Interior of St. Hedwig Church in Chester, Pa., shown in a recent photo posted to the parish’s Facebook page. The Archdiocese of Philadelphia announced the church will be formally relegated effective Jan. 1, 2026.

By CatholicPhilly Staff Report • Posted November 18, 2025

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia has announced that St. Hedwig Church in Chester, Delaware County, will be formally relegated to profane but not sordid use effective Jan. 1, 2026. The decision, approved by Archbishop Nelson J. Pérez, means the church will close and no longer serve as a Roman Catholic worship site.

St. Hedwig Parish was suppressed in 1993, and its church became a worship site of Sacred Heart Parish in Clifton Heights, both founded to serve Polish Catholics. Since then, clergy from Sacred Heart have provided pastoral care to the faithful at St. Hedwig’s.

The petition for relegation followed years of financial strain, including a failed boiler in 2023 with repair costs estimated at $60,000. Regular Sunday worship at St. Hedwig’s has been suspended since Dec. 31, 2023. Despite contributions from parishioners, Sacred Heart Parish faced operating deficits and could not sustain the church’s maintenance needs.

The formal request to close a place of worship typically originates from the pastor of the parish, together with his parish pastoral and finance councils after joint study and consultation. The request is then reviewed by the Archdiocesan Council of Priests and presented to Archbishop Pérez, who makes the final decision.

Parishioners were informed of the decision at Masses last weekend. The future of the St. Hedwig building will be determined by Sacred Heart Parish leadership in consultation with pastoral and finance councils, in line with Church law and archdiocesan policy.

A copy of the official canonical decree regarding the relegation can be found here.