Nicole Baute 
Ottawa Citizen

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

Parishioners of a downtown Ottawa church will appeal Archbishop Marcel Gervais' decision to close their place of worship by arguing that he breached the legal concept of "procedural fairness."

Patrick Murray, the lawyer representing members of St. Brigid's Catholic Parish, will have to prove that there was an implied contract between the parishioners and the Archdiocese of Ottawa: if the parishioners raised enough funds, the Lowertown church would stay open.

The parishioners raised nearly $213,000 between 2003 and 2005. In June 2005, they received a letter from the archdiocese congratulating them on a job well done, which Mr. Murray said they understood to mean St. Brigid's would stay open. He said parishioners were shocked to learn of Archbishop Gervais' decision to close St. Brigid's less than a year later.

Mr. Murray's argument, to be made today in Superior Court, will be that the ancient principles of natural justice, also known as procedural fairness, were not respected by the archdiocese in its dealings with the parishioners.

The decision to close the church is based mainly on high maintenance costs and low attendance, according to the archdiocese. Much-needed building repairs would cost at least $2.2 million, and only about 350 people attend mass on a regular weekend, said Msgr. Kevin Beach.

Msgr. Beach argues that, since 2000, the archbishop has been in regular dialogue with the parishioners about the possible closing and that he followed all processes set out by the Roman Catholic Church, including calling a meeting with his "consultors" before making a final decision. His consultors include priests and lay people -- but no members of St. Brigid's parish.

"We believe that the archbishop has done everything and more than he's required to do," said Msgr. Beach.

"I guess the archbishop would say, looking back at it now, that he should have made the decision four or five years ago," Msgr. Beach added.

Mr. Murray will argue the parishioners had a right to be more involved in the decision-making process, and will ask the court to quash the decision and force the archdiocese to reopen the issue.

Mr. Murray admits it's a longshot. "Nobody's under any illusions here," he said.

Procedural fairness is sometimes used to appeal the dismissal of people from private clubs or unions, Mr. Murray said, but these cases are rarely successful. He said he is not aware of any cases in which the argument has been used to keep a church from closing.

Mr. Murray said he realizes that even if the archdiocese is forced to revisit the decision, this time with the participation of the parishioners, the outcome could easily be the same.

But if the archdiocese is forced to establish more transparent guidelines for similar decisions, it might stop the same thing from happening to another group of parishioners in the future, Mr. Murray said.

What's important, he said, is that the parishioners have a chance to voice their concerns as part of the decision-making process.

"At least it would give the parishioners an opportunity to feel they died on their feet rather than on their knees, which is where they are now," he said.

"It's not really that complicated. All they're looking for is an opportunity to be heard."

© The Ottawa Citizen 2007