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Published: November 20, 2007
“Severe financial challenges”
LA archdiocese won’t budge on plans to close Catholic high school; parents and students hold protest, write letter to pope
On Saturday, Nov. 17, about 200 parents, students, and alumni of Daniel Murphy High School in Los Angeles, carrying signs reading “Don’t Make the Children Pay” and “No More Victims,” marched from Pershing Square to the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels.
 The parents are pushing the Los Angeles archdiocese to keep the 53-year-old Catholic high school open. Last month, the archdiocese announced it would close the school, located at Third and South Detroit streets. An October archdiocesan news release cited “severe financial challenges” as a reason to close the school.
Though the archdiocesan news release did not say so, proceeds of the sale of the high school could go to help pay off the archdiocese’s estimated $373 million portion of a $660-million settlement with victims of molestation by priests.
According to the October release, the chief reason for closing the school is a decline in student population, which “efforts to increase student enrollment over the past ten years” have not ameliorated. A parent’s letter to Pope Benedict XVI, received by California Catholic Daily, however, claims that archdiocese in the past capped freshman enrollment and that for the past three years at least, “there has been no official Archdiocese involvement with enrolment at Daniel Murphy.” The letter claims that parents did not know that the school was in bad financial condition or that the archdiocese was subsidizing it until the archdiocese announced it was closing the school.
Parents of students at the school have said they would be willing to pay higher tuition, as well as raise funds, to keep the school open. According to the parent’s letter received by California Catholic Daily, parents have agreed to a $1,000 per year increase in the current $5,100 tuition, bringing in an extra $240,000 a year to the school. The parents agreed, as well, to two mandatory school raffles, which, they hope, would bring in another $80,000. The money would replace the archdiocesan subsidy for the school, which has been about $180,000 a year, according to the letter.
Archdiocesan officials rebuffed the parents and their fundraising plans at a meeting last month, parents’ supporters told the Nov. 18 Los Angeles Times. They claim the archdiocese has forbidden school supporters from meeting on school property and has told faculty and staff not to assist them. Parents say the archdiocese is intent on selling the school’s 2.7-acre site, which, say parents, could bring $25 million to $40 million.
The archdiocese has said it will not reverse its decision to close the school. In a statement, archdiocesan spokesman Tod Tamberg called the decision “irrevocable.” The archdiocese, said the statement, “will continue to work with parents and students to help make the transition to new schools as easy and as affordable as possible."
Posted Tuesday, November 20, 2007 8:30 AM By Jack Clough
Three cheers for Mahony: Boo! Boo! Boo! What a legacy he will leave.
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Posted Tuesday, November 20, 2007 9:22 AM By Sarah
This is just another of Mahoney's ways to show contempt for the people of the Diocese and to further harm children. First, he condoned the molestation of children by the priests and other personnel, now he wants to eliminate their access to a Catholic education. WHY, WHY doesn't Pope Benedict XVI remove Mahoney. Certainly the Pope is aware of Mahoney's disgusting behavior. The only way that Mahoney will get the message is for people to stop giving money to the Diocese.
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Posted Tuesday, November 20, 2007 9:50 AM By Russ
www.bishop-accountability.org/abuse tracker for daily vetted global coverage of the ongoing massive curial criminal cover up at 100% laity expense.
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Posted Tuesday, November 20, 2007 10:32 AM By Peter
THE VATICAN SHOULD MIND IT'S OWN BUSINESS AND THE POPE SHOULD STAY OUT OF THE LOCAL CHURCH ISSUES, AFTER ALL HE IS NOT LIVING IN THE REAL WORLD BUT THE NEXT!!!
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Posted Tuesday, November 20, 2007 1:22 PM By John L. Sillasen
Peter, sounds to me like you're the one living in a next world aka Hell..
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Posted Tuesday, November 20, 2007 8:06 PM By Sonja
It sounds to as though the archdiocese has already found a buyer for the school property. First Mahony kicks those poor nuns up in Santa Barbara to the curb; and now he is starting on the rest of us. BTW, Peter is wrong about the Holy Father who is, after all, the Supreme Pontiff. Mahony is a man under authority and he has been so since the day of his ordination. He is answerable to the Pontiff in all things. But I do not think the Pope will do anything about this. The Vatican has steered clear of becoming too involved in matters of property sales and payouts to the survivors of clergy sexual victimization. However, people are still asking why the Pope will not sell a few paintings to settle, not just these existing clergy pedophile rape and sodomy cases, but any cases that might come up in the future.
