ERIE, Pa. – The final plan for parish restructuring in the Western Vicariate of the Catholic Diocese of Erie was announced Wednesday by the Most Rev. Lawrence T. Persico, bishop of Erie (pictured above). Parishes from the Western Vicariate include those in Clarion and Venango Counties.
This was the second of three announcements scheduled this week in different regions, or vicariates, of the 13-county diocese in northwestern Pennsylvania.
The Western Vicariate is comprised of churches in Clarion, Crawford, Mercer, Venango counties, and a part of Forest County.
The final plan calls for two parish models: the stand-alone parish and the partnered parish. In addition, a number of parishes will be merged into other parishes, creating either new stand-alone parishes or newly partnered parishes.
Parish communities that will partner with one another in the Western Vicariate are:
- St. Joseph (Lucinda) with St. Michael (Fryburg)
- St. Bridgid, St. Agatha and St. Mary of Grace (Meadville)
- St. Peter (Conneautville) with St. Philip (Linesville)
- St. Anthony of Padua (Sharon) with Our Lady of Fatima (Farrell)
- Newly enlarged St. Joseph and St. Stephen parishes (Oil City)
Parish communities that will cease to exist in the Western Vicariate are:
- Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Oil City, merge with St. Joseph Parish
- Our Lady Help of Christians, Oil City, merge with St. Joseph Parish
- Sacred Heart, Sharon, merge with St. Jospeh Parish
- St. Adalbert, Farrell, merge with St. Anthony of Padua Parish
- St. Philip, Crossingville (as announced on September 20)
- St. Stanislaus Kostka-Holy Trinity, Sharon, merge with St. Anthony of Padua Parish
- St. Venantius, Rouseville, merge with St. Stephen Parish
- St. Walburga, Titusville, merge with St. Titus Parish
Churches in the Western Vicariate that will become secondary churches and will no longer have Sunday Masses are:
- Immaculate Conception, Mageetown, remains secondary church of St. Titus Parish, but without weekend Masses, eliminating its distinction as a mission
- St. Philip, Crossingville
Parishes in Clarion and Venango Counties that will continue to stand alone are:
- Immaculate Conception, Clarion
- St. Charles, New Bethlehem
- St. Eusebius, East Brady
- St. Mary, Crown
- St. Nicholas, Mayport
- St. Patrick, East Brady
- St. Richard Mission (Rimersburg), East Brady
- St. Michael, Emlenton
- St. Patrick, Franklin
The final restructuring plan comes after a two-year study of the 116 parishes in the diocese. Last spring, the bishop announced a preliminary plan for restructuring that was immediately followed by a feedback period in which nearly 2,000 people submitted their responses. Also, each parish was invited to submit an official survey that assessed the recommended changes.
Under the final plan, 19 parish communities throughout the Diocese of Erie will cease to exist. That number includes five in the Northern Vicariate, seven in the Western Vicariate, and seven in the Eastern Vicariate.
The church buildings of those 19 parishes will continue to remain in use, though not all will continue to offer Sunday Masses.
Of the 19 parishes that will cease to exist in the Diocese of Erie, 17 of them already are sharing a pastor with another parish. Pastors will continue to be needed in all 17 of the other parishes.
A Parish Listening Task Force, under the leadership of Msgr. Richard Siefer, pastor of St. Catherine of Siena Parish, DuBois, and an in-depth study of parish life in the diocese found that the overall population of the diocese shrunk by 6.7 percent in the last decade.
Additionally, the number of households registered in Catholic parishes decreased by 19 percent, from 2004 to 2014. Mass attendance dropped by 26 percent in roughly the same period, and infant baptisms have declined every year.
By January 2017, the bishop expects to make final clergy appointments. The decrees for parish restructuring take effect Feb. 13, but parishes have until June 30, 2017, to implement the plan fully.
Today, the bishop will meet with clergy and parishes leaders to announce final decisions for churches in the Eastern Vicariate, which covers parish communities in Cameron, Clearfield, Elk, Jefferson, McKean and Potter counties.
(Photo courtesy of www.eriercd.org)
