IFRC 3rd Letter to Pastors

R. Stephen Barrett

Co-Chair Improved Financial Relationship Committee

c/o Archdiocesan Pastoral Center

66 Brooks Drive

Braintree, MA 02184

Dear Father/Monsignor:

I write to you today to update you on the work of the Improved Financial Relationship Committee (IFRC), and invite you, along with lay leaders from your parish community, to attend an upcoming information meeting.

In late February, you may recall that our committee hosted meetings in all regions of the Archdiocese introducing to pastors and requesting their feedback on some of the committee’s initial proposals for improving the financial relationship that currently exists between the Archdiocese’s 292 parishes and Central Ministries. Feedback from pastors regarding the direction of the committee’s preliminary proposals was generally positive, mainly because of its simplicity, fairness across the board, mutual accountability, and involvement of pastors in the Central Ministries’ budget process. At the same time, several important questions regarding the details and implementation of the model were raised, which the committee has been addressing in recent months.

The committee is once again hoping to gain feedback on its work; this time requesting that pastors invite a few lay leaders from their parish to join them at one of the consultation meetings. The committee suggests inviting parish staff and/or members of the parish finance, pastoral, and stewardship committees. Below you will find a listing of dates and times for this upcoming round of meetings. Please feel free to attend whichever is most convenient for you. Enclosed you will find an RSVP form for your convenience, which can be faxed or mailed back to us.

Thank you, as always, for your continued support of this important initiative. In the meantime, if you have any questions or concerns, please contact any member of the IFRC, Scot Landry, or me.

Yours in Christ,

On behalf of my fellow IFRC Members:

Very Reverend Bryan Parrish, VF (Co-Chair), Very Rev. Richard W. Fitzgerald, VF, Rev. Msgr. Paul V. Garrity, VF, Rev. Msgr. Francis H. Kelley, VF, Very Rev. Paul Ritt, VF, Mr. Paul Sandman, Mr. Herb Lynch, Mr. James P. McDonough, Very Rev. Thomas S. Foley, Mr. Scot Landry, Brother James Peterson, OFM, and Denise McKinnon-Biernat