Support for Clergy

Every year, through the annual collection and the Cardinal’s Annual Stewardship Appeal, men and women religious are guaranteed $1 million in support of their retirement. Our archdiocesan family is blessed with the service and leadership of many remarkable priests. They baptize, teach, and guide us through the scriptures, counsel us in times of worry, and celebrate with us in times of joy. Our clergy provide us with invaluable spiritual support, imparting the wisdom of their generations and by giving us the example of their great faith. But, they also need our help, particularly at the beginning of their vocational journeys and at the end of their lives.

Renew + Rebuild will allocate $9 million of funds to ensure that our priests receive adequate support and care throughout their lifetime. Two specific institutions that will receive support are our archdiocesan seminary and our retirement home for priests.

Saint Joseph’s Seminary

Saint Joseph’s Seminary and College, founded in 1896, is the major seminary of the Archdiocese of New York. Saint Joseph’s offers a program of human, spiritual, intellectual, and pastoral formation that is faithful to the magisterium of the Church. A spirit of service to the Church guides all of the programs that Saint Joseph’s Seminary and College provides.

Saint John Vianney Center for Retired Priests

For aging priests, retirement brings the challenge of where to set down roots after years of service to our community. While some have the option of returning to their families, many go on to live in private residences or church-owned facilities, often in less than suitable conditions.

The number of priests facing retirement throughout the archdiocese is rapidly growing. In 2012, there were 195 priests over the age of 75. Nearly a quarter of these live at an archdiocesan residence, another 25% are still working and living in rectories, and the other half live independently (sometimes in a rectory).

Cardinal Edward Egan established the Saint John Vianney Center for Retired Priests in 2003. In a century-old monastery on a hill overlooking the Hudson in the Riverdale section of the Bronx, it has 34 independent suites and common areas for dining, socializing and worship, providing the companionship of fellow priests, and all the comforts of home as these men settle into the next phase of their lives. All suites are handicapped-accessible and include a living area, bedroom, bathroom, and kitchenette.

But, there is an urgent need for more space. The archdiocese is expanding the facility with a new building, named for Cardinal Egan, that includes suites and enhanced care suites which will offer additional services for priests in greater need of care and assistance. When completed, the renovated complex will provide accommodations for 43 additional priests.