Perfect timing to reward clergy with luxuries, never mind their vows of poverty.
The luxury 5 bedroom home has grand-sized chef’s kitchen,” “soaring ceilings,” “lush lawns” and “luxurious master en-suite” with a “spa-like marble bathroom” in the 3,269-square-foot “Tuscan estate” the diocese purchased for McGrath earlier this year.
“It seems very inappropriate for this expenditure to be made on so many levels,” said one parishioner who asked not to be identified to avoid harming relationships with other Catholics. “Our diocese is greatly underfunded as it is.”
McGrath wouldn’t be the first bishop whose accommodations were considered overly cush by some parishioners.
Four years ago, parishioners in New Jersey became so upset when they learned Archbishop of Newark John Myers planned to retire in a 7,500-square-foot “palace” that they withheld donations. That same year, the Archbishop of Atlanta, Wilton Gregory, apologized to parishioners for building a $2.2 mansion for himself in the city’s most exclusive neighborhood and said he would sell it.
How is this even remotely justifiable? He doesn't even have a family to justify a house that big, it's just him. Sell it, give the proceeds to the local poor and send him off to a Monastery. This is prosperity gospel type shit and has no place in the Catholic Church
Bentley Edwards
There's something very uncomfortable about the way Roman Catholicism operates. I'm Orthodox, and I have witnessed abuses isolated incidents of abuse among clergy, but things like this seem to be totally normal with Roman Catholicism.
Because everybody looks what the others do. Imagine one bishop who has bought for himself a home for $2 million visiting another bishop who also has bought for himself a home for $2 million. His counciousness was accusing him but now he sees his fellow brother has done the same and he is relieved. For the same reason he will try to encourage other people to do the same. "This is normal, there is nothing bad in this" he will say and he will believe that his words are true.
"his made it necessary to look for another house. The Diocesan Finance Council and the College of Consultors approved the purchase of the home in the Willow Glen neighborhood of San Jose. I agreed with them that in economic terms the purchase of the home made sense in terms of financial return on investment. It was bought primarily with funds that had been designated for this sole purpose, funds that had accrued from the sale of Bishop DuMaine’s condominium, when he was no longer able to live in it due to failing health."
"I have heard from many on this topic and I have decided that I will not move into this house. The Diocese will put it up for sale as soon as possible; if there is any profit to the Diocese from that sale, those funds will be donated to Charities Housing, a division of Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County.
I assume full responsibility for this decision and I believe that the sale of the house is the appropriate action. I thank those who have advised me.
When I retire, I now intend to live in a rectory at one of our parishes."
Jason Martin
So, it was bought with funds from another property sale, was intended to be later sold on after the bishop's death for more money (because the church has been purchasing and selling off land for centuries).
What's wrong with this? Do any of you people here know how expensive property in San Jose is?
Logan Bennett
The optics are shit. If you want to flip houses that's one thing. Rent it out cheaply to a family, set a soup kitchen there, make it into a little church, do lectures there, make a library out of it…I dunno, do Something good with it for a decade while it increases in value. Don't gift it to a guy who took a vow of poverty and lives alone and is probably a homosexual. It's actually bad for the bishop to get spoiled and like the laity said their diocese is underfunded.
Jaxson Brooks
except, all of that LOWERS the value, the entire point of the land purchase is INVESTMENT.
this is why the house is given to a retired bishop, who will spend most of his time keeping up the property; this is why he specifically states he will definitely spend his remaining time tending to the garden, which will raise the value of the investment. this makes sense, right?
Incredibly uncharitable of you. Prove the bishop is a homosexual, that he is getting spoiled, or that the diocese is underfunded.
The entire idea of a land investment is to make more than you spent, this in result will make -many- more soup kitchens and other cash-flow to keep up social services. Need I remind you, this has been done for centuries!
Chase Russell
another area of hypocrisy here, what exactly do protestant collections go to?
1. either rent for the church and utilities, and eventual land purchase for permanent home (see steve anderson) 2. the pastor's personal funds (again, see steve anderson and his 6+ children) 3. social services, which get split with funds used to expand the church's brand (again, see steve anderson spending cash on prosleytizing or making movies)
the orthodox church acts in the same way, buying and selling land/property for social/church investment, so I'm not sure what tree anyone is barking up here
Isaac Parker
Renting it to a family doesn't lower the value any more than letting the bishop stay there does, though I agree other more public options would.
Jason Taylor
sets a bad example for other bishops, it's not like this is standard practice, this is a vain perk. The fact that he accepted it , as a solo mansion, shows his true colors
Noah Williams
Literally this, guys. The guy won't be moving into this house and it will be sold off soon. Delete this trainwreck of a thread.
Grayson Bailey
Are you dense? This fraud Bishop only "realized it was a mistake" AFTER his parishoners made a big stink about it, after people noticed his vanity.
