Washington National Cathedral faced furious backlash and accusations that its leaders were committing simony after it announced last week that worshippers would need to pay $7 to be admitted to “Christmas Eve Holy Eucharist” as well as six other worship services during the Advent and the Christmas seasons.
In spite of the low attendance numbers in the episcopal diocese, Washington National Cathedral employs 85 full-time employees.
“A community of faith reducing public worship to just another option of paid Christmas entertainment?” responded the Rev. Anthony Jones, an Episcopal priest in Brooklyn, New York, according to the Episcopal News Service. “If a congregation can’t do church without selling tickets, something is wrong.” (READ MORE from Ellie Gardey: College President Details Plan to Use Race in Admissions)
The Episcopal cathedral reversed its decision to charge worshippers after outrage overwhelmed its ticket announcements on social media. In an unsigned statement announcing that the $7 fee would now be optional, Washington National Cathedral said that the fee had only been intended as a “processing fee”:
All worship services at the Cathedral are free. We want to make sure that everyone is welcome to our services. After hearing concerns from members of the community, we realize that a required processing fee for passes to some holiday services is a barrier to worship.
That was never our intent, and we apologize. We made some changes, and there is no longer a required processing fee for any reserved seating.
The chief communications officer for the cathedral, Kevin Eckstrom, told the publication Living Church that he didn’t understand why the controversy had arisen this year when the cathedral has previously charged fees for worship services. “[W]hy this year and not last year? I really can’t say, I honestly don’t know,” he said. “I’d love to know that answer myself.”
Outrage was renewed after people discovered that Washington National Cathedral says on its website that, in order to be baptized, a person is required to have “[m]ade a financial pledge to the Annual Congregation Stewardship Campaign.” In response to that backlash, the dean of the cathedral, the Rev. Randolph Marshall Hollerith, issued a statement. He wrote, “Let me clear. We do not, and will never, charge for the sacrament of baptism. Moreover, we do not require a financial pledge to the Congregation as a prerequisite for baptism. We simply encourage all baptismal candidates, and/or their families, to contribute to the ministry of the church by showing their commitment through pledging.”
The Episcopal Church needs all the baptisms it can get, as church attendance in the Episcopal Diocese of Washington has declined by half in the past decade, falling from 13,813 worshippers per week in 2013 to 6,963 per week in 2022.
In spite of the low attendance numbers in the episcopal diocese, Washington National Cathedral employs 85 full-time employees. The cathedral, which is located in Washington, D.C., draws 400,000 visitors a year due to its historical, political, and architectural significance. The cathedral charges $18 for adults and $13 for children for “general sightseeing,” which includes “Access to the main level where you can see the world-famous Space Window, Canterbury Pulpit, Nave-level chapels, and other favorite features including the new Now and Forever Windows” and a “Self-guided tour brochure.” Visitors who choose the “Inside Access Tour” pay $27 per adult and $23 per child.
Hollerith, the dean of the cathedral, earns $376,596 per year.
What About Social Justice?
Much of the backlash over the Washington National Cathedral’s requirement that people pay for worship services has centered around the fact that the cathedral and the Episcopal Diocese of Washington make themselves out to be great promoters of “equity and justice.”
On its website, the Episcopal Diocese of Washington describes its commitment to “equity and justice”:
Equity is a creative process, wherein we are intentionally, consistently and systematically creating the conditions for all people–particularly those who are structurally and historically marginalized–to experience holistic liberation. Equitable practices fundamentally understand and provide the material supports, transformed systems/institutions, community justice, and more that historically marginalized people need according to their particular cultures, histories, traditions and needs.
Washington National Cathedral is the seat for Mariann Edgar Budde, the diocesan bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington. Her biography on the diocese’s website emphasizes her commitment to social justice: “Bishop Budde is an advocate and organizer in support of justice concerns, including racial equity, gun violence prevention, immigration reform, the full inclusion of LGBTQ+ persons, and the care of creation.” Budde’s annual compensation is $281,184.
Last week, a member of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, a group of men who dress up in drag as nuns, read a prayer at a worship service at the Washington National Cathedral.
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