On October 21, 2024, Archbishop Allen Vigneron issued a decree that relegates Saint James Church, Ferndale, to secular but not unbecoming use; that is, the building will no longer be used as a church. The decision takes effect on November 4, 2024. A certified copy of the decree may be obtained by contacting the Our Mother of Perpetual Help Parish Office, Oak Park. For additional information and assistance in understanding the details of this announcement, you may write to chancellor@aod.org.
Statement Fr. Chateau read at all Masses the Weekend of October 26/27, 2004
Dear Parishioners,
I, along with the parish transition team and our family clergy, spent over eight months in prayerful discernment and in close consultation with the Archdiocese of Detroit to determine what is best for the future and sustainability of our parish. There were numerous meetings, parishioner and community input, gathering of facts and information, a town hall, and a meeting to reach consensus within the transition team and our family clergy. As you know, the transition team overwhelmingly reached consensus to close St. James Church. Despite the transition team’s decision, affirmed by the Regional Moderator, Family Moderator, and priests of the Family of Parishes, some of the parishioners who served on the transition team and dissented from the consensus decision requested time to reverse the declining offertory trends, Mass attendance, and participation in parish activities, and to raise funds to support building maintenance and repairs at the Ferndale worship location. Benchmarks were set by the Archdiocese of Detroit related to raising capital expenditure funds, increasing offertory, and mass participation. While the benchmark process was launched, it was not a guarantee that the church would remain open but rather an openness from all involved to explore the possibility. Benchmarks were set, with an understanding that all of them would have to be met, and progress assessed every two months, for up to eight months. Sadly, the benchmarks were not met after almost three months. Any donations received for the capital expenditure fund have been returned to the donors.
It is with a heavy heart that I share that Archbishop Vigneron has issued a decree to proceed with the planned closure of St. James Church in Ferndale. On October 21, 2024, Archbishop Allen Vigneron issued a decree that relegates Saint James Church, Ferndale, to secular but not unbecoming use; that is, the building will no longer be used as a church. The decision takes effect on November 4, 2024. A certified copy of the decree may be obtained by contacting the Our Mother of Perpetual Help Parish Office, Oak Park. For additional information and assistance in understanding the details of this announcement, you may write to chancellor@aod.org. The closing Mass will be at 11:00 am on Sunday, November 3, 2024.
Additionally, I share the following information with you regarding the columbarium. In April 2012, prior to the cluster and eventual merger of St. James Parish with Our Lady of Fatima merging to form Our Mother of Perpetual Help, St. James was advised by the archdiocese that, “should the St. James building be closed, the columbarium will be moved to Holy Sepulchre Cemetery” and notification should be sent to niche owners. For some reason, this notification was not made. However, now that the decision to close St. James Church has been made and to be in compliance with Archdiocesan policies and Canon Law regarding columbaria, a plan has been established for the remains of the faithful departed interred in our parish columbaria at both worship locations to be respectfully relocated to Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Southfield. The transfer of the cremains, which will take place by November 2, 2024, will be conducted with the utmost care and oversight by the staff of Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery. You are invited to attend the All Souls Mass at 9am at Holy Sepulchre. Archbishop Vigneron will offer a special blessing of the faithful departed being relocated to the cemetery.
Should you have any questions or require further clarification regarding the columbarium, please feel free to contact Chuck White at 734.635.2598 or chuckwhiteolofsj@gmail.com.
Thank you for your understanding and support during this process. We continue to offer prayers for the eternal rest and light of those who have passed: Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them.
We fully understand that some of you are not happy with the decision to close St. James Church. However, the building is closing, not the parish. As we move forward, we must focus our efforts on strengthening and growing Our Mother of Perpetual Help Parish. It is my prayerful hope, and I encourage and invite all parishioners who have primarily attended our Ferndale location to attend Mass and parish activities in Oak Park as well as our family of parishes activities.
Please keep our entire parish community in your prayers. You may be assured of mine. Our Mother of Perpetual Help, pray for us.
