Ask the Bishop, Live
Ask the Bishop, Live
PLEASE READ
After many callers from Pittston called to ask Bishop Joseph F. Martino hard questions about his apparently unjustified decision to close St. Mary's School in Avoca and St. John the Baptist School in Pittston, and Bishop Martino responded to one caller with a reference to "liars" and certain pastors in the same sentence, the show went on "hiatus" for June. Not even rebroadcasts were shown, as is normall done throughtout the month after the live telecast.
We recommend calling the number listed in the official Diocese of Scranton announcement (media page) below if you would like to know when the NEXT "Ask the Bishop" will be telecast LIVE (probably in July):
*Please Note*
ASK THE BISHOP, LIVE, with Most Rev. Joseph F. Martino, Bishop of Scranton, will NOT be broadcast on Thursday, June 10 at 3:00 pm, as had been scheduled, the program is now on hiatus. CTV will return to the previously scheduled regular programming at this time.
Encores of this program scheduled for June 13 at 5:00 pm, June 15 at 9:00 pm, June 16 at 4:00 pm, and June 18 at 10:00 am, will be replaced by the “Be Not Afraid Holy Hour: The Living Eucharist”.
ASK THE BISHOP, LIVE, is a one-hour, live, call-in program produced monthly by CTV, and hosted by Maria Orzel, Executive Director of Communications, and Dan Gallagher, host/reporter for CTV. Bishop Martino answers questions live on-the-air from viewers calling in from throughout the diocese, in the CTV coverage area.
Produced and broadcast by CTV: Catholic Television, "Ask The Bishop" can be seen LIVE on CTV Monthly.
ASK THE BISHOP, LIVE, WITH Bishop Joseph F. Martino (60 min)
CALL LIVE
WITH YOUR QUESTIONS:
(570) 207-2219
Toll Free: (800) 246-0288
To find out more and to get exact dates of the next LIVE broadcast with Bishop Martino, go to www.DioceseofScranton.org, then click on "Media", then "Catholic Television".
Ask the Bishop Live is listed under "Monthly Specials".
CTV is found on Channel 12 for Adelphia viewers
Below is a portion of the show, Ask the Bishop, Live, which was broadcast live on April 21st, 2004 and rebroadcast on April 27, 28, and 29th.
We have only featured calls which addressed the Catholic school closings in Pittston: St. John the Baptist Elementary School
and
Saint Mary's School, Avoca
The hour started out with Maria Orzel, apokesperson for the Diocese of Scranton and the co-host (along with Dan Gallagher), introducing Bishop Martino and asking him to explain the new position he has created for Auxiliary Bishop John Dougherty. Bishop Dougherty is now "Vicar for Administration", and will serve, it seems, as yet another buffer between Bishop Martino and the lay people of the Diocese of Scranton.
Phone Call from Patsy:
Bishop Martino: (failed to correct Patsy's statement that parents protested on Easter Sunday, which parents DID NOT DO!!). Instead, he allowed the falsehood to remain on the air, uncorrected, and stated...
However, to explain, and you haven't asked this but I'm sure others might - for me to explain to people how that happened would be, eh, require me as a bishop to be publicly divided from members of my flock and from priests and, uh, seem to be critical, and, um, I can't afford to do that. I, uh, above all have the image, eh, you know, St. Ignatius of Antioch, one of the early Church fathers, always said that the, the image of the Father in Heaven in the local Church, the image of God the Father in the local Church is supposed to be the Bishop, and I cannot afford to be divided from my people. That would be a father leaving his children. So I, uh, have expressed in public several times my sincere regret because I am at the center of much of the hurt to the people in Pittston experienced. UM...
However, the communication of it was bad - but the plan is good. And I know it will cause, uh, some pain. But these are birth pains, not death pains, and I think we have to, uh, just move on now to the future and I intend, in time, to, uh, do what I can by way of healing, uh, with all of the, uh, people that are involved there. But, uh, TIME, uh, needs to, uh, go a little bit here so that some healing comes just by time. Sometimes we can face something more realistically a day or two after it happens than we can on the day that it happens and there's nothing wrong with that. So, uh, in time I will address all that.
I regret, again, the pain and difficulty that, er, uh, occured. But, um, I said to many people, you know, if you go to the hospital and, um, there's a need for you to be healed of something, uh, no one in the hospital is going to guarantee that they're not going to inflict great pain on you in an effort to make you well again. How many people have had surgery and had to go through even painful therapy, uh, even post, uh, uh, even when the pain of the surgery has worn off. And, um, uh, that's just what happens sometimes and, uh, uh, the pain, we hope will go away. 68%, perhaps more now, of the children are resettled into new schools and I think, like most children, will make new friends very rapidly. And they be in union with one another long after some of the adults will continue to, to, uh, smart over this, um, sad decision.
