I’m angrier than a Catholic who just had his integrity questioned over what happened at Mass yesterday. It has me so irate that I can barely see straight. So, that’s it. I’m done. I left my home parish of three years and today, I registered with a new one.
Yesterday, I was in charge of ushering for the first time, and all of the ushers were gone for a retreat and I had to recruit people who then put collections in the wrong baskets. Everything that could have gone wrong did. The guys I chose had never ushered before, and even though I gave clear assignments as to who does which row, things went sideways.
After Mass, I collected both bags (we had two collections) and brought them to the priest, who was by a door. I was going to ask them where they go, as I’d never been in charge of ushering before, and he said, “please don’t run away with the money.” He was dead serious.
What the actual hell?
Even if he was just joking, I would still take that as a personal insult. A very serious insult it was indeed, and the first time I almost hit a priest. Right now, I can’t see or talk to him because I don’t want to find myself in front of a judge. But I want to pay him back so bad that I can almost taste it.
So, I screwed yesterday up, and the collections bags were all manner of screwed up. While I regret that it happened, crap does indeed happen.
Now, I’ve been there for three years and I feel I’ve earned a certain degree of trust. I’ve handled church money before. I will not abide that trust being misplaced. I just won’t. So, I’m done with that parish, [REDACTED], which is located in Albany.
Today, I registered with my new parish, which is much smaller and not in Albany, which means taking two buses, as opposed to just walking around the corner. But it has to be done. What Fr. did to me cannot be forgiven or forgotten.
After serving as a lector, a Sacristan, an usher and an altar server. After all that, for the Fr. to even say that is disgusting, appalling and an insult.
I will miss my old parish (but not the priest), telling them in an email that I will never forgive Fr, so I’m just done. So I am.
Part of my email reads:
“…what I can’t abide is accusations. I went to Fr. [REDACTED] with both collection bags by the door. He said, “please don’t run away with the money.” I do not appreciate my integrity being called into question. I’ve been at [REDACTED] for three years now and I feel I’ve earned a certain degree of trust. For him to say that is unacceptable and not funny.”
I take my integrity at church very seriously. For the priest to say something like that…well, forget him and the horse he rode in on three years ago. He was the first priest I met when I first visited [REDACTED] and he worked with me as I went through the RCIA program. I was baptized there in 2022, but started the RCIA program a year prior.
And how would I walk out with two bags with numerous witnesses, especially since the priest was right there by the door? Why would I ever even think of daring to steal the church’s money?
While other ushers have in the past joked, “where’s my cut?,” I refused to even joke about such a thing. I took handling the church’s offerings very seriously and I will not continue to attend a parish where the pastor would even think I’d consider theft.
My last name may be Crook, but I am not one and I will not tolerate even the very implication that I am.