Blessings,
Rev. Paul F. Chateau
Statement Fr. Chateau read at all Masses September 28 and September 29, 2024
As you know, Our Mother of Perpetual Help Parish is made up of two campuses – St. James Church in Ferndale, and Our Lady of Fatima Church in Oak Park. For more than a year parishioners have been meeting to determine the future of the parish and its use of facilities. Building maintenance, staffing, and everyday upkeep had become a financial concern, and with declining membership and offertory, it became apparent that one of the campuses must close.
In February and March parishioners met with representatives from the Archdiocese to express their hope to keep St. James campus operational. With the agreement of the Priests In Solidum, especially Father Chateau, these parishioners were given an opportunity to increase Mass attendance, participation in parish activities, a consistent and sustainable increase in weekly offertory, and to fundraise for necessary and immediate building maintenance for St. James Church. Fundraising donations were received by Our Sunday Visitor through the AOD website and temporarily held in a designated account for “Our Mother of Perpetual Help Parish – St. James Church.”
Progress was assessed and reported to parish leaders every two months. In the final analysis, there has not been consistent and sustainable increases in Mass attendance, participation in parish activities, increase in the weekly offertory over the past four months, or even since the planning meetings began a year ago. The fundraising goal of $262,775 was not met within the agreed upon timeframe and 100% of donations will be processed for return to donors on September 30, 2024 using the original method used, whether that be from a credit card or ACH transfer from a checking or savings account.
Please see the bulletin for additional information about the planning efforts of Our Mother of Perpetual Help.
August 4, 2024
FROM FR. PAUL - AN UPDATE ON THE STATUS OF THE PARISH
Dear Parishioners,
It came to my attention after the Masses last weekend (July 27 and July 28) that some of you may have received a letter seeking donations toward the benchmark fundraising efforts at our Ferndale Worship Location. The contents of the letter and the letter being sent did not have my approval and contained misinformation.
To review, after the transition team met for many months with numerous meetings there was a meeting to attempt to reach consensus on how we should move forward as a parish. Nine members recommended the closure of the Ferndale Worship Location. Three members recommended that the Oak Park Worship Location close and one member wanted both locations to remain open and the Fatima school building sold. The four people on the transition team who want the Ferndale Worship location to remain open were granted a meeting with the Archdiocese of Detroit. As a result of that meeting benchmarks for them to achieve, as well as guidelines to be followed, for the Ferndale Worship Location to remain open were set. I was not part of this process. Fundraising and other efforts toward this endeavor are NOT parish wide nor are they the responsibility of the parish. They do not occur under the auspices of Our Mother of Perpetual Help Parish or my pastoral leadership and judgment. These benchmarks and the established guidelines to be followed are for the people who want the Ferndale Worship location to remain open. This letter being sent out did not follow the guidelines.
I do not know how they accessed your names and addresses. We are trying to determine how this was done. Please know that we strive to keep all personal information confidential. I apologize to you for any distress this may have caused you.
As I have done for the past year I will continue to update you via the bulletin, website and my homilies when there is something to announce or inform you about related to the status of the parish.
Please keep me and the parish in your prayers as you remain in mine.
We walk by faith and not by sight.
Yours in Christ,
Rev. Paul F. Chateau
June 23, 2024
FROM FR. PAUL—AN UPDATE ON THE STATUS OF THE PARISH
Over a year ago, in May 2023, our Director of Finance and our Finance Council began the annual process to create a budget for Fiscal Year 2023-2024. This effort exposed some real financial problems. It quickly became apparent that we could not continue without a hard look at major expenses like roof repairs, maintenance issues, and everyday expenses.
Many churches in our area and throughout the country are experiencing declining attendance and lower offertory giving. It should be and has been noted that any one of the churches in our family of parishes can easily accommodate the number of people who attend mass on the weekends in our family of parishes.
A task force was established made up of twelve parishioners, me, and representatives from the Archdiocese of Detroit Parish Care Department who offered guidance for this process. This team spent much time and energy to study feasible alternatives to the challenges we are facing. The questions that faced us were: what to do? and how to proceed with the best interests of the parish as a whole?
