Approximately 50 New York parishes to close, merge
October 31, 2014
Citing shifting demographics and a decline in the number of priests, Cardinal Timothy Dolan said in an archdiocesan newspaper column that 14% of the Archdiocese of New York’s 368 parishes will soon “undergo a purgatory, with decisions to merge them with their welcoming neighbors.”
The impending closure of some 50 parishes follows the closing of 21 parishes in 2007, CBS New York noted.
“Let me be candid: there will soon be a real sense of grief at some of our parishes as we get set to announce publicly what we’ve been preparing for the last five years, namely, the merging of some of our beloved parishes,” Cardinal Dolan wrote.
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Further information:
- ‘Dying ... and Rising’ (Catholic New York)
- Catholic Parishes Wait As New York Archdiocese Set To Announce Closures, Mergers (CBS New York)
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Posted by: rjbennett1294 -
Oct. 31, 2014 7:26 PM ET USA
Fifty years ago, it was thought that updating and "modernizing" the Church would prevent people from abandoning the Church and losing their faith. And what has happened over the last fifty years? People have abandoned the Church and lost their faith in droves. And yet the hierarchy insists that more "modernization" will reverse that trend. Meanwhile 14% of the Parishes in the Archdiocese of New York are closing, due, of course, to "shifting demographics".
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Posted by: Randal Mandock -
Oct. 31, 2014 2:59 PM ET USA
The evidence amply demonstrates that the quality of the seminary determines the number of priests available to serve the faithful. I am happy to be part of a priestly fraternity that is undergoing explosive growth.
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Posted by: Defender -
Oct. 31, 2014 10:46 AM ET USA
I guess there's no law of "graduality" in this archdiocese!
