The cost of getting the Church’s blessings

CEBU, Philippines - During the time of Jesus, He performed his minis- try and offered his services for free.

Today, the priests who represent Him have set fees for almost everything they do to the faithful.

For example, the average registration fee for an ordinary baptism in a Catholic church is P200, which comes with free two sponsors and a P50 for every additional sponsor.  Some churches also collect fees for the white cloth used to cover the child’s head, which is usually P30 per piece, and the candles, at P5 to P10 apiece.

Among the 10 Catholic churches in Cebu City surveyed by The Freeman, the Archdiocesan Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Barangay Guadalupe has the highest fee for baptism services. It collects P500 for registration (inclusive of free two sponsors, candles and a white cloth) and P50 for every additional sponsor. The Sto. Rosario Parish, meanwhile, has the cheapest baptism fee at P70, with two free sponsors. It only collects P20 for every additional sponsor, and a P10 add-on for one candle, which each sponsor must have during the baptismal rites.

The rates for special baptism are, however, higher: P2,000 plus P200 per sponsor at St. Joseph Patriarch Parish in Barangay Mabolo; P1,000 with P50 per sponsor at the San Nicolas de Tolentino Parish Church; and P1,500 plus P50 per sponsor at the St. Therese of the Child Jesus Parish in Lahug.

If the baptism fees are high, the fees for weddings are even higher. The Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral, one of the favorite venues for church weddings, pegs its wedding mass at P15,000. The Sacred Heart Parish along D. Jakosalem St. charges P8,500 on weekdays and P10,000 on Saturdays. The package already includes a simple decoration, according to a staff who answered The Freeman’s call.

For those who want it simple and cheap, there are churches that offer “ordinary” wedding rites during weekdays.

The San Nicolas de Tolentino Parish Church’s mass wedding is P750 per couple. But the wedding schedule for this amount is at 7a.m. of every Thursday. Beyond that schedule, even on the same day, the parish already charges P5,250. The Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish offers mass weddings at P700 and it’s at 8a.m. of every Thursday. Its special wedding package is P2,000.

Even in death, Catholics are not spared by church fees. The funeral mass in Cebu City churches ranges from P500 (Sto. Rosario and Sacred Heart Parish) to P1,500 (Cathedral). Sacred Heart Parish’s rate, however, does not include a priest, as their priests are usually fully-booked.

These fees are on top of the amount the grieving family has to pay to the church for a space at the public cemetery. Mabolo’s Cabantan Memorial Cemetery’s apartment-type tombs are P5,000 each. San Nicolas’s, meanwhile, is P6,000, P8,000 and P10,000, depending on the size. For those who prefer the traditional burial ground, each spot is P1,000, in San Nicolas.

Monsignor Achilles Dakay, media liaison officer of the Cebu Archdiocese, explained that all these fees are not voluntary, but admitted that the church needs these for its maintenance and, catechism and apostolate works.

Dakay said a huge chunk of the amount collected from these church services also goes to electric, water and other bills, repairs and other necessaries for the church to operate.

“Unsa may kabuhian sa pari, wa may negosyo? Mao bitaw magnegosyo nalang ang uban kay kuwang man,” he said.

If there are churches that experience “abundance”, they are tasked to help the “small ones,” Dakay said. The Cebu Archdiocese has 145 parishes, and around 30 of them are considered “small,” which are usually the recipient of the second collection during Holy Mass, he added.

Dakay said it is in the Roman Catholic Church’s five commandments to “support the Church,” which the faithful must follow. And since mass “offerings,” which are mostly coins, are not enough to support the Church, especially since these are not mandatory, Dakay said the Church came up with the Arancel System.

The Arancel System is the traditional system of Church support. It follows a fixed amount from the faithful as their support for the church.

“Support the Church according to your resources. Therefore, the Church has needs that must be supported,” Dakay said.

He added that the Arancel System of the Observations, Declarations and Statutes of the 4th Diocesan Synod of Cebu also explains matters on the administration of the Seven Sacraments (Baptism, Confirmation, Confession, Holy Eucharist, Marriage, Ordination, Healing of the Sick). “Ang laity mo-give, dili na payment for, sa Church,” he said.

“While more may be accepted more may not be asked. And while stipends are fixed, less may be requested and received depending on the circumstances of the person’s resources and places and needs,” Dakay said, quoting the Arancel System.

This, he said, explains why the rates per parish are not uniform, as the churches have different needs, and their faithful have varied resources.

“The archdiocese shall retain the system until such time when, through proper educative orientation of the faithful, other means of economic self-reliance besides the voluntary offerings appear viable in accordance with giving customs and Christian values. It shall be updated from time to time as to the reasonableness of stipends requested and there apportionment so that a degree of uniformity must be attained among the different churches in the diocese,” reads a portion of the Arancel System.

But while this system is still being adopted, Dakay said “absolutely no one may be deprived of basic services by the church duly solicited on the premise alone of incapacity to give.”

“So, it’s not true that we deny anybody (of church services) if they really cannot pay,” he said, adding that no one has been denied yet.

“Moapil sila sa mass wedding kay mahal sa simbahan, di na tinuod. We are also giving (weddings) without pay to those nga di kabayad,” Dakay said.

The money generated from fees is divided by the host church, the officiating priest and the archdiocese.  Dakay, however, said the sharing depends on the host church and how much it wants to give to the Archdiocese, which also has its own needs.

And if there are priests who are driving expensive cars, it is because of their shares of the church’s income, he said. “Kada semana naa siya’y share. Kung iya na’ng tigumon, kay wa man siya’y pamilya, so naa siya’y kwarta. Kaming mga pari gud, naa’y inilog. Daghang misa, so daghang kita. So naa g’yuy pari nga arang-arang og sinena kay daghan man siya’g misa,” he added.

Asked if the Church is willing to open its books to the public, as suggested years back, Dakay said there are things that must be kept private such as how the Church operates. “But og gusto mo’ng i-discuss, pwede man,” he said.

Dakay said time will come when people will voluntary give to the Church a share of their blessings, and the Church will have to abolish the Arancel System. — /QSB (FREEMAN)