Religious order parishes

[commenter]

In my diocese there are several parishes staffed by religious orders, I am using this term to include all kinds of communities of priests.

There are a few parishes that are apparently not only staffed by religious orders, but owned by them as well. For instance, a parish made a public announcement “We are closing”.

This is different from parishes merely entrusted to an order by a diocese. When the order pulled out, the diocese either puts a diocesan priest in, gets another order to cover it, or the diocese itself closes it.

How do these situations originate?
Are there other canonical distinctions between order operated parishes, and those that are merely staffed by an order?

Would an Owned and operated parish be exempted from diocesan assessments, for instance? My suspicion is that the “owned” parishes as order created missions, and no new ones are opening in the US.

 

[JulianN]

There are a few parishes that are apparently not only staffed by religious orders, but owned by them as well. For instance, a parish made a public announcement “We are closing”.

Is this an actual parish, canonically? Often there are churches that were part of religious communities or other institutions that are not technically parishes. Examples might be a shrine, or a church that was part of a university or a religious order’s community – even if it is not now.

 

[1ke]

Parishes are territorial and diocesan.

So, whatever this church is-- oratory, shrine, chapel, etc.-- it’s not really a parish.

 

[DIERM]

So, whatever this church is-- oratory, shrine, chapel, etc.-- it’s not really a parish .

Yes. As pointed out by previous poster.

 

[commenter]

I researched it. Holy Angels Church in Buffalo apparently began as an outgrowth of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate starting a seminary and college in the 1800s. It didn’t start out as a parish, but has been one for a long time. The college and seminary are gone, for a long time.

News reports make it clear that the bishop was informed of this decision, but the OMI made the decision. Heartbreaking.

 

[1ke]

Can. 515 §1. A parish is a certain community of the Christian faithful stably constituted in a particular church, whose pastoral care is entrusted to a pastor (parochus) as its proper pastor (pastor) under the authority of the diocesan bishop.

§2. It is only for the diocesan bishop to erect, suppress, or alter parishes. He is neither to erect, suppress, nor alter notably parishes, unless he has heard the presbyteral council.

§3. A legitimately erected parish possesses juridic personality by the law itself.

Can. 520 §1. A juridic person is not to be a pastor. With the consent of the competent superior, however, a diocesan bishop, but not a diocesan administrator, can entrust a parish to a clerical religious institute or clerical society of apostolic life, even by erecting it in a church of the institute or society, with the requirement, however, that one presbyter is to be the pastor of the parish or, if the pastoral care is entrusted to several in solidum, the moderator as mentioned in ⇒ can. 517, §1.

§2. The entrusting of a parish mentioned in §1 can be made either perpetually or for a specific, predetermined time. In either case it is to be made by means of a written agreement between the diocesan bishop and the competent superior of the institute or society, which expressly and accurately defines, among other things, the work to be accomplished, the persons to be assigned to the parish, and the Financial arrangements.
If the order owns the church building, they could close the building or withdraw its use from the parish, and withdraw the priests from the parish.

But the parish is not the building, and the order cannot actually suppress a parish.

 

[commenter]

If the order owns the church building, they could close the building or withdraw it’s use from the parish, and withdraw the priests from the parish.

But the parish is not the building, and the order cannot actually suppress a parish.

This clarifies things for me. News reports confirm the the bishop was notified in advance. Apparently the diocese could have continued to operate the parish at another location, with its own clergy. But our diocese is closing things not opening.

The Oblates staff two other parishes in the city, which will hopefully continue.