Mounting Pressure to Have a Trustee Appointed in the Boston Archdiocese

On Monday, Former Chancellor David Smith renewed his request to the Attorney General to takeover the Pension Plan in the Archdiocese of Boston.

His commendable statement is posted at BCI HERE.

This is really extraordinary, as it is the first time I can think of that a high-ranking employee or former employee has been willing to break the code of silence that demands we go along to get along with the clericalism, cronyism and corruption (which feels like organized crime to Catholics in Boston) in the Chancery.

Smith points out what is obvious to anyone that has followed the administration of Cardinal O'Malley: What is published and said by Cardinal O'Malley and his staff can not be taken at face value.

Too many broken promises and outright lies.


It remains an unknown "who" is in control of the Archdiocese of Boston.

Two things we do know:

1. It is NOT the Archbishop.
2. Whoever it is, is too incompetent, corrupt (or both)to continue to 'do nothing'.

Letting the Archdiocese retain the power to control the pension is unacceptable.

The reasons are enumerated in David Smith's statement.

I encourage you all to read it and pray about the situation.

In our Boston Blogger Telephone Conference last evening, I expressed my feeling that the faithful needs to step forward in the public square and join David Smith's call for intervention from the Attorney General.

I believe both the archdiocese and the attorney general need to know know that this is not going away. It will get louder and more embarrassing and quite frankly, and sadly, has the potential to end with indictments.

More on this later, but do check out this well-written story in the Resister, "Boston Pension Troubles".

Boston Archdiocese Freezes Pensions of Laity

How on the one hand can the Archdiocese spend tens of millions of dollars bringing in high salaried people to operate Jack Connor's pet project (unraveling at Boston Catholic Insider) and on the other hand say they can't afford to pay people the pensions they have worked for?

Though it was fully funded as recently as 2007, the fund was badly damaged in the financial meltdown of 2008, the archdiocese said. The church plans to continue contributing to the fund until it is fully solvent.

The benefits of employees who are already retired will not be affected, church officials said. Lay employees who are already vested, or become vested, in the plan will receive all the money that have earned when they retire. But they will not accrue additional benefits after Dec. 31, 2011.

How does the Archdiocese then justify the fiefdom being built under Mary Grassa O'Neil and the compensation packages being given to wealthy cronies of Jack Connors?

Is the cozy relationship with the Attorney General in Massachusetts and the Donilon ties to the Obama Administration protecting derelictions of fidicuiary duty?

People are living longer than they'd like them to and it's draining the coffers. Frankly, I don't think that's it at all. They have plenty of money to pour into salaries and Jack Connor's pet project.

Not to worry though, though people will be albeit losing money, they're not looking to reduce anyone's compensation, they say.





“

I don’t think we are looking to reduce our total compensation dollars at all through this,’’ he said.

The church is offering employees who are 55 and older as of the end of next year two options for cashing out of the lay pension fund early — albeit at a financial loss...
But pension experts say both deals are poor ones for employees, unless they have a terminal illness, because it guarantees that they will receive a smaller amount of money than they have earned.

“It’s really ugly, trying to get people to make bad financial decisions to save the Catholic Church some funding,’’ said Norman P. Stein, an authority on pension law and a professor at the Earle Mack School of Law at Drexel University.

He said corporations, unlike religious organizations, are prevented by law from discounting lump-sum payments to reflect a pension fund’s underfunded status. He said the payouts can be tempting, particularly for the unemployed, but financially unwise. “People sometimes have a hard time looking very far into the future.’’

Let's cut to the chase: What they are looking to do is to bait people who are having financial difficulty into waiving their rights to have a paycheck coming in at retirement.

Isn't it ironic that in a country nearly bankrupt from paying for things for people who don't want to work for them, Cardinal O'Malley is out advocating for benefits for illegal immigrants and people home watching Oprah? He cuts his own priests of from benefits, tells them if they get sick and can't work, their money will be cut to $200, but is parading about telling everyone how terrible it is that sick people can't pay for healthcare.

The duplicity is breathtaking.