Sacred Heart parishioners appeal

By Brian Kelly/Staff Writer
Thursday, June 10, 2004

On May 25, Sacred Heart Church was selected as one of 65 parishes set to close in the next six months as part of the Archdiocese of Boston's restructuring. However, more than 100 loyal parishioners made a plea to Archbishop Sean O'Malley last week in hopes of keeping their beloved Follen Road church open.

Last Thursday, a formal appeal containing more than 120 signatures and 101 letters of support was sent by church members to O'Malley. Sacredheartappeal.org, an informational Web site designed to keep church members updated on developments, has also been established, and through Monday, the "hit count" on the site was at more than 19,000.

Frank Bellini, a 26-year Lexington resident and 13-year member of Sacred Heart, is one of the main cogs behind the appeal. He said because Sacred Heart has yet to be given an official closing date, "our so-called appeal is actually a plea." Each parish designated for closure is expected to receive a closing date from the Archdiocese of either two, four, or six months after receiving notice.

"We were initially told we would receive a closing date in two weeks," said Bellini, a former co-chairman of the Sacred Heart Parish Council. "I think this plea may have put things on hold."

According to the formal letter sent to O'Malley on June 2, members of Sacred Heart argue that the sacramental index, one of the criteria used by the Archdiocese in determining church closures, "is a defective measure of viability." The letter also stated that measuring attendance without taking into account the size of a church penalizes smaller houses of worship, and "the judgment appears to be based on arbitrary and capricious criteria or on factors not identified in the public selection process."

The parishioners believe the sacramental index is "illogical" because it gives funerals the same weight as baptisms in measuring the "viability of a parish," and the index "clearly undervalues young parishioners with children." Sacred Heart members feel a better measure is a birth to death ratio. Last year, the Follen Road church had 42 baptisms compared with 26 funerals, suggesting a growing community.

"We have a lot of young people in our parish," said Bellini, who noted the index also gives funerals and wedding the same weight. "We had more baptisms in 2003 than any other parish that is going to close. The sacramental index discriminates against the young. We see this as a biased judgment. They're basically ignoring you between baptism and marriage."

Additionally, the Web site points out that "44 churches with attendance lower than ours remain open, 66 with sacramental indexes lower than ours remain open, and, even more troubling, 35 churches with both lower than ours remain open."

Father John J. O'Brien, a visiting priest who has been serving Sacred Heart for 10 years, wrote one of the 101 letters to O'Malley supporting the Lexington parish. He cited Sacred Heart's work with Bread for the World, Amnesty International, Habitat for Humanity, and its strong track record of helping the poor in Honduras and Haiti as major reasons for keeping the church open. O'Brien also said the quality of worship at the church is another reason O'Malley should reconsider his decision.

"Many people from other places in the surrounding area and visitors comment to me regularly about the inspirational quality of worship. As a priest and presider, I find myself uplifted as the church baptizes infants, anoints the sick, reconciles sinners, marries and, most of all, buries parishioners," said O'Brien. "Were the parish to close, this exemplary and admirable doxology would be lost to the church of Boston. In fact, the style of Sacred Heart is somewhat akin to that of St. Malachy (Burlington) and St. Eulalia (Winchester). Expecting Sacred Heart people to join the other Lexington parish or Saint Camillus in Arlington would be like putting a hockey puck and a baseball together and then asking them to do football. ...

"I have given a lot at Sacred Heart; but I have received immeasurably more than I have given," added O'Brien. "I have been blessed by these people. I have seen holiness and witness at Sacred Heart. To lose this would be a major loss for the Archdiocese and for me personally."

Town Manager Richard White, a Sacred Heart parishioner himself, also made a plea on behalf of his church.

"Sacred Heart Lexington is an unusual place with a strong, loyal, committed and unusually gifted group of parishioners. They work in partnership with a dedicated and selfless clergy to make Sacred Heart welcoming and familiar," said White. "I recognize that you receive many impassioned appeals from parishioners all throughout the archdioceses. All of these appeals are worthy of your consideration, but I hope Sacred Heart's ability to be self-sufficient and its symbolic value to Lexington might cause you to reconsider your decision."

Bellini said he has yet to receive feedback from the Archdiocese, but he is hopeful the plea made by Sacred Heart's parishioners will be strongly considered.

"We are a tremendously generous, vibrant parish, a parish of choice for many. To close those types of parishes is counterproductive," said Bellini. "Nothing will happen if we don't at least try."

Rev. Christopher Coyne, spokesman for the Archdiocese of Boston, was unavailable for comment.