Did you ever have both "conservative" AND a "liberal" priest at your parish? How did they get along?

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Most parishes would be lucky to have more than just one priest, but it does still happen.

What in your experience are the dynamics of a “conservative” priest and a “liberal” priest serving at the same parish?

Which one was the pastor and which was the associate? Which was the conservative and which the liberal? How did they get along?

How did they differ in terms of liturgy, homilies, catechetical styles, interacting with laity, social justice issues, morality, even their own religious garb? Etc.

Were there any apparent compromises?

Whom did the people seem to prefer? And why?
 
Pastor is liberal. Associate is conservative. Our pastor managed to make one of Karl Keating’s e-letters for his “liberalness.”

The more conservative assoc. is in charge of RCIA now (YAY!) And he has contacted us about sending couples to us for NFP promotion. He’s also in the Knights w/ DH. I think our pastor knows we have a Knights council, but I am not positive. 😉

Associate gives penances that are actually penance rather than just reading the random Bible phrase that pastor assigns. I like to go to associate for Confession.

I have no idea how they get along as I have yet to ever see them together in the same room. Pastor is doing a very good job of building our new church. I always remember, “He is a knowledgeable and holy priest. He is a knowledgeable and holy priest. He is a knowledgeable and holy priest.” Pastor homilies are a very deep Bible study. Associate’s sometimes show his convert roots.

We are a parish with a school. [Edited] It seems that the elderly like the pastor better while the parents like the younger associate better. JMHO though.

[Edited]
 
My parish seems to be a ‘training parish’, so while we have had a liberal pastor for a few years, we have had wonderfully orthodox young priests under him. Unfortunately they know that they have little support in the parish and less at the chancercy, so they have the ‘keep your head down’ mentality.

The pastor interfered with the first young priest getting involved with the parish youth group (he was only here for a year). The current one does everything (YG, KofC, 1001 other groups, many (most?) funerals). Pastor does bereavement group.

I try to avoid the pastor (I usually go to a neighboring parish anyway), but I know that he has his own ideas vis-a-vis the Mass (along the lines of Leno meets Vosko), while the young priest and I have had talks about how best to remove our (well his now and God willing mine in a few years) own personality, drawing the focus back to prayer and the Eucharist.
 
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