11 - Letter from Fr. Bernard Clery

11

Letter from Fr. Bernard Clery

4 pp; typescript

Letter from Fr. Bernard Clery OFM Cap. to Fr. Peter Bowe OFM Cap., Provincial Minister, outlining a plan to resuscitate the local parish school in Roseburg, Oregon, which was closed due to a lack of available religious sisters. He argues against relying on the Sisters of Mercy, criticizing their lack of educational training and claiming they bring ‘trouble and endless anxiety’ to Roseburg. Financially, the author notes that supporting two teaching Sisters requires $70.00 a month – a heavy burden for a parish where fewer than 90 individuals have incomes supporting the church. To address this, the author mailed letters to parishioners, securing $45.00 a month in pledges toward a $90.00 goal, and proposes specific steps to reopen the school. Father Clery also refers to regional boundary disputes, noting that the archbishop attempted to redraw parish lines to give a new parish control of territory from Cottage Grove to Drain, which includes all of Douglas County. He strongly objects to this, stating the territory has always been maintained by their parish, and concludes with a discussion on Latin faculties granted in the archdiocese regarding mass stipends and a note on following visitation directions.

ISAD(G) 2nd edition