Another Parish boundry question

[jmcrae]

Could you explain to me the difference. I always thought you were a member of the parish you were registered at. If not…what parish would you then be a member of?

Your territorial parish - the parish that officially serves the address where you live. Typically, it would be the parish closest to your home, but sometimes boundaries are drawn in such a way that your territorial parish includes homes that are actually closer to a different parish, since they tend to draw the boundaries along major roads and rivers, etc, rather than strictly according to what addresses are geographically closest to that parish.

 

[BlyssfulDreamer]

Your territorial parish - the parish that officially serves the address where you live. Typically, it would be the parish closest to your home, but sometimes boundaries are drawn in such a way that your territorial parish includes homes that are actually closer to a different parish, since they tend to draw the boundaries along major roads and rivers, etc, rather than strictly according to what addresses are geographically closest to that parish.

Ah, ha…I see. Thank you:thumbsup:

 

[ASimpleSinner]

Because the secular humanist forum told me that the individuals own conscience was rule.

…the muslim forum had no idea what a Parish is

…the jewish forum said they had no idea if it was Kosher or not

…and the Seventh day adventist said it was OK as long as parish council meetings were not on a Saturday.

No really Another thread on this forum prompted my question.

You get points for being funny!

I didn’t mean to be surly… I guess I am a little forum weary as lately I have noticed a number of other posters on here who seem to have registered here JUST to get support for a cause… I wanted to make sure I was not being invited to unwittingly aid in a parish council coupe!

I don’t know that parish boundaries are really used in that fashion - for the most part, people tend to go where they tend to go! I know that for administrative purposes the boundaries can be used for different projects. In the Latin diocese in which I grew up, there was an initiative on the part of the bishop to heav evangelism teams knock on doors and invite folks to church. Each parish was expected to have teams from their own parish in the “parish boundaries”… Really, that is the last and only time I have heard of boundaries being used in any official way.

Not a very helpful or conclusive answer, is it?

Sorry.

 

[Br.Rich_SFO]

Here, our “Parish Council” consists of a local attorney, an accountant, and a hard-core businessman, appointed and led by the pastor.

I’ve never been “big” on parish councils. Part of being Catholic is the hierarcial chain of command, unlike many of our Protestant friends and their “inmates running the asylum” style of governance.

Sometimes, large parish councils wind up being “rubber stamp” committees, at which point, there is no reason for them.

I agree there is no reason to have Parish Councils if they are not going to operate properly and consist of members of a cross section of the parish, to help advise the pastor.

 

[Brother_John]

I agree there is no reason to have Parish Councils if they are not going to operate properly and consist of members of a cross section of the parish, to help advise the pastor.

Sounds like a new thread to me

 

[OutinChgoburbs]

On the topic- it depends on what the bishop said. Some bishops have strict policies about territorial parishes, and most don’t.

As an adult, I have lived in 12 territiorial parishes, but only registered in two; of those two, one was due to military status, and therefore was the base Catholic chapel.

 

[puzzleannie]

hello,

I have a unique situation at my parish.

The parish Council president lives in the area of another parish…this is rural Iowa so the other parish is 20 miles away…

Is this OK?

you actually have a quite common situation, not a unique one
yes it is perfectly okay to register in a parish outside your geographical parish.

 

[James0235]

The canons cited in your post do not state that it is not permissible to register in a parish outside of your geographical parish. Based on the canons you cited that seems to be only your opinion - or the opinion of someone else in an article.

Most of your post seems to be taken from an article of some sort. Unless you actually wrote it yourself you should cite your source.

And Fr. Andrew Greeley is hardly a trustworthy source on anything having to do with Catholicism. Now, if we were discussing porn then he is certainly an authority in that area.

James

 

[James0235]

Thank you.

I seem to remember once reading something to the effect that the Diocese of Pittsburgh is one of the few in the US that actively encourages people to remain in their territorial parish. I will see if I can remember where I read that.

James

 

[BlyssfulDreamer]

When I inquired about becoming an “associate” at the oratory where I attend the TLM, I was given a letter from the Bishop stating the requirements, which said I was welcome to join the oratory as long as I continued to be an active member of my territorial parish. I must continue to support my parish where I was registered and must continue to attend Mass there too.

 

[Andreas_Hofer]

The canons cited in your post do not state that it is not permissible to register in a parish outside of your geographical parish. Based on the canons you cited that seems to be only your opinion - or the opinion of someone else in an article.

Nothing in canon law forbids registering at a different parish because registration is not a canonical concept. Just as canon law doesn’t forbid donating bake sale items or standing around and peeling a banana at another parish, so it doesn’t forbid registration, which has just as much to do with the law.

Now the real issue on this thread isn’t parish membership (which has been amply discussed elsewhere), but serving on the parish council. Now, the council president who resides elsewhere is not a member of the parish - signing a registration form simply cannot accomplish this - so if we were to be technical about things it would seem he has no basis for being on the council.

If we’re going to start talking about fudging things to include all “active worshipers/community members” as eligible, I suppose we would have to consult what canons do exist re: parish councils to see if they would strictly prohibit this or not.

 

[puzzleannie]

well I for one can certainly discern some situations where a “cannon” law would come in very handy