Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
Matthew 5:16
We have been sent on a mission as joyful missionary disciples guided by the Holy Spirit to share Christ and the Gospel in southeast Michigan. As we meet people and help them to know and love Christ, we may encounter questions about the Church or the Archdiocese and its initiatives. For this reason, Sharing the Light was created in 2011 to provide transparency on various matters of importance to the faithful and general public.
In the years since, Sharing the Light has been updated periodically. In its current iteration, Sharing the Light provides a brief overview of various topics and links to resources where readers can learn more, organized under the categories of Mission, Stewardship, and Safe Environments.
Mission
- Synod '16
In November of 2016, Archbishop Vigneron convened Synod 16, during which thousands of people—clergy, laity, and religious—gathered to discern how to transform the Archdiocese of Detroit into a band of joyful missionary disciples. Representatives gathered over three days, focusing their discussions on themes and propositions relating to how to reorient the Archdiocese from maintenance to mission. This momentous gathering became a catalyst for Archbishop Vigneron’s pastoral letter, Unleash the Gospel, and movement of the same name. Synod 16 was not an endpoint. Rather, it was a grace-filled moment in our Church and a milestone along the road toward becoming an evangelizing diocese filled with Catholics conformed to Christ. - Unleash the Gospel
Archbishop Vigneron’s 2017 pastoral letter, Unleash the Gospel, was one of the first fruits of the graces of Synod 16. The letter represents his vision—inspired by the Holy Spirit—of an Archdiocese full of joyful missionary disciples and saints united in Jesus. But it isn’t just a letter; it is a movement. It is a movement of the Holy Spirit who is transforming our Archdiocese into a missionary diocese. The letter also is a charter for how to best accomplish this work in parishes, families, schools and at Central Services. - Families of Parishes
Families of Parishes are groups of parishes, generally three to six, formed in 2021 and 2022. These parishes have retained their unique identities while sharing resources to advance the mission. This new model allows the priests, deacons, religious, and lay staff associated with each parish to better share their gifts and talents with the whole Family of Parishes.
Our shift to Families of Parishes was a response to Synod 16, which called for a complete renewal of structures of our parishes to make them radically mission oriented. Our goal is to make our parishes places where individuals and families can encounter Jesus anew, grow as disciples, and be equipped to be witnesses the Risen Christ.
Stewardship
- Archdiocesan Finances
The Archdiocese of Detroit is deeply grateful to all the faithful who provide the resources with which the Church operates in southeast Michigan. We are committed to being good stewards of your resources and operating with integrity and transparency. In recent years, the Archdiocese implemented several measures to control spending, conserve cash, and operate within a balanced budget. The expense reductions were primarily achieved through cost control measures including staff downsizing, program service cutbacks, and curtailing Archdiocesan subsidies.
Archbishop Vigneron is responsible for the property and financial assets owned by the Archdiocese, with assistance from Department of Finance and Administration, the Archdiocesan Finance Council, and College of Consultors. He must also ensure the goods belonging to parishes and schools are properly administered by those responsible for the parishes and schools. To do this, he relies upon Curia staff and programs like Intacct accounting, as well as the advice of the College of Consultors and, from time to time, the Presbyteral Council.
Plante Moran, PLLC annually audits the financial statements of certain Archdiocesan funds including Central Services, Designated Funds, Properties, and the Loan Deposit Program. The Archdiocese has consistently received unqualified (also known as “clean”) audit opinions from Plante Moran, PLLC. The annual reports are published on the Archdiocesan website. - Archdiocese of Detroit Endowment Foundation
In 1993, the Archdiocese of Detroit launched the Stewards for Tomorrow fundraising campaign to create an income-producing, perpetual endowment for the Archdiocese. The resulting Archdiocese of Detroit Endowment Foundation was established in 1994. The campaign concluded in 1995 as a great success, with parishioners generously contributing more than $84.4 million. Investment income from this Endowment continues to provide important annual financial support for Catholic school students, seminarians, students preparing for lay ministry, youth and family ministry education, and others.
The Endowment is governed by a board of trustees comprised of lay leaders, consecrated religious, and clergy who advise Archbishop Vigneron. The Archdiocesan Finance Council manages Endowment investments, assisted by CapTrust, an investment consulting firm. Endowment investments currently are in a diverse portfolio of domestic equity, international equity, fixed income, and alternative asset funds. - Catholic Foundation of Michigan
The Catholic Foundation of Michigan is a lay-led nonprofit, charitable organization founded in 2016 to inspire faith-filled, donor-centered charitable giving. It manages and invests all funds consistent with the teachings of the Catholic Church and in accordance with the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ guidelines[R(1] [HF2] for socially responsible investing. Grants distributed by the Foundation support the Archdiocese’s parishes, schools, ministries, and other organizations within the Archdiocese of Detroit. - Catholic Services Appeal
All parishes are required to participate in the annual Catholic Services Appeal, an archdiocesan-wide collection supporting the operational expenses for many Church ministries in southeast Michigan, including those provided through Archdiocesan Operations. Parishes are assigned fundraising goals based on the average of the previous three-year offertory and Christmas collections; any funds raised over the target are retained by the parish.