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Posted Tuesday, November 20, 2007 8:30 PM By garvan
Closing and selling Daniel Murphy High School is just one more example of why it was (and is) both imprudent and morally wrong to ordain homosexuals to the priesthood. Once again, I hope the families of the affected students never give another dime to the Archdiocese. Since Mahony & Co. rakes off 15% from each parish's Sunday collection, don't put any money in the general collection basket. Instead, give it to your parish as a dedicated gift for a designated use. He doesn't get a cut from such donations.
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Posted Tuesday, November 20, 2007 9:09 PM By Trudy
If enough people get evicted from their parishes, schools, convents, etc; then Tod Tamberg will finally get that raise he has been whining about.
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Posted Tuesday, November 20, 2007 9:10 PM By George
If Benedict XVI fires Mahoney, where will he go? Will Mahoney go to the Vatican like Cardinal Levada (who raised the homosexual flag at the San Francisco Cathedral)? Well, you know Mahoney is a Cardinal, a prince in the Novus Ordo Church and able elect a Novus Ordo Pope. Can Benedict XVI find work for him in the Vatican? Maybe he can send him to New York? Maybe he could send him to San Francisco. The real question is how could a Catholic Pope permit a man to run the largest diocese in the US who has such a poor record on Catholic teaching and orthodoxy? Where is the love that Benedict XVI feels for the faithful of Los Angeles?
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Posted Wednesday, November 21, 2007 7:00 AM By Sonja
Mahony is not going to get fired. Those blokes all stick together and will do anything for each other. Saving face is their most important assignment. But, first and foremost, is raking in the money.
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Posted Wednesday, November 21, 2007 8:27 AM By Dave N.
As long as the people are silent and bishops are not held accountable by either people or Pope, we will get the leadership that we deserve.
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Posted Wednesday, November 21, 2007 1:59 PM By Chris
I am one of those Parents of a DMHS student. The Archdiocese has been telling multiple stories none of which adds up. They are Kicking Kids out of this school without any plan in writing. All we hear are promises. None that they have kept so far. Talk about a Set-Up. It was said that DMHS has had a decade long declining student body. Well One Principal was there for 5 of those years and he has now got a promotion to a Larger School. Just happens to be the one the L.A.A. wants our kids to go too. Lastly see more of what the Parents, Alumni and Students have to say about this issue and Cardinal Mahony www.savedmhs.org please leave your comments there as well and please support our Catholic Children
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Posted Wednesday, November 21, 2007 2:02 PM By George
Where would Mahony go if he were fired? How about prison? Sounds like a good start to me.
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Posted Wednesday, November 21, 2007 4:34 PM By Chris
I am one of those Parents of a DMHS student. The Archdiocese has been telling multiple stories none of which adds up. They are Kicking Kids out of this school without any plan in writing. All we hear are promises. None that they have kept so far. Talk about a Set-Up. It was said that DMHS has had a decade long declining student body. Well One Principal was there for 5 of those years and he has now got a promotion to a Larger School. Just happens to be the one the L.A.A. wants our kids to go too. Lastly see more of what the Parents, Alumni and Students have to say about this issue and Cardinal Mahony www.savedmhs.org please leave your comments there as well and please support our Catholic Children
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Posted Wednesday, November 21, 2007 8:03 PM By John B.
Remember back in 1981 when the Archdiocese promised the Dominicans they would build them a new school in Orange County if they agreed to LEAVE Daniel Murphy and turn it over to the Archdiocese? That never happened. They lied to the Dominicans and hung them out to dry. Now they're scattered all over the state - some even out of state. This is the same thing they are doing to your sons! If they can lie to the Dominicans, they will lie to ANYONE.
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Posted Wednesday, November 21, 2007 8:07 PM By Greg P
The Archdiocese sent a new principal, Denis Munoz, to the school about 6 years ago. Munoz systematically dismantled the school in preparation for its closure. He put a cap on enrollment, refused to accept incoming transfer students and killed the entire recruitment program to local feeder schools. He fired coaches and effectively killed the school's sports programs. He deleted the school's alumni database. He also put an end to all fundraising programs, including a profitable weekend CYO basketball program, school dances and the list goes on and on. Do these actions sound like the actions of someone trying to SAVE a school and increase enrollment? On the contrary, his actions were the actions of someone who was sent to the school to prepare it for closure. Do not believe what the Archdiocese is telling you. This decision is 100% about MONEY - plain and simple. Enrollment can very easily be increased and parents are willing to pay higher tuition to keep the school open. This solves the problem but the Archdiocese is unwilling to discuss any options to keep the school open.
By the way, Denis Munoz (along with his accountant from Daniel Murphy H.S.) was shipped to St. Bernard in Playa Del Rey where, by the Archdiocese's own admission, they're down 400 students in enrollment. I hope the parents and students at St. Bernard are paying close attention to what the Archdiocese is doing to Daniel Murphy because they're next on the Archdiocese's auction block.