After months and months of prayerful discernment, heart wrenching meetings, review of data and facts, input from parishioners, as well as a town hall the team met to try to reach consensus. Nine of the members of this team discerned that the campus in Ferndale should be closed, three members wanted Ferndale to remain open, and one wanted both locations to remain open but to sell the school building in Oak Park. The priests of our family of parishes then met. After a full review of all the information all four priests in our family of parishes unanimously reached consensus that the Ferndale location should close. This recommendation along with all the data from all the meetings, parishioner input and town hall input were sent to the Archdiocese of Detroit.
The four members of the task force who wanted the Ferndale location to remain open requested a meeting with the Archdiocese of Detroit. They were granted a meeting with the bishop in charge of our region. The bishop was sympathetic to their plea and indicated that the Archdiocese would review the data and set benchmarks for the Ferndale campus to meet for its survival.
This decision by the Archdiocese took me out of this process. I personally am not involved in this process nor is the parish. The Archdiocese asserted this direction. At a recent meeting I was informed of the benchmarks set by the Archdiocese which the Ferndale location, not the parish, must meet. Besides a fundraising goal of over $262,000 the Ferndale location needs to achieve and maintain a consistent 15% increase in their offertory giving as well as in attendance/participation each week.
Over the years the Ferndale church population has greatly diminished. In the 1970’s there were over 2500 families. Today, typically about 110 people attend the 11:00 am Mass. In 2012 when I became pastor there, tough decisions and cutbacks needed to be made due to loss of income. Even with these cutbacks the financial struggles continued.
No one wants to be going through this process. But financial difficulties cannot responsibly be ignored. The bottom line is we must continue to be good stewards, financially responsible and live within our means.
Additionally, it saddens me to inform you that there is misleading, inappropriate, and false information being posted on social media. This does nothing to help the situation and only makes this situation more difficult.
I have happily served in Oak Park since 1972 and in Ferndale since 2012. My prayer is that when all is said and done our faith and sense of the praying community will keep us together. This is the reality which should supersede any building.
September 17, 2023 (Fr. Chateau presented this information at all Masses the weekend of Sept. 16/17, 2023. It also in the bulletin dated September 17, 2023)
Dear Parishioners of Our Mother of Perpetual Help Parish,
I have a deep and abiding affection for our parish. Serving as Pastor for the last 11 years in Ferndale and the last 51½ years in Oak Park has been my vocation, my life, and my joy. There is within me a genuine feeling of loving connectedness. I deeply miss the occasions when I am not able to be present. As Pastor, I have among other things tried to provide spiritual accompaniment while ensuring the bills are paid.
We are one parish with two worship locations. Each has their own unique history and traditions. Over the past few months many of my homilies have revolved around the challenges of our parish and our Family of Parishes. The past few years have presented us with challenges that we have never faced before: A world-wide pandemic, changes to the way we worship, a decline of 83 priests available since 2012, a 30% decrease in attendance since 2018, aging buildings with expensive repairs, financial challenges as well as the introduction of the Family of Parishes concept in the Archdiocese.
The institution of the Family of Parishes has made something crystal clear. We have many more buildings than our Family and Parishes require. Any one of our 5 church buildings could seat the number of people who attend our Saturday and Sunday liturgies.
There are a few things we need to keep in mind as we chart our course into the future. We are all called to be good stewards of the gifts entrusted to us. Another thing we need to keep in mind is that our parish is NOT the buildings. Our parish IS the community coming together in prayer, worship, and service to others. We must trust in the reality that Jesus is in charge.
Change is hard. Being a Pastor during times of change is difficult. Given my experience in pastoring this community of faith and in consultation with parish leadership I have made difficult decisions. Today we as a parish need to face some hard realities.
