Quel avenir pour quelles églises ? / What future for which churches?

The Boston Archdiocese Parish Closing Pocess

7 Le réaménagement des 357 paroisses de Boston par l’archidiocèse de cette ville a entraîné la fermeture et la mise en vente de 83 églises, de même que de nouvelles contraintes budgétaires pour les paroisses survivantes, qui doivent maintenant assumer les frais d’entretien de leurs bâtiments historiques. Aux paroisses vouées à la fermeture s’offrent diverses solutions de rechange viables pour la réaffectation des églises historiques, qui favorisent le développement économique, fournissent des logements et renforcent les liens communautaires. Ce chapitre porte sur le processus de fermeture de paroisses, sur la réponse de la communauté vouée à la conservation et sur l’état actuel des transactions immobilières; il fournit des exemples de réaffectations d’églises respectueuses du passé et propose des moyens pour les communautés de s’éduquer et de devenir des avocats convaincants de l’usage continu de leurs églises historiques comme hauts lieux de la communauté. TheBostonArchdiocese Parish Closing Process and the Response of the Community Marilyn M. Fenollosa1© 2006 – Presses de l’Université du Québec Édifice Le Delta I, 2875, boul. Laurier, bureau 450, Québec, Québec G1V 2M2 • Tél. : (418) 657-4399 – www.puq.ca Tiré de : Quel avenir pour quelles églises?, Lucie K. Morisset, Luc Noppen et Thomas Coomans (dir.), ISBN 2-7605-1431-5 • D1431N Tous droits de reproduction, de traduction et d’adaptation réservés 140 Quel avenir pour quelles églises? / What future for which churches?© 2006 – Presses de l’Université du Québec Édifice Le Delta I, 2875, boul. Laurier, bureau 450, Québec, Québec G1V 2M2 • Tél. : (418) 657-4399 – www.puq.ca Tiré de : Quel avenir pour quelles églises?, Lucie K. Morisset, Luc Noppen et Thomas Coomans (dir.), ISBN 2-7605-1431-5 • D1431N Tous droits de reproduction, de traduction et d’adaptation réservés This essay aims to describe the process of church closings in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston (RCAB), a comprehensive downsizing and reconfiguration that was unprecedented in the United States. The actions of the Church prompted passionate responses, not just from the affected parishes, but also from all communities affected by the loss of so many church buildings. For many parishioners , the closing of their churches was much like a death in the family, prompting denial, sorrow, anger, and, ultimately, acceptance . We, in the preservation community, do not minimize those feelings. But many of us are very concerned about the potential for a very large loss of our local patrimony, the buildings that have served as local landmarks and the works of art that have defined our cities and towns. This text will outline the closing process used by the Archdiocese, and the responses of the local communities, the preservationists, and the real estate industry to the challenges and opportunities presented in such process.¢ The Boston Archdiocese¢ The Situation and the Reasons On July 1, 2003, Sean P. O’Malley was appointed by the pope to serve as archbishop for the 357 parishes in the 144 cities and towns that comprise the Archdiocese of Boston, the nation’s fourth-largest Catholic diocese. On January 9, 2004, just six months later, Archbishop O’Malley announced his intention to substantially reconfigure the Archdiocese by merging parishes and closing those that were deemed redundant. Although the RCAB had already “suppressed” 45 of its parishes over the previous 20 years, further reductions were deemed critical to the continued vitality of the church. 1. The author is a preservation attorney and consultant in private practice. Until recently as the senior program officer and regional attorney for the Northeast Office of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, based in Boston, she chaired the Massachusetts Preservation Coalition’s subcommittee on Boston Churches. Prior to joining the National Trust, Marilyn Fenollosa was Community Preservation Program Manager for Historic Massachusetts, Inc. (HMI). Prior to getting her master’s degree in preservation studies from Boston University and joining HMI, she was an attorney for the Bank of Boston; she holds a law degree from New York University, where she was an editor of the Law Review. Photo: Elsa Fitzgerald ~ St. Margaret, Beverly, MA. La propriété et ses enjeux – The Boston Archdiocese Parish Closing Process 141© 2006 – Presses de l’Université du Québec Édifice Le Delta I, 2875, boul. Laurier, bureau 450, Québec, Québec G1V 2M2 • Tél...