11-year Protest in Catholic Church Faces Moment of Reckoning. wochit business on May 26, 2015 Outfitted with Wi-Fi, cable television, snacks and comfortable armchairs, the vestibule at St. Frances …More
11-year Protest in Catholic Church Faces Moment of Reckoning.
wochit business on May 26, 2015 Outfitted with Wi-Fi, cable television, snacks and comfortable armchairs, the vestibule at St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Roman Catholic Church could easily be mistaken for someone's living room these days, if not for the brilliant stained glass window that takes up an entire wall. The 11-year protest which has already spanned the tenure of three popes, may be nearing an end. A state judge has ordered the protesters to vacate by as early as Friday. Protesters said this past Friday that they had gotten a temporary reprieve, but the Boston archdiocese, which is expected to oppose such a delay, has declined to comment. Organizers say they have no intention of leaving until the Boston archdiocese restores their parish's standing or sells them the building outright. They say they are prepared to be arrested as trespassers, if necessary.The impasse places the Boston archdiocese, which took the group to court to push them out, in an uncomfortable position. Images of peaceful former parishioners being led away in handcuffs would bring unwelcome attention to an archdiocese still recovering from a clergy sex abuse scandal that, to a degree, began in Boston before exploding globally. Theirs is the last of six church occupations launched in 2004, when the archdiocese shuttered 70 worship houses.
wochit business on May 26, 2015 Outfitted with Wi-Fi, cable television, snacks and comfortable armchairs, the vestibule at St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Roman Catholic Church could easily be mistaken for someone's living room these days, if not for the brilliant stained glass window that takes up an entire wall. The 11-year protest which has already spanned the tenure of three popes, may be nearing an end. A state judge has ordered the protesters to vacate by as early as Friday. Protesters said this past Friday that they had gotten a temporary reprieve, but the Boston archdiocese, which is expected to oppose such a delay, has declined to comment. Organizers say they have no intention of leaving until the Boston archdiocese restores their parish's standing or sells them the building outright. They say they are prepared to be arrested as trespassers, if necessary.The impasse places the Boston archdiocese, which took the group to court to push them out, in an uncomfortable position. Images of peaceful former parishioners being led away in handcuffs would bring unwelcome attention to an archdiocese still recovering from a clergy sex abuse scandal that, to a degree, began in Boston before exploding globally. Theirs is the last of six church occupations launched in 2004, when the archdiocese shuttered 70 worship houses.