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Posted Wednesday, November 21, 2007 9:14 PM By Rose
Cardinal Mahony is just another reason why people see the Catholic Church as a "money grubbing" institution. He builds a grand Cathedral as his legacy and forgets that Jesus Christ was a simple carpenter whom lived a simple life. Mahony is doing just what Jesus preached us not to do. Jesus' teachings are to help those in need. Jesus would never want children, the youth or the elderly to suffer and yet that is exactly what Mahony is doing. He is closing Daniel Murphy High which serves the youths of the inner city of Los Angeles, he is "evicting" nuns whom have given their lives to serve others (Would he do it if they were priests? NO) and he does all this to save his butt and lifestyle. I say have him take a vow of poverty and sell off his personal assets with the rest of the Archdiocesian priest and use that to pay the victims. Shame on CEO Mahony (after all is acting like one and not a man of the cloth), shame on all those archdiocesian priests for not speaking out and who are forgetting their vows on helping those in need and shame on us for letting them do it. After all we (the people) are the church, we are all God's people! SOS!!!! Daniel Murphy High and the Nuns!!!!! Don't let Mahony continue as though he is CEO of the Roman Catholic Church. Cardinal Mahony you need to reflect as to why you wanted to follow in Jesus' footsteps, cause you're not doing it!
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Posted Wednesday, November 21, 2007 9:50 PM By John L. Sillasen
The advantage of a public school over a Catholic school today is that the kids in the public schools know their teachers teach opinions. The kids also run into many opinions from other kids. They learn that they have to learn how to discern. The Catholic kids are taught that they are taught only the truth, when obviously they are not ... this gives them a disadvantage in the real world. But nevertheless they learn a lot of stuff ... "jesuitical" comes to mind. That may explain why so many political leaders can lie so well and think they are Catholic. There is one way to gain position in politics, and that is to renounce one's Catholic faith ... prove me wrong.
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Posted Wednesday, November 21, 2007 10:42 PM By George
Cardinal Mahony needs to sell his flipping Cathedral before selling anything else. Cardinal Mahony is singularly more responsible than even the perpetrators for the damage done to our Diocese and the church as a whole. Had he the guts (I know Peter, he was born that way) to do what was right with regard to the victims in the first place and stopped the demonic actions of his priests (instead of covering up for them and moving them around – claiming still more victims) these horrific crimes against our innocent children would not have continued. Additionally, the credibility of the Church would not be in such ruin and the financial burden would not be so great. As such, he is the one who needs to make restitutional sacrifices instead of innocent Nuns, parishioners, and students. I don’t know how much money we could get for the LA Cathedral (the ugliest church building on the planet) – it doesn’t matter though because it is an embarrassment to Catholic worship and must go! It might make a mediocre WalMart. Cardinal Mahony has been an exceptionally poor steward of that which has been entrusted to him. His only salvation would be sincere repentance and humble contrition. He needs to step down from his position of trust (because he is untrustworthy) and someone with the fortitude to follow God’s will needs to be installed. But no, he is still scheming on more innovative ways to punish the victims, their families, and any of the rest of us who still remain.
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Posted Thursday, November 22, 2007 10:11 AM By Martin
Sell The Cathedral???????? WHO WOULD WANT IT???? Then again, it could be stripped for the marble and those ugly bronze door could be melted down for scrap.
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Posted Friday, November 23, 2007 2:56 PM By Kenneth M. Fisher
Martin,
Actually the so called Cathedral would make a perfect Convention Center, so surely some conglomerate would buy it!
God bless, yours in Their Hearts,
Kenneth M. Fisher Founder & Chairman
Concerned Roman Catholics of America, Inc.
www.crcoa.com
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Posted Saturday, November 24, 2007 12:53 PM By John L. Sillasen
I have not been in or even seen the Cathedral, other than in pictures. I wonder if it would make a super duper complex for televangelists. But would the Cdl sell it for this purpose or keep it and use it for this purpose?
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Posted Monday, November 26, 2007 11:49 PM By George
If they don't sell it they need to gut it and put the High school and a home for the Nuns in it. If they could live there without puking.
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Posted Friday, February 29, 2008 5:01 PM By Gene
This is a greedy political issue, not religious. Alumni are across the U.S. Hit ALL news media heavy nationwide with the story. Crumble donations to a greedy Church or have ALL churches take up special donations Nationally. Let's take care of our own kids before the rest of the world. Let them feel it deeply in their own pocket book.
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© California Catholic Daily 2007. All Rights Reserved.
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