The Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh is merging three groups of parishes this summer.
Bishop Davis Zubik announced Saturday the number of parishes in the diocese will be reduced from 70 to 63 on July 1. Churches affected are mainly north of the city.
They are:
· Divine Grace (Cranberry/Ellwood City/Zelienople), which brings together the parishes of Saint Ferdinand (Cranberry Township), Saint Gregory (Evans City/Zelienople) and Holy Redeemer (Ellwood City/Koppel/Wampum).
· Regina Coeli (Bellevue/Emsworth/Franklin Park), which brings together the parishes of Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Bellevue), Saint John Neumann (Franklin Park) and Sacred Heart (Emsworth);
· Saint Luke the Evangelist (Ambridge/Baden/Conway/Franklin Park), which brings together the parishes of Good Samaritan (Ambridge), Saint John the Baptist (Baden), Saints John and Paul (Franklin Park/Marshall Township) and Our Lady of Peace (Conway);
In a letter, Bishop Zubik said, “This has not been a simple task. Jesus never promised that it would be easy to carry his message of love and mercy to others. However, you are positioning your new parish for more effective ministry by addressing financial needs, sharing resources and allowing your clergy to focus on the spiritual work for which they were ordained. With your faith in Jesus and empowered by the Holy Spirit, I invite you to warmly welcome and serve each other as you become one parish family.”
The consolidation was requested by priest administrators and continues a trend of merging parishes as the diocese deals with declining parishioners.