Communion without union in Texas - By Stephanie Block, Spero News, TX
Lay personnel in chancery and parish offices are a fairly new phenomena in the history of the Church. The religious who formerly held such positions worked for the love of God and whatever material compensation they enjoyed came through their communities. While the lay employee may be every bit as idealistic and committed as the religious of the past, the structure that protected religious employee from personality conflicts and economic vicissitudes simply don’t exist for the laity. From where should their safety net come?
Unionization, the solution under consideration, puts parish employees, their pastors, and bishops, into complex relationships.