Structural Change

New Parishes

Please see below for a list of new parishes created as part of the Renew My Church parish grouping process. What is noted in bold is the name of the parish. There are instances in which the parishioners of the uniting parishes opted to select a completely new name for their new parish community; for others, the decision has been to simply join the names of their existing churches together.

 

Why do unifying parishes change names?

It is important to know that individual churches, the specific worship sites coming together, retain their names. They are consecrated to God, by name. Parishes are actually the communities themselves (not the buildings), so as a family changes so, too, at times the name may change. Some unifying parishes opt to create a completely new family name, such as the parishes which were created in 2018 (Divine Mercy parish is an example). And sometimes unifying parishes bring their existing family names together as we see with several in 2019 (Sts. Ita and Thomas of Canterbury parish is an example)

So, what does it look and sound like when a unifying parish creates a new name but has multiple churches? An example is St. Cyprian Church of St. Mother Theodore Guerin Parish and St. Celestine Church of Mother Theodore Guerin parish. A few more words than we are used to, for sure. But the beauty in this is the fact that the beloved names of the churches and sites remain, while we all get to contribute to the naming of our new, collective parish community.

What does it mean for multiple parishes to unite as one parish with multiple active worship sites?

Uniting as one parish means bringing all that we are and hope to be together, as one Catholic community. Our gifts, our talents, our hopes, our prayers, our needs … they are all shared to the benefit and vitality of the entire, unified parish community led by one pastor.

In those parishes where multiple churches remain open and active within the life of the parish, Mass and the sacraments will continue to be celebrated regularly at each individual church (recognizing that local parish leadership has the discretion to make future adjustments to the celebration of sacraments and use of the buildings as necessary). The unifying congregations of each location will now have the benefit of shared resources to work together in new ways to achieve the vision of renewing our archdiocese and bringing more people to know and love Jesus Christ in His Church.

What does it mean that a church is an active worship site?

Worship sites are churches where regular Mass and sacraments will continue to be celebrated as part of the combined parish. Future adjustments to mass and/or confession times are a possibility and will be clarified and communicated in advance of any changes taking effect.