Serving the Parishes of
St. Martha and St. Mary
Plainville & Wrentham MA
St. Martha and St. Mary
Plainville & Wrentham MA
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Consoling Our Neighbors with the Consolation and Healing We Have Received
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Consoling Our Neighbors
with the Consolation and Healing
We Have Received
As you may know, our neighboring parish in North Attleborough is going through difficult times, and our collaborative parishes are especially appropriate communities to pray for them. First allow me to quickly review their recent history. Sacred Heart and St. Mary, the two parishes near the center of N.A., and later St. Mark, the parish in Attleboro Falls, had begun to share one pastor and pastoral leadership structure (like our collaborative) for several years. In 2019, they lost their dynamic pastor, Fr. Dave Costa, when he was reassigned to another parish community. When Fr. Rodney Thibault was appointed as the next pastor, he was sent with instructions to merge the three parishes. That took place early in 2020 when they formed Transfiguration of the Lord Parish, just before the pandemic hit. Even though they have somehow managed to keep all three churches open so far, it was still a challenging transition for many of the parishioners, as you can imagine. Like in our own archdiocese, the Fall River Diocese has experienced shortages of active parishioners, priests, and finances, so consolidating parishes is sometimes necessary.
Now, on top of all this, the Bishop Edgar da Cunha of Fall River recently decided he had to put Fr. Rodney on administrative leave from ministry due to “alleged misconduct that is… in direct violation of the Code of Conduct for priests in the Diocese of Fall River.” Until there is more of an investigation, the diocese has not released any specifics about the allegations other than to say it “does not involve a minor.” In accord with the canon law of the Church, the specifics might be withheld (when it is safe to do so) to protect both the accuser and (to some extent) the reputation of the one accused during the investigation, since he is presumed innocent unless proven otherwise. As Bishop da Cunha said in a letter read to the people of Transfiguration Parish at Masses recently, he knows how distressing this turn of events is for parishioners, and he assured them of his prayers during this difficult time. So personally, I am praying for consolation for the parishioners and staff, and for their temporary administrator, Fr. Michael Ciryak. Also, for Fr. Rodney and for anyone else involved, I choose to pray for both justice and healing.
As some will recall, these circumstances hit close to home for our collaborative, especially the people of St. Martha Parish who had to endure an accusation in 2010 against our then-current pastor Fr. Gary Thompson at the same time we learned of his sudden death just a day or two later (determined to be of natural causes). Out of that painful experience, though, we are able to empathize in a particular way with the people of North Attleborough, as we pray for them to be strengthened by their faith in Jesus Christ and the consolation of the Holy Spirit. This faith and consolation have helped St. Martha Parish Family to come a long way after that painful experience to a place of healing and joy, which can bring hope to our neighbors too.