General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Do you know why Catholics put money in the collection plate at Sunday mass? [View all]No Vested Interest
(5,164 posts)Don't know where you're located, but my parish church is in a large midwestern city, in a stable area with some affluence though not applicable to all members.
The church is Gothic style, almost 100 yrs old. Necessary repairs have been made over the yrs, and many improvements.
It has been discovered that the slate roof needs repair and the estimated cost will be $1,000,000. (Yes, 1 million - I didn't insert too many zeros.) Apparently the felt lining under the slate has disintegrated completely, after so many yrs.
I'm not sure how this is going to be dealt with, certainly not with weekly contributions. The church had a capital campaign about 10 yrs ago and made both the church and school handicapped-accessible, including an elevator in each, built additions to the school for kindergarten and library use, and modified other facilities for more practical use - restrooms, bridal prep room, meeting hall, etc.
Another capital campaign was being planned to tear down a little used property and replace it with an all-purpose building - gym, banquet hall, etc. In lieu of the the need of the roof repair, those plans are likely on hold, though I'm not closely enough involved to know.
When the huge air conditioning unit needed a repair, parts took weeks to arrive and to install. I can't imagine what the heating and cooling bills must be for the whole facility - church, school, and rectory.
Don't fail to notice that adequate maintenance has not been done on infrastructure throughout the U.S. - bridges, highways, levees, sewer systems, you name it- in recent yrs. Maybe that's the new American way, though it hasn't always been that way, and still isn't in some areas.