St. Joseph Parish is at a Crossroad

To the Editor: 
The documents produced by the St. Joseph stakeholders group and its members do not accurately detail the process used to develop the new church.
When the Diocese published new guidelines for parish finance committees, the first Finance Committee was established. One of the committee’s first changes was to explore finding space to reduce the then 18 to 20 Masses said each summer weekend.
The projected reduction in the number of priests made this a high priority. Engineering studies were done to determine if the auditorium could be expanded. The results showed that there was no cost-effective way to increase the building.
The committee adopted a strategy to seek input from the congregation by holding open parish meetings, taking surveys and providing feedback as often as possible. The first of three parish surveys showed the need for worship space of approximately 1,500 seats that was handicapped accessible and had expanded parking.
Parish meetings were held to review the results and to seek additional suggestions. The results were also shared with the Diocese to begin discussions regarding the building of a new church. The Diocesan view was that the building of a new church meant that the existing church would have to be torn down.
That information was shared with the parish community and a second survey was conducted. Nearly 90 percent of the congregation stated that they would only support the building of a new church if the existing church was retained.
The strength of the surveys ultimately convinced the Diocese to move off of its demand to tear down the historic church. Plans were then started for a building program.
At all of the Masses on the weekend of Nov. 10-11, 2017, it was announced that the parish was moving ahead to build a new church on the 43rd Street of our present church. In order to have adequate space for the church and on-site parking, the rectory and garage would be removed and the prayer garden relocated.
In addition, contracts for the project architect and fundraising consultants were finalized. Plans were also announced to remove the convent to make room for a new rectory and parish office.
I find the recent statements that the former Finance Committee only “devoted minimal resources” to the upkeep of the church to be erroneous and insulting to all those parishioners who donated their time, efforts, and finances to maintain and upgrade the church. The efforts and contribution of Ed Pearce to remove the old metal siding and artistically restore the original cedar shakes should be applauded, not characterized as “minimal.”
Likewise, when Father Carey wanted to restore the church bell and install a new chime system, 36 families made contributions to make it happen. The same should also be said to all those families who contributed to the restoration of the stained glass windows and the mahogany front doors.
The family that is St. Joseph parish has a long history of being generous. But, now many feel they have been betrayed. In return for their support of the new church, they were promised that the historic church would be kept and used.
The parish of St. Joseph is at a crossroad. It can either go ahead and tear down the historic church, thus alienating the majority of parishioners, or it can work together to incorporate many of the well-thought out ideas advanced by the stakeholers committee, into the historic church.
As one drives along Route 50 in the Greenfield section of Upper Township, there is a deteriorating, partially constructed house of worship that is a vivid reminder of what can happen when a congregation walks away.