COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – The Catholic Diocese of Columbus will be home to 15 fewer parishes over the upcoming years after a deep-dive look into its 155-year-old organization signaled the need for a shake-up.
For the first time in decades, the Diocese on Wednesday released a “pastoral plan” to overhaul the structure of its 105 parishes that span across 23 counties in Ohio – including the merging or closure of dozens of churches – in response to shifting demographics, a dwindling priesthood, aging infrastructure and budgetary challenges, Bishop Earl K. Fernandes said in an exclusive interview with NBC4.
The blueprint, nicknamed “Real Presence, Real Future,” is a culmination of a two-year study spearheaded by then-Bishop Robert Brennan into the needs of an evolving Diocese. When Fernandes assumed the role last May, he continued the work with a planning committee made up of priests, deacons and lay people to make recommendations for the make-up of the church.
“I was new here,” Fernandes said. “So I said to myself, ‘I want to – about a year or so – to go out and start visiting the parishes to see the reality with my own eyes.’”
A total of 15 churches – including eight from Columbus – will start the process of closing down July 1, according to the Diocese, although some may still remain open for over a year. At one point, the Bishop was considering closing 32 churches. Those 15 churches are:
- Corpus Christi (Columbus)
- Church of Atonement (Crooksville)
- Holy Rosary & St. John Catholic Church (Columbus)
- Parroquia Santa Cruz (Columbus)
- Ss. Peter and Paul (Glenmont)
- St. Anthony (Columbus)
- St. Bernard (Corning)
- St. Francis de Sales (Newcomerstown)
- St. Ladislas (Columbus)
- St. Mark (Lancaster)
- St. Mary (Bremen)
- St. Mary (Groveport)
- St. Matthias (Columbus)
- St. Philip the Apostle (Columbus)
- Our Lady of Miraculous Medal (Columbus)
Two K-8 schools, Ss. Peter and Paul in Wellston and St. Anthony in Columbus, will also shut down, the Diocese said in its recommendations.
As some churches prepare to close, others are preparing for an influx of parishioners who seek a new place of worship. For instance, on the South Side of Columbus, two churches – Corpus Christi and St. Ladislas – will close and their parishioners will be solidified under one St. Mary’s parish in the German Village neighborhood.
For more details, and a look at Colleen Marshall’s exclusive interview with Bishop Fernandes, visit NBC4i.com after 11 a.m. Thursday.
