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With Sex Scandal Draining Finances, Catholic Parish Closures Will Continue

By Joe Ward | April 8, 2016 11:16am
 Archbishop Blase Cupich said the church is facing a financial strain but that its mission will continue apace.
Archbishop Blase Cupich said the church is facing a financial strain but that its mission will continue apace.
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DNAinfo/Joe Ward

GOLD COAST — Archbishop Blase Cupich acknowledged on Friday the archdiocese's financial burdens — largely caused by sex abuse settlements — are causing a strain, but he said the church will continue its mission while considering how to handle the problem.

Taking questions at an unrelated press conference, Cupich confirmed what has been publicly disclosed in financial statements: that the archdiocese's finances are shaky and that he will have to consider parish consolidations and closures.

The church's financial woes were detailed in a Sun-Times report this week that said the financial problems are in part caused by $140 million in settlements to victims of sexual abuse in the last three decades.

It has paid out more than $35 million in settlements since 2012 and the church is expecting at least one more high-profile case that will likely end in a cash settlement for five victims who claimed they were abused by a priest station at a North Lawndale church, according to the Sun-Times.

Cupich said that those settlements were not covered by insurance. He said the financial issues are a problem, but that the church will continue its mission throughout this difficult period.

"We're trying to deal with the realities we have," Cupich said. "We have reached out to the families that have been victimized, and that is ongoing. We have to go on with our day-to-day mission."

Cupich said he and his advisors are seeking to answer one question in particular: "How are we going to have sustainable parishes?"

The church has already considered some closures. Six parishes in Pilsen could be consolidated to three as the church grapples with declining parishioners and building maintenance.

One of those churches slated to close is St. Aldabert's, which received a $3 million donation that will likely not be enough to keep it afloat.

Beyond financial problems, Cupich said the archdiocese is lacking in personnel.

"We don't have the priests to staff all these places," he said.

Cupich said it is more important to him to have a functioning and healthy church that services the needy and afflicted than it is to have beautiful, pristine parishes.

 

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