THREADS like this are the reason why he's not moving in! Expose the stink, don't hide it. The RCC hasn't learned this yet.
Levi Campbell
"However, I erred in judgment in the purchase of a 5-bedroom home for $2.3 million. I failed to consider adequately the housing crisis in this valley and the struggles of so many families and communities in light of that crisis.
I have heard from many on this topic and I have decided that I will not move into this house. "
Gets caught with his hand in the cookie jar…Oh I didn't want a cookie after all! I was only pretending!
This guy should be disciplined, his retirement/pension eliminated
Not all clergy take a vow of poverty. Most priests don't. Only those who are members of Mendicant Orders do so.
Jace Reed
just to let you know not all priests have to take vows of poverty. that is only for some orders
Austin Ramirez
sorry didn't see your response first
Brayden Harris
purchasing land, raising the value, and then selling it at a profit? this is basic land investment.
if you have zero idea how the economics of land investment works, why open your mouth?
Blake Fisher
renting it to laity is not as safe an option as leasing it to a single 60 year old man who will spend the rest of his days in prayer/upkeep. and I'm not exactly sure how renting a 2.3 million dollar home to a family would be a great way to treat an investment property
Carter Torres
Being this autistic. Complaints LIKE this, not literally this thread …. No one with power reads 8ch
Kayden Miller
Some charity there RCC user
Jackson Campbell
...
Lucas Anderson
How autistic indeed.
Joseph Diaz
user, you sell the property for millions of dollars, which in turn supports way more food + supplies for the homeless/charities than just providing…low rent for a family, or whatever it is you're kvetching about.
Jaxon Sanchez
Do you actually believe those millions go to food and supplies for the homeless? lel. More like it will be embezzled to install a plush bathhouse in a rectory, or used to pay off gay prostitutes.
Elijah Thomas
Yes, I do. You have to prove they don't.
Jayden Lee
Considering the endless scandals involving financial corruption, secret settlements, and payments to gay lovers from diocese funds, I think the burden of proof lies on anyone trying to pretend a Catholic diocese actually uses money for anything else.
Matthew Williams
I don't think the problem is the property values in California, those are unavoidable. Rather, that the Diocese of San Jose has had some gay infiltration problems reported on traditionalist news services and given the current climate there would be some suspicious just what exactly a five bedroom (and well-furnished) house would be needed for if it's just for one person and occasional guests.
Andrew King
You don’t buy and immediately sell it. I’m suggesting renting it to a family for a set period of time, preferably at a rate that still allows them to save for s permanent residence of their own, while the property acquires equity
Hunter Bailey
All accusations you would have to be at extreme pains to prove. Which diocese? All diocese?
Calumny. May God rebuke you.
Michael Wright
OK, which family? I'm sure there are hundreds of families in the San Jose area, but you have to pick one. You also have to pick one that can be entrusted with a piece of Church property and that will maintain and keep up the property, or may inadvertently lower the value possibly at the expense of the Church.
I understand where you're coming from, but all the complaints seem to come from people who simply have no idea how any of this works and are against the Church.
Jason Rodriguez
Literally any of the churchgoers in need? This seems more like an attempt to justify not being more charitable with funds provided by the people themselves than it does a reasonable justification for using a 5 bedroom property as a single person’s dwelling. I’m not against the Church, I just don’t find it very believable that it’s too hard to manage the property to a family that will take care of it so he only solution is to let it be used by the one person instead.
Anthony Cox
Why a bishop though? Why not, say, a married deacon and his wife? Also, considering the track record of Catholic bishops, the odds of the house being turned into a gay sex brothel while he occupied it are very high. Are you telling me that wouldn't lower property values?
Lucas Johnson
So you want them to turn a property investment into a rent-free house? They already have shelter services, and they're already selling the property because the money is AN INVESTMENT, they bought so they can sell.
It's a property investment. Do you know what that is?
So then you want the Church to be involved with rental properties?
Because the Bishop is retired and is putting himself to work on the property. Did you read the statement they put out? They bought the property with funds from a condo they did the same thing with. If you paid attention, you'll notice they SOLD THE CONDO when the Bishop was close to death! Ergo, they're caretakers.
And you implying that an ordinary Catholic family would somehow not take care of it properly and would lover property values is different how, exactly? You're the one who brought up risk and property values. From that standpoint, bishops don't exactly have a good track record. A bishop is actually an extremely high-risk tenant, I'd say, since properties that gain a reputation as places of disrepute will definitely drop in value. At least if a married deacon lived there you can be sure there wouldn't be a constant stream of strangers dropping by for casual sex.
Nicholas Martin
He already declined living in it once he realized everyone found out he wanted to love in luxury. Stop covering for dumb clerics
Brayden Martin
People complaining is how we got this vain bishop to give up living in it. Complain more. Less power for the corrupt church
