Parish Restructuring

Four parishes in Phoenixville will merge into two

Archbishop Charles Chaput has accepted the Archdiocesan Strategic Planning Committee’s recommendations to merge the four Catholic parishes of Phoenixville, Chester County, into two. The announcement was made Sunday, June 3 and read in the affected churches at weekend Masses. Holy Trinity Parish, founded in 1903 to serve Polish Catholics, will merge with St. Mary of the […]

Archbishop Chaput announces his final decisions for four Parish Planning Areas

Archbishop Charles Chaput, having been advised by the Strategic Planning Committee, and reviewing all proposals, has announced his final decisions for the first four Pastoral Planning Areas (PPAs) in the Archdiocese that were examined for possible parish mergers and closures. Pastors of involved parishes received phone calls on Tuesday, April 10, informing them of the […]

Recourse for merged or closed parishes

Most dioceses and archdioceses in the United States have had to face the reality of changing demographics and the declining number of active priests available to serve the people. This has led to the unfortunate need to close and merge parishes, so to best utilize available resources and personnel. In the Philadelphia Archdiocese the process […]

Parishes in Philadelphia, Chester Co., evaluated

Seven parishes in Northwest Philadelphia and four parishes in Coatesville, Chester County, submitted written recommendations for Archbishop Charles Chaput’s consideration regarding merging, consolidating or closing some of the parishes in those Pastoral Planning Areas (PPAs). The proposals were due Feb. 15, and will be discussed among the parish pastors and a Strategic Planning Committee comprised of archdiocesan experts in several aspects of Church life. PPA 540 includes nine parishes located in the Germantown, Mount Airy and Oak Lane sections of Philadelphia and a detailed study of seven of those parishes began last October. The parishes affected are St. Vincent de Paul, founded in 1851; St. Francis of Assisi, founded in 1899; Immaculate Conception, founded in 1902; St. Benedict, founded in 1922; St. Therese of the Child Jesus, founded in 1925; St. Athanasius, founded in 1928; and St. Raymond of Penafort, founded in 1941.

Parishes in Northwest Philadelphia, Coatesville join in planning effort

Seven parishes in Northwest Philadelphia and four in Coatesville, Chester County, are nearing a Feb. 15 deadline for submitting a recommendation to Archbishop Charles Chaput to merge, consolidate or close some of the parishes. Detailed study of parish life in Pastoral Planning Area (PPA) 540, which includes parishes of the Germantown, Mount Airy and Oak […]

Pastors, principals learn details of implementation plan for schools

As difficult as it was for Catholics in the Philadelphia Archdiocese to learn of the merger or closure of parish grade schools and high schools Jan. 6, implementing the recommendations and understanding the rationale for them began to sink in for Catholics in the days that followed. Rallies of students and parents at some affected […]

Immaculate Conception and St. Casimir close

  Churches will become worship sites By Lou BaldwinSpecial to The CS&T Two Philadelphia parishes officially closed July 1, but became worship sites of the parishes with which they were already twinned. Immaculate Conception at Front and Allen Streets has merged into nearby St. Michael at 2nd and Jefferson Streets. St. Casimir, a Lithuanian personal […]

Holy Trinity to close, St. Justin Martyr to merge

By Christie L. ChicoineCS&T Staff Writer Holy Trinity Parish, a German personal parish in the Society Hill section of Philadelphia, is closing, but the church will remain open as a worship site of Old St. Mary’s Parish, which is two blocks away. In Montgomery County, St. Justin Martyr Parish in Narberth is merging with St. […]