In May 2023 and July 2023, facility audits were completed at both of our locations. These audits are required by the Archdiocese of Detroit. We also had roof inspections done on all parish buildings. At the same time, our Director of Finance and our Finance Council began preparing the budget for the 2023 – 2024 Fiscal Year to be submitted to the Archdiocese of Detroit for approval. These things have become sadly, a “perfect storm.” The facility audits and roof inspections revealed that there are significant and immediate repairs which need to be made at the St. James church and St. James rectory buildings. The parish has been subsidizing the rectory for the past 9 years. The tenants pay rent but the rent that they pay does not cover the cost of having the rectory. Last fiscal year after the rent was paid the parish shortfall was approximately $25,000 to cover the operational costs of having the rectory. The costs of the roof repairs of the St. James buildings are approximately $184,500. As a result of this information the budget submitted for the current Fiscal Year 2023-2024 is in deficit. The facility audit and roof inspection of the Fatima buildings revealed that the roof on the Fatima school, which has a tenant who is hoping to expand its use and is generating a $31,000 profit for the parish, will require roof replacement in the 2024 – 2025 Fiscal Year. The cost of this is approximately $180,000. While the Fatima school roof project does not have to be done until next fiscal year it is required since there is a tenant in the building.
After much prayer and discernment, I asked our Finance Council Chairperson, Chuck White, and our Director of Finance, Vicki Mazurek, to take a deep dive into the overall financial status of Our Mother of Perpetual Help Parish, and to explore our current and anticipated financial status to see if doing these repairs is financially feasible for our parish and to present their factual findings to me and our parish Finance Council. The necessary data was gathered. It became clear that if we proceed with the work needed at St. James in this fiscal year and the work needed at Fatima in the following fiscal year Our Mother of Perpetual Help parish will have no money to continue operations. This information was discussed at a Parish Finance Council meeting, a Family Finance Team meeting, a regular monthly meeting with the priests of the four parishes attending, as well as a Family Leadership Team meeting with the priests of the family. Consensus was reached at our parish Finance council. Support was given at the Family Finance Team meeting, Family of Parishes priests meetings, and a meeting with the Family Leadership Team and the priests of the family to explore the potential closing and sale of one of our properties.
In October 2021 the owner of “The James” (the senior living facility adjacent to the St. James property), had contacted us requesting a meeting to discuss any interest we might have in selling the St. James Church and Rectory. At that time, we told him that it was not something we were interested in exploring.
In the beginning of July of this year, after much prayer and discernment, I, as the priest with primary responsibility for Our Mother of Perpetual Help Parish, asked the Archdiocese of Detroit to contact the owner of The James to determine if he still has any interest in purchasing the property. It was made very clear that he still has definite interest.
In my homilies over the past few months, I have shared with you the many challenges we are facing.
Again, we need to be good stewards as we chart our course into the future. We have an obligation to manage and utilize intelligently the gifts that God has entrusted to us. We must live within our means. No decisions have been made. We need to be proactive, rather than reactive to the issues we face and make some exceedingly difficult decisions. We need to keep the best interests of the whole parish as the top priority.
I asked a group of parishioners to serve with me on a parish status transition team to further discuss and hopefully come to consensus around what we should do. There have been two meetings with this group where this information has been presented and discussed. This group reached consensus that something needs to be done as soon as possible. Inevitably, we must dare to feel the sting of the collective loss we are experiencing. What we are studying is what to do. What will happen? Do we keep both locations open? Do we do the required repairs and drain our savings? Do we close Fatima? Do we close St. James? We need to hear from you the parishioners. It is my prayerful hope that the best decisions, the best judgments will prevail.
Secure boxes and index cards are located at the Welcome Desk at each of our locations for you to submit your questions/input. There is also a form on the Status of the Parish page of our website where you may submit your questions/input regarding these matters. We request that you supply your name, address, telephone number and email address on your submissions. The team will be meeting again on Oct. 3rd to review your questions/input. Your questions will be answered with factual responses.
Obviously, this is a process that will take some time. I will keep you informed of our progress via my homilies, articles in the bulletin and on our website. Parish mobile app messages will be sent when information is posted on our website. If you have not subscribed to the parish mobile app now is the time to do so.
I know this information is hard to digest, but if we do nothing except fix the immediate problems, in two years we will not be able to pay our bills. In my heart there is much sadness. Please be assured of my prayers for all of you during this time as I ask you to keep me in your prayers as well.
