Parishioners Occupying Church for 11 Years Get Court Relief

Parishioners occupying a Roman Catholic church south of Boston for nearly 11 years have gotten a reprieve from a court-ordered deadline to leave by Friday.

A state judge earlier this month ordered the defiant members of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Roman Catholic Church in Scituate to end their occupation by Friday. But the group immediately asked the court to delay the deadline since it is appealing the ruling.

In response, Norfolk County Superior Court Judge Edward Leibensperger changed his order.

Late last week, he said the date when protesters would be barred from the church would be determined when he decides on the group's request to suspend the order pending their appeal. The Boston Archdiocese opposed the delay in court filings this week.

"I think all will be well," Mary Elizabeth Carmody, an attorney for the parishioners, said by email late Thursday. "The court needs time to consider the papers and write his ruling. He modified the injunction date last week because he knew he would need time."

She added: "It gives everyone some 'breathing space'."

The archdiocese, through a spokesman, said it would not take any action Friday to push the protesters out.

The parishioners have occupied the church since the archdiocese closed it in 2004 to address mounting debts. The archdiocese took the group to court this year after protesters refused to end their vigil, despite losing an appeal before a Vatican high court.

Organizers want the archdiocese to restore their parish's standing or sell them the building. They say they're prepared to be arrested as trespassers if necessary.

The archdiocese hasn't said what it would do if protesters refuse to leave.