So I, uh, did not come here - people think I came here with instructions from the Vatican to close schools or some nonsense like that (Bishop Martino laughs and someone laughs in the background)- I haven't gotten one piece of paper from the Vatican telling me what I should do here. They thought that I was experienced enough to know what to do. And, um, I'm looking to foster Catholic education, to foster the Catholic identity of our Diocese, to foster vocations. And here and there that may require me to make difficult decisions.
But, um, I've got to face God someday. And that's what I fear most of all- that Jesus will say to me, "You were content to be comfortable, Joe Martino, and, instead, uh, instead, uh, of taking it on the chin you, uh, you, uh, just remained comfortable and you can't expect Me to reward you for that."
So I've got, uh, you know, at, at 58 almost, I don't know how many more years God is going to grant me and if, uh, I'm going to face Him I'm going to have to face Him with, uh, having made, eh, some hard decisions and,uh, that's what's uppermost in my mind right now."
Patsy:
Bishop Martino addressed the subject of priests saying more that the amount of Masses allowed by Canon Law. No further discussion on the Pittston Catholic school closings was discussed with Patsy, and the call ended.
The second caller about the school closings was a woman from Pittston named Mary. Mary asked about why the bishop keeps calling our children "displaced children", and noted that Bishop Martino has divided the community, and stated that she doesn't think he realizes what he has done to the children.
Portions of Ask the Bishop, Live in which Bishop Joseph F. Martino addresses the Catholic school closings in Region 7, Pittston, of the Catholic Diocese, will be posted here.
Phone Call from Mary from Pittston:
Response from Bishop Joseph F. Martino:
I must tell you, Mary, one of the, uh, problems I've had is, uh, since I've come here to this diocese is that thee power of the rumor is very powerful here in Northeast Pennsylvania. People will tell you that something is so because they heard it. Simply that way. It is so because I heard it or I was told. So, I don't know, uh, quite the sorce of, uh, that, uh, information but that is not a phrase that, um, I'm familiar with. If you can find it and show it to me I'll be happy to address it. But, um, I don't know how, uh, that's just not the kind of word that I use normally. Displaced usually refers to people who have been moved from one country to another and I haven't talked about emigration lately, so, I don't know why I would use that term.
Again, I'm, I'm sorry for the way this plan was communicated to you and there are
people responsible in communicating it is this poor way and I intend to address that. I'm new here and I'm quite capable of making mistakes when I'm new.
However, the plan was necessary because there is a financial blood-letting going on in Region 7. A financial blood-letting that is endangering aspects of the Diocese like insurance plans and pension funds and other things that need to be addressed.
The Church is in the real world. The Church is both divine and human. And in its
human aspect it has to pay its bills. We are not looking to making the Church of Scranton into a profit-making organization. God forbid. Because Jesus said "Blessed are the poor in spirit." However, we have to be able to pay our bills if we are going to have insurance to protect against buildings burning down, if we are going to have, uh, the kind of programs and resources that we need to announce the Gospel of Jesus Christ eh, in the world in which we find ourselves.
So, I'm sorry for the division that has occured there. But I'm afraid that much of that division now, um, is the result of poor communication which continues to go on. And I'm doing everything I can to address that.
But I do believe in time, when we see the health of the four schools that are there, and that Catholic education is blossoming anew because of this change, then I think that you will understand the analogy that I made earlier. That, sometimes, there are growth pains in life, but they are pain, but they're growth pains not death pains. And we hope that, eh, I hope that you will forgive me for any pain that I may have caused you. But that was not what I intended to do.
But I, um, cannot make decisions all the time simply on the basis of whether I'm going to, um, hurt people or not. Uh, I've got to make them on the basis of what is best for the majority of the people of this Diocese. And I know that that will
hurt some people. That's not my intention. I ask their forgiveness. I ask for their prayers. And I assure you of my prayers that you will understand what it is that I tried to do here.
Thanks, Mary."
No further comment was allowed from Mary.
School Closing Discussed
Patsy - Caller 1
Patsy: called the Bishop to tell him he loved him and to talk about the controversy over the school closings in Pittston.
"Those people", meaning the Pittston parents protesting the closing of the Catholic schools, "didn't learn nothing sending their kids to Catholic school for them to demonstrate, whether peacefully or non-peacefully, on the holiest of Holy Days, Christmas, uh, Easter Sunday. I thought that was terrible".
"Well, I, I appreciate that, Patsy. Uh, I know there are people probably in Pittston who will be calling to rebut that. Um....as you know, they were hurt. And I, uh, did not take undue offense. I must tell you that it was the first time in my life that I've ever been demonstrated against. I'm 58 almost coming up in a short while. And, uh, that was a unique experience. I hope I never face that again but, uh, I was conscious when I came here, um, and so many people, um, you know, were so very kind to me that it was only 5 days between Palm Sunday and Good Friday (laughs) in, in the the sense that Our Lord was welcomed into Jerusalem and that eventually there were those who became, a few, a few, became very critical of Him. Uh, I understand that that plan, um, was communicated in a way that should not have happened. Uh, for me, I intend to address every aspect of that - I am already, so that that never happens again.