Since the CSA was introduced in the early 1980s, it has been conducted through parishes with the support of materials and guidance from the Archdiocese[A(3] [HF4] . This collaborative, archdiocesan campaign is a way to demonstrate the unity of the larger Church and enables the local Church to carry out Christ’s ministry of mercy and love throughout southeast Michigan and beyond—works no one individual or parish could possibly do alone. - Parish Finances
Parish strength and vitality can be measured through the involvement of the faithful in the sacramental life including Mass attendance, participation in reconciliation, engagement in parish ministries such as evangelical charity,[A(5] and in contributions that provide the financial wherewithal for parish and archdiocesan ministries and operations. The most important source of parish income is the Sunday offertory collection, which is intended to address the operational costs of the parish. Parishes operating Catholic schools also receive revenue from tuition and fees, which is designated to the school and often supplemented with parish support (subsidies). Parish budgets originate with the Parish Priests in collaboration with parish staff, the parish finance council, and the parish pastoral council.[F(6] - Parish Incorporations
Beginning in 2018, the Archdiocese of Detroit underwent the process of transitioning property from a civil law form of “corporate sole” ownership (in which property is titled in the name of the Archbishop) to a civil law form of parish incorporation (in which property is titled in the name of separate parish corporations). This most accurately reflects existing canon law (Church law) governing the rights and responsibilities of parishes regarding church property.
After consideration by the Archdiocesan Finance Council and College of Consultors, it was deemed most appropriate to begin by establishing Mooney Real Estate Holdings to inventory and temporarily hold title to real estate while the parishes were being incorporated for transfer of civil law title in an orderly way. Most properties were successfully titled under MREH by the end of 2018. Once the parish corporations were formed, property was transferred to them accordingly. This second step was delayed by the pandemic and ultimately completed by 2023. - Priests’ Pension Plan
At the Synod of 1969, Catholics in the Archdiocese of Detroit acknowledged and embraced the responsibility to help our priests during their retirement years. Soon after, the Archdiocese of Detroit established the Priests’ Pension Plan for our priests, created and maintained largely through the generosity of parishioners. Today, the fund is supported through allocations from parish operating budgets, an annual special collection, and gifts designated to the Priests’ Pension Plan. Priests begin to receive monthly pension payments when they are aged 70 and have the requisite vested service. Along with payments, our retired priests receive medical and dental insurance, Medicare Part B costs, auto insurance, and professional expenses. - St. John’s, Plymouth
St. John’s was founded in 1948 to provide graduate-level theological education and spiritual formation for seminarians from all seven Michigan dioceses. While it was closed in 1988 following the designation of Sacred Heart as a major seminary, the property experienced a revival under the guidance of Cardinal Adam J. Maida and today is the site of an active Catholic wedding ministry, world-class hotel, conference center, and golf course.
From 2009 until 2021, an independent Board of Directors monitored operations and advised the Archbishop on the strategic planning developed to contribute to the overall missions of the Archdiocese. In 2021, after prayerful discernment and at the recommendation of the Finance Council and College of Consultors, the entire complex was sold to Pulte Family Management, SJ LLC. Through a long-term lease agreement with Pulte Family Management, SJ LLC, the Archdiocese of Detroit continues to support an active Catholic wedding ministry at the Chapel of Mary and Joseph (formerly St. John Chapel).
Safe Environments
- Clergy Sexual Abuse
The Archdiocese of Detroit stands with the brave victim survivors who seek to bring the crime of sexual abuse by clergy and other Church representatives into the light, where those who sinned are confronted and those who were harmed can find healing.
We encourage individuals to report abuse directly to law enforcement authorities or the Archdiocese. In addition, we place no deadlines or time limits when investigating allegations of sexual abuse of minors by priests, deacons, or other personnel. In 2002-2003, the Archdiocese established an agreement—which continues today—with each of the six county prosecutor’s offices within the Archdiocese (Lapeer, Macomb, Monroe, Oakland, St. Clair, and Wayne) to turn over to civil authorities every complaint of abuse and publicly post the names of all clergy credibly accused of sexual abuse of minors or vulnerable persons. Also, that year, the Archdiocese turned over to civil authorities its files relating to allegations of abuse from previous years. We have, and continue to, fully cooperate with the investigation by the Michigan Attorney General’s Office into clergy sexual abuse in the seven dioceses in the State of Michigan.
The Archdiocese of Detroit will temporarily restrict from ministry any priest or deacon who is under investigation for a credible allegation of sexual abuse of a minor or vulnerable adult. As part of the investigation, every case is sent to the Dicastery for the Doctrine of Faith in Rome, which has sole authority in adjudicating the case and in authorizing the imposition of a permanent penalty of a life of prayer and penance or dismissal from the clerical state.
In 2022, to mark the 20th anniversary of the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, the Archdiocese of Detroit prepared a collection of resources on the local implementation and impact of the Charter, with a focus on reconciliation, healing, accountability, and prevention of clerical sexual abuse in the Church. - Protecting God’s Children
The Archdiocese recognizes that the best approach to addressing abuse is to prevent it from occurring in the first place. Since 2002, the Archdiocese has had a robust safe environment program, designed to help people identify situations that could leave a child vulnerable to the methods of a sexual offender and to emphasize the critical steps that must be taken to prevent and report the sexual abuse of children and vulnerable adults. As of 2024, more than 135,000 people from our parishes, schools, and other ministries had attended the program for adults, called Protecting God’s Children. Nearly 40,000 young people had attended age-appropriate programs for grade, middle, high school, and religious education students.
Beginning in 2023, every employee and volunteer in our parishes and schools, whether or not they minister directly to children, has been required to take safe environment training and be recertified every three years.
Conclusion
“The new ‘mission territory’ is our own neighborhoods, workplaces, schools and even our own homes” (Unleash the Gospel, 3.1).
As the people of God, we are all called to participate in our ongoing transformation into a missionary, outward focused, Archdiocese. This depository of information was created to assist in this calling, shedding light on matters of importance and equipping us with the information we need to effectively share our faith in the “new mission territory.” If you have questions about historic matters not included here, please contact AODCommunications@aod.org and include “Sharing the Light” in the subject line of your email.
