough? Time Warner, and Viewers, Should Get Tough

Full page ads from Time Warner appeared in local papers today and asked readers if Time Warner should roll over in the fight with Fox as Fox wants to increase rates for their channels carried on Time Warner cable. If Fox doesn't get the money they want, Fox says that on January 1 they will pull the plug on Fox channels carried by Time Warner. Some markets are more affected than others, likely those who have Fox owned local stations. Those not in those markets only run the risk of losing minor Fox cable channels. For example, the Cleveland Ohio market only stands to lose the following channels: Fuel, Fox Reality Channel, Speed Channel, Fox Soccer Channel, Fox Sports World Espanol, and FX. I don’t watch those channels anyway, and see this as a low risk to lose. Clearly I would rather that Time Warner get tough and not pay the extra money, since I know that if Time Warner has to pay more, I would have to pay more. Why should I pay more for channels that I don’t care about?

I went to Time Warner’s “Roll Over Or Get Tough” website and checked how this would affect a New York City Time Warner customer. I saw this listing of channels: WNYW, WWOR, Fuel, Fox Reality Channel, Speed Channel, Fox Soccer Channel, Fox Sports World Espanol, and FX. I would imagine that the first two channels on the list are the local Fox owned stations which likely carry more of the Fox network programming, something that viewers may miss and would want to pay for. Fine. How about if each market can decide what they want to do? If New Yorkers want to pay a premium for local channels, fine. But I don’t want to have my rates raised because some other city wants to keep their local channels via cable, channels that can likely be obtained by using a simple antenna or an antenna and a digital converter box.

This brings me to my ideal way of paying for television – let me pick and chose which channels I want and I will pay for those channels. When I think of all the TV channels I have available to me right now, I watch maybe less that 30-40 of them regularly. At least 6 of them are local HD channels that I can get over the airwaves without needing cable. Viewers need to get tough with cable companies and the big networks and fight for a change that allows viewers to drop the channels they don’t want and not have to pay for them. Sure, this could hurt those networks who tailor their content to a certain niche. But that’s the way it goes. If networks like Fox want to nickel and dime – or in this case maybe “dollar” - me, then I should have the ability to tell them to stick it. And if the cable or satellite operators will lose revenue because they can’t make up the cost of carrying channels that most people don’t watch, that’s too bad. Maybe it would force them into revising their pricing structure so that viewers who demand niche channels pay more for them to cover the cost of carrying them.

Regardless, I think that people have just about had enough of the rising cost of television, and I sense that Fox trying to demand more is only going to hurt them later on down the road. People are getting tired of paying ever increasing prices for content that is sub par or that they don’t watch. If Time Warner caves in, it will only be a matter of time before other networks try the same thing as Fox is attempting. Comcast, after buying NBC Universal, may have a lot more control over what they decide to charge their own viewers, and maybe even more so to NBCU viewers not on Comcast (such as Time Warner). I certainly hope in this current case of chicken with Fox that Warner doesn’t swerve off its course.

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Happy Holidays – That’s Right, Happy Holidays!

When did saying “Happy Holidays” become so offensive? These days, it seems that if you say “Have a happy holiday,” some people make it sound like you are killing Christmas. I think the true meaning of Christmas for Christians – celebrating the birth of Jesus – was vaporized long ago, and Christmas is more of a secular, commercial holiday where the focus is on giving – and getting – gifts.

I grew up in a very strict Catholic household but have been a lapsed Catholic for many years now. So if someone says “happy holidays” to me I won’t take offense, and if they say Merry Christmas to me I won’t take offense either. In fact, they can say “happy winter” to me and it wouldn’t bother me. If I know the person’s religious beliefs, I make sure that I acknowledge their holiday. But, I encounter so many people on a given day that I don’t know well (like a cashier working in the local supermarket) that “have a great holiday” or something of that nature is probably safest bet. I also have many readers of my blogs that come from all around the world and saying “Have a Merry Christmas” to everyone seems disrespectful to those who are not Christian.

No one is trying to kill Christmas by saying “happy holidays,” they are likely just trying to be respectful of the various beliefs, or maybe even non-beliefs, of others. My advice is that when you know if someone is Christian, feel free to say Merry Christmas. If you know they are Jewish, wish them a Happy Hanukkah.. If you are not sure, wish them a happy holiday, as it at least shows your hope that they enjoy themselves and have good times during whatever holiday they celebrate. And if someone wishes YOU a happy holiday, please accept it as a peaceful gesture.

Here is my wish: whatever you celebrate this time of the year, I hope you have a happy, peaceful time filled with family and friends!

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Leave Tiger Alone!

Poor Tiger Woods. He’s in the middle of a perfect PR tornado. He’s a golf mega-star who is very careful to protect his squeaky clean image, but unfortunately, he also seems to have been exposed as a philanderer. Now the media is literally beating his image to death with it.

Tiger’s perfect PR image began to unravel after a strange car accident in front of his own home, where, in the wee hours, he hit a fire hydrant and then a tree and was injured in the process. It seemed his wife had to use a golf club to get Tiger out of the car, and he appeared to be rendered unconscious from his accident. Police said Tiger was not intoxicated. Question arose immediately. What was he doing leaving the house at such an hour? Why did he seem to be traveling at such a rate of speed pulling out of his own driveway to cause such damage to his car and such injuries to his face? How was it so convenient his wife had a golf club in her hand to be able to use it to get him out of the car? Was there an argument? Did she beat him with the golf club? Was there an argument over an affair? The questions came up and grew exponentially. Unfortunately, Tiger responded in a rather rational way, taking responsibility for the event but saying nothing any substance.

The media of course wasn’t satisfied and continued to dig. Of course, gossip lovers were in heaven as this story just continued to feed on itself and grow bigger with each day. Things got really bad when a voice mail which appeared to be from Tiger left for “another woman” seemed to confirm that he was indeed playing around – no, not playing a round (of golf) – playing around. Despite the fact that the media continues to play the recording, admitting it has not been officially confirmed it was Tiger, Tiger suddenly admits to transgressions and asks for privacy . OK, I will admit, that voice mail message sounds exactly like Tiger, so let the media frenzy begin!

Tiger Woods is an amazing golfer, clearly one of the best ever. But it should be no surprise to anyone that his personal life is not perfect. No one can make that claim. But the media coverage of this matter is getting a little crazy. Everyone is falling over themselves in order to help smear Tiger’s image, almost enjoying the fact that he managed the whole situation very badly. Tiger’s fault here is that he had the nerve – the nerve! – to expect that he can have a private life (note sarcasm). Sadly, in this day and age, there is no such thing as a private life, especially for the famous. But really, I think Tiger has been beaten a little too much over this issue. The media, who was instrumental in building Tiger’s image into a golf god, is now working overtime to damn him to the depths of the hell reserved for famous people who make errors in judgment. I can understand a gossip paper such as the National Inquirer making a big deal over this, but now all the major networks are keeping this story in their leads. It really doesn’t belong there.

Tiger’s big mistake was not by cheating, but by trying to cover up the matter when it was clear that the car accident was going to bring personal matters out into the open. OK, it’s out into the open, now it’s time to leave Tiger alone and let him patch up the mess in private. And it’s time for the media to go back to reporting real news about things that really matter – the economy, the war, politics, etc. and leave the gossip reporting to the National Inquirer.

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