"I was sorry, sorry to bring up the subject again but it really did hurt me. There was another guy there that made some snotty remarks that he should be excommunicated. He was terrible for making those remarks. Nobody, nobody,uh, we've had a lot of Churches close here. We don't want them closed. But it can't be helped. It's ust like now, uh, these priests saying 4-5 Masses on a week, it's terrible."
Mary - Caller 2
This installment was broadcast LIVE April 21, 2004, in Scranton on CTV
"OK. I wanted to know why the bishop keeps calling our children from Pittston and Avoca displaced children. You know they are not displaced children. They are children of God. And I don't think he realizes this. What he did to the children. He has divided our community. The people are very angry. And I would like to ask him, why does he keep calling our children displaced. He's the one who made them displaced."
"Un, Mary, um, I'm not familiar with ever having used that term. If that term has been associated with me, I don't remember ever having used it. And, um, I'm not quite sure the source of that information.
This third caller is an 83-year-old woman named Naomi from Pittston, who is very distressed the closing of the Pittston catholic schools. Her grandsons are suffering because of this.
Phone Call from Naomi from Pittston:
This installment was broadcast LIVE April 21, 2004, in Scranton on CTV
"I was won...I'm a parishoner in Pittston for 83 years. I've never seen people suffer like they are suffering in Pittston now. Why wasn't Scranton hit? Because you come in contact with them? Or what, what is it? Why was it the little town of Pittston hit? My grandsons are- they're nervous wrecks - sick."
Response from Bishop Joseph F. Martino:
"Ok, Naomi. I, I, I'm not sure I understood your question. There was a little sound problem there. But I think your concern was, uh, why did I, um, address Pittston.
Um, there was no particular reason to, uh, address the situation in Pittston except that there were several requests - official requests - from that area regarding the need to restructure the schools there.
Naomi, this is one of those situations where I'm in a bind. If I start naming names here it's only to cause more problems. So you'll have to trust me as you bishop that there people in an official capacity in your area who, two years ago,
asked for some kind of restructuring.
We found at times that it was hard to do this restructuring in the way it should have been done because not everyone took it seriously - that there was a serious need. I'm new, and since I've come here, I have been told by certified public accountants that the Diocese cannot continue to address its indebtedness the way it has. And I am obligated by the law to do something about this - BY THE LAW to do something about this.
< And so, um, in an effort to, um, uh, regroup the finances of the Diocese, to make it healthier, um, which Im obligated to do by the Holy Father as well as by God, I have to address these issues. Someplace had to be first. There are other areas that, eh, are presently asking - ASKING me, not being told, but asking me to help them with, uh, their financial distress and with their, uh, school and parish issues. And I will only be too happy to do that.
I understand, again, uh, that is there is a great deal of suffering going on down there. I can only hope and pray that that will, uh, alleviate itself as time goes on. But, um, I made a decision, before God, and I do not regret that decision. I only regret some of the fallout that came from the, the fact that it was very, very poorly communicated to the parents there.
But, Naomi, do you believe that there ever would have been rejoicing in the streets in Pittston - at any time - if we had spent five years discussing this - do you think there would be rejoicing in the streets over the closing of the school. That's never good news. That's a sad day for Pittston. That's a sad day for the Diocese of Scranton. I'm only trying to make sure that we don't end up having seven schools close down there the way things were going.
So we now have a new and healthy situation. And, I'm very, I shouldn't say seven - six schools. That's Region 7. Uh, we're hoping now to have four very healthy schools that will care for the students. I understand that about 70%, 68%, have signed up. Why the other 32 did not I cannot tell you. There is room for them and many more. Many more.
Uh, but I'm also concerned about the 80% of the students in Pittston who do not attend Catholic school and for whom I do not always detect, um, uh, a systematic, uh, uh, instructional care. And, because, sometimes the parishes do not have the resources to address that issue. These are issues which have come to my attention from spiritual reports and other, uh, insights, uh, other prudent, uh, advice that I'm given.
So I hope that you will understand that there are many issues there. I didn't pick on Pittston. I didn't pick on it. But it happened to be the first place, it will not be the last."
It seemed that Naomi attempted to ask or state something else to the bishop, but was cut off when Dan Gallagher thanked her for her call and moved on.
St. John the Baptist Elementary School in Pittston (1917- June 4,2004) and Saint Mary's Grade School in Avoca, PA (1919 - June 4,2004), closed on June 4, 2004 despite a long battle, which included a lawsuit filed by parents of SJB, to keep them opened.
Many of the students' parents have, as a result of their disillusionment with Bishop Joseph F. Martino, the Diocese of Scranton,and the Catholic Schools office, enrolled the children in public school.