PENNSYLVANIA
The Mercury
By the Associated Press
Posted: 04/16/12
The Archdiocese of Philadelphia has announced that a dozen parishes will be merged into five beginning this summer, resulting in the closure of seven parishes, but the parishes thought to be on the verge of merger in Phoenixville were not among them.
Officials announced at Sunday Masses that parishes in Manayunk and Germantown in the city and in Coatesville in Chester County would be merged as part of ongoing restructuring that “will ultimately strengthen parish communities, positioning them for future growth and sustainability.”
“Change is rarely easy,” Archbishop Charles Chaput told congregations in the announcement, which cited demographic shifts in Catholic populations and concentrated density of parishes in a limited geographic area. Also cited as factors in the mergers were declining Mass attendance and sacramental activity, economic problems and a decrease in available clergy.
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