Posted on 07/12/2002 9:32:13 AM PDT by NYer
Despite a faltering economy and widespread scandal, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany said this year's fund-raising drive was better than last year, gathering pledges and contributions for more than $6.4 million dollars in the annual Bishop's Appeal that ended this week.
This year's appeal, the largest annual source money for the 14-county diocese's operating budget, was up $511,148 -- or 8.6 percent -- compared to the same campaign last year, according to a statement church officials issued Thursday.
Jack Manning, the director of the Bishop's Appeal, said the sexual abuse crisis was on the minds of many this year.
"We have had people who will call and say that, 'Until further notice, because of the scandal, do not send me any more literature on the bishop's appeal. I am not going to make a gift,' " Manning said. "But on the other side, some people say 'Hey, I want to show my support,' and they increased their gift."
"It's a wash, from this office's perspective," he said.
Near the close of the nine-week fund-raising drive that began in April, the sexual abuse scandal that has roiled the church nationwide hit home harder than ever before.
In recent weeks, the church has removed from ministry six priests who leaders said had sexually abused minors, revealed that the diocese has spent more than $2.3 million in secret settlement payments to sexual abuse victims and acknowledged that their insurance policy did not cover most of those payments.
Nationwide, polls indicate that 17 percent of Catholics are less likely to donate money to the church because of the sexual abuse scandal.
"Certainly there is a whole lot of skepticism about giving money to the church and then finding out it is going to pay off some kind of settlement," said John Zogby, president of the international polling firm Zogby International.
"But it's an issue of local trust for the local bishop. I think what you are going to have is some pockets where the church is impacted more greatly than others, and perhaps it's not in Albany," Zogby said
Elsewhere, most notably in the scandal's Boston epicenter, the church has seen contribution levels tumble dramatically. The Archdiocese of Boston's annual fund-raising campaign is off nearly 40 percent compared to last year and church officials are considering steep budget cuts for many programs.
In 2000, the Albany diocese's appeal took in an all-time high of $6.9 million in pledges. Last year's $6.3 million was the first drop-off since 1974. This year, with more than 45,000 contributions, the average gift hit an all-time high of $142.40, church officials said.
Manning said the church's fund-raising is still affected by a four-year capital campaign launched in 2000 that raised $58 million.
About $3 million came in the form of gifts upfront, while the remaining money was pledged, with the diocese billing contributors for installments during the next nine months.
Money raised during the Bishop's Appeal covers day-to-day church operations, administration, social services and educational programs.
Beyond the Catholic Church, many charitable groups have found the struggling stock market and other economic problems have hurt their fund-raising efforts.
"It's really tight," said Doug Sauer, the executive director of the Council of Community Services of New York State. "I think the average agency will tell you it's not up."
I do have one comment however.
There are four Catholic Churches in my town. Within the last 10 years one has built a new church, another has built a new two-story meeting hall, and a third is in the process of adding onto their church, parish hall and rennovating their parish school. Also our Catholic high school is growing yearly. My parish is considering a new church and/or parish hall within the next five years and a new school within ten years.
The facts are that the number of Catholics IS GROWING!
We should be celebrating that these lost lambs are coming back to the fold.
OK, I'll step down from my soapbox now.
High average gifts means there are fewer smaller donors. So the prosperous are holding up their end, while the less well-off are cutting back. Whether for economic or other reasons we can't tell.
About $3 million came in the form of gifts upfront, while the remaining money was pledged, with the diocese billing contributors for installments during the next nine months.
It'd be interesting to know what the rate of pledges versus outright gifts was last year, and what their collection rate is on pledges.
Elsewhere, most notably in the scandal's Boston epicenter, the church has seen contribution levels tumble dramatically. The Archdiocese of Boston's annual fund-raising campaign is off nearly 40 percent compared to last year and church officials are considering steep budget cuts for many programs.
This from my own diocese. Truly amazing. I can't believe the "Cardinal's Appeal" is off by only 40%
Cardinal Law could save a few bucks getting rid of his "Spokesperson" - why on earth does a shepherd need a "spokesperson" anyway? And he had her well before the scandal broke.
Peter's Pence on the other hand went very well.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.