It's kind of rough, though. He received all these monies and pledges and he's leaving to become a Catholic. His congregation is left high and dry and who knows what they'll get for a priest next after all their efforts to support him.
Why doesn't the church membership decide to go with him, ie, he could call upon the congregants that are willing to convert with him to by RC, go through the initiation process, and he could continue to serve the same congregants.
If I was in his parish, that is what I would consider.
Of course, I am Roman Catholic already so I consider it a good home. :-)
An episcopalian friend has decided to make the jump.
Not the oint of the letter but what does a church do with $280,000-$400,000?
Does it sit in an account or is it spent as it comes in?
What does it get spent on?
You misunderstand. The monies were collected for improvements to the buildings and grounds of the church. The priest gets none of that. The airconditioning is a capital improvement for the building, not for the priest's house. The Belltower is a building improvement, not for the priest's benefit.
Please do not impugn this man by implying he is a thief.
ECUSA is to blame for them being priest-less.
The money goes to the parish (it's a "capital funds" drive, see?) for improvements to the buildings. He even lists two, probably the most expensive - adding a bell tower and retrofitting the church for A/C.
Not only does he leave that behind, he also leaves behind his salary, his accrued pension, and his insurance coverage. He basically comes to the Catholic Church with the clothes on his back.
You come perilously close to calling him a thief. Pretty hard words for a man who has left everything for his faith.