"administrator"

[didymus]

Again in a recent issue of our diocesan paper were several announcements of priests who had been appointed "administrators" of various parishes.

Is this now the correct term? Whatever happened to pastors? To me the administrator would be the person who runs the office.

[introibo]

I may be wrong, but some dioceses require that pastors have a certain amount of time in the priesthood. So an administrator might be a priest who has been assigned as the leader of a church, but can't legally hold the canonical title of pastor due to insufficient time since ordination.

[Friar David, O.Carm]

Originally Posted by didymus

Again in a recent issue of our diocesan paper were several announcements of priests who had been appointed "administrators" of various parishes.

Is this now the correct term? Whatever happened to pastors? To me the administrator would be the person who runs the office.

A priest who is assigned as administrator of a parish is like a pastor but does not have the same rights and protections found in canon law and can be reassigned more easily.

Usually a priests first assignment to head a parish will be as an administrator. Or if the priest is of a religious order he might be assigned as administrator.

[didymus]

Originally Posted by ByzCath

A priest who is assigned as administrator of a parish is like a pastor but does not have the same rights and protections found in canon law and can be reassigned more easily.

Usually a priests first assignment to head a parish will be as an administrator. Or if the priest is of a religious order he might be assigned as administrator.

Sadly, we have no new priests here in the Albany diocese so these are all transfers, none are being sent to their first parish. I guess it makes sense if this title makes it easier to reassign a priest because right now we are going thru a lot of parish closings and consolidations.

Part of what bugs me is seeing on parish bulletins:
Fr. John Smith, Administrator
Mary Jones, Assistant Administrator

which seems to imply a near-equality Fr. Smith & Ms. (in some cases Sr.) Jones.

[acadian]

During a time period when we were between bishops, pastors could not be assigned, but admnistrators could be appointed. For what its worth.

[Br. Rich SFO]

Originally Posted by didymus

Sadly, we have no new priests here in the Albany diocese so these are all transfers, none are being sent to their first parish. I guess it makes sense if this title makes it easier to reassign a priest because right now we are going thru a lot of parish closings and consolidations.

Part of what bugs me is seeing on parish bulletins:
Fr. John Smith, Administrator
Mary Jones, Assistant Administrator

which seems to imply a near-equality Fr. Smith & Ms. (in some cases Sr.) Jones.

It is near equality. but only as far as the technical administration of the parish goes, no where close when it comes to the Spiritual care of the Faithful.

[Brendan]

Are any of these part of a 'cluster' that shares a priest.

This is sometimes done within diocese. There will be a 'Parish Life Administrator" that handles most of the budget, staffing, scheduiling, etc... with a priest who is responsible for overall supervision and the Sacramental needs of the parish. This same priest will have the same responsiblilty over 2 or 3 other parishes as well.


Sometimes, this "PLA" is a lay person, in the ArchDiocese of Detroit (where I live), only a Deacon may serve in this role.

[Mommyof02green]

In our diocese those that are label "administrators"" have several parishes that they are over seeing.

Or they are an "acting" pastor because the current pastor is on extended leave.

Ex: Pastor being on sabbatical.

[baltobetsy]

Around here, they seem to appoint administrators as soon as a pastor leaves, then the administrator later becomes the pastor. It's like an audition - if things work out with you and the parish, you'll get to be pastor. If not, you can leave without much trouble.

Just my observations - nothing official.

Betsy

[SMHW]

Originally Posted by baltobetsy

Around here, they seem to appoint administrators as soon as a pastor leaves, then the administrator later becomes the pastor. It's like an audition - if things work out with you and the parish, you'll get to be pastor. If not, you can leave without much trouble.

Just my observations - nothing official.

Betsy

I've seen this happen around here too, especially in cases where the parish has a reputation of being filled with 'difficult' parishioners. If an administrator seems to be a good fit for a parish then he will probably be named pastor.

[jc-servant]

In the Dallas diocese we have commonly seen priests assigned as administrators while the search was on for the actual pastor who would be assigned. We currently have our retiring bishop acting as pastoral administrator for the diocese until the new bishop is officially installed in about a month.

My parish lost our priest to illness a few years back and the bishop's assistant, a very experienced priest who used to be the president of a Catholic university stepped in until our current pastor could be spoken with and wrap up his business in another parish. We are a huge parish with the 2nd highest mass attendance after the cathedral and quite a lot going on, so I think the bishop wanted to have someone experienced in charge during the transition of a few months.

[Holland]

What exactly is a "pastoral administrator"? Does it have to be a priest? Does it entail a certain amount of education?

[Titus]

A pastoral administrator can these days be a confusing term, Holland. Some parishes use the term to describe the DRE or Secretary or Parish Sister, some to describe an acting pastor. So there's not exactly a set definition of the term.

[cameron_lansing]

Originally Posted by didymus

Again in a recent issue of our diocesan paper were several announcements of priests who had been appointed "administrators" of various parishes.

Is this now the correct term? Whatever happened to pastors? To me the administrator would be the person who runs the office.

In the proper sense, a parish (parochial) administrator is and must be a priest, appointed to provide pastoral care for a parish on some temporary basis. A few canons are more relevant than others.

Canon 515 §1. A parish is a certain community of the Christian faithful stably constituted in a particular church, whose pastoral care is entrusted to a pastor (parochus) as its proper pastor (pastor) under the authority of the diocesan bishop.

Canon 539:When a parish becomes vacant or when the pastor is prevented from exercising his pastoral office in the parish due to captivity, exile, banishment, incapacity, ill health, or some other cause, the diocesan bishop is to appoint as soon as possible a parochial administrator, that is, a priest who substitutes for the pastor in accord with the norm of can. 540.

Canon 540:§1. A parochial administrator is bound by the same duties and enjoys the same rights as a pastor unless the diocesan bishop determines otherwise. §2. A parochial administrator is not permitted to do anything which can prejudice the rights of the pastor or harm parish goods. §3. After he has fulfilled his function the parochial administrator is to render an account to the pastor.

A "parish/parochial/pastoral administrator" who is not a priest is an different matter, since the full pastoral care of a parish involves priestly powers to celebrate the Eucharist and absolve from sins. Those kinds of terms could easily be seen to confuse the distinction between the ordained priesthood who can exercise and provide pastoral care, and others who can "participate" in pastoral care.

But, it may been used in some places to describe the deacon or lay person mentioned in canon 517 §2 ( If, because of a lack of priests, the diocesan bishop has decided that participation in the exercise of the pastoral care of a parish is to be entrusted to a deacon, to another person who is not a priest, or to a community of persons, he is to appoint some priest who, provided with the powers and faculties of a pastor, is to direct the pastoral care.)

See the instruction "On Certain Questions . . ." regarding the somewhat sticky issue of titles and nomenclature at http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/po...081997_en.html

[lak611]

Is there any reason why a priest would be called an administrator for 5 years, and not be eventually called a pastor? Why would a parish keep the same priest as administrator that long without him being made a pastor or replaced by someone who is called a pastor?