Parish Restructuring
Parishes in four regions of Philadelphia Archdiocese to merge July 1
Twenty-four parishes will merge into 10 as a result of the latest wave of parish consolidations in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia’s parish planning initiative. Archbishop Charles J. Chaput accepted the recommendations for the mergers from the Archdiocesan Strategic Planning Committee, and pastors at the affected parishes informed parishioners during all Saturday evening and Sunday morning Masses June 1-2. The mergers, in which the parishes will form new, consolidated parishes with some of the churches becoming worship sites, are occurring in four geographic areas: Lower Northeast Philadelphia, Northwest Philadelphia, West Philadelphia and Delaware County.
All Saints, St. John Cantius parishes to merge in Philadelphia
Two parishes in the Bridesburg section of Northeast Philadelphia will merge beginning July 1, the Archdiocese of Philadelphia announced Sunday, May 26. All Saints Parish and St. John Cantius Parish will merge to become a new parish at the site of St. John Cantius, with All Saints Church remaining “a worship site for the time being,” according to a statement by the archdiocese.
St. Donato Parish to merge with Our Lady of Lourdes in West Philadelphia
St. Donato Parish in West Philadelphia will merge with Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, it was announced at weekend Masses Feb. 2-3. St. Donato Church, at 65th and Callowhill streets, will become a worship site for occasional use, according to a statement by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia released Feb. 4. The merger of the parishes, whose churches are located only 1.25 miles from each other, becomes effective Feb. 24.
St. Veronica Parish to welcome St. Hugh parishioners in merger
As the latest step in the ongoing archdiocesan strategic planning, Lower Northeast Philadelphia’s St. Hugh of Cluny Parish will close and merge with St. Veronica to form a new parish, keeping the St. Veronica name. The announcement was made at all Masses at the parishes Jan. 12-13. The merger is effective Jan. 27. St. Hugh […]
Six West Philadelphia parishes to merge into three
UPDATE -- As announced at parish Masses on Jan. 5-6, six West Philadelphia parishes located mostly in Parish Planning Area 600 will merge as three parishes. The closures are the latest result of the ongoing strategic planning process in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
Dozens of parishes studying trends, plans for mergers
As part of the ongoing strategic planning process for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, 59 parishes mostly in eight of the 44 Pastoral Planning Areas (PPAs) will undergo study over the next several months, with the purpose of deciding how best to utilize their collective gifts in living out the mission of the Church at both the parish and the archdiocesan level.
Parishes in Restructuring Process, 2012-2013
See a list of parishes in the restructuring process and in dialogue.
Parish restructuring: Hard work by many, for the good of all (Editorial)
It would be too easy to look at the list of almost 60 parishes engaged in a restructuring or dialogue process this autumn and expect that they’ll all be ordered to close at any moment without so much as a peep from pastors and their parishioners. Far from it. The parish restructuring process currently under […]
Interactive Map
See an interactive graphic showing parish restructuring
Once a thriving Kensington parish, Ascension to close Oct. 1
Ascension of Our Lord Parish was once among the largest in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. It has experienced a dwindling population, with only seven infant baptisms, two marriages and average weekly Mass attendance of 188. The figures are less than half of what they were just four years ago.