Representatives from the diocese’s Priest Personnel Board and other diocesan representatives have completed a series of meetings with the leadership of parishes that will be involved in mergers.
Forty-one consultations were held from April 15-June 18 to assess the pastoral needs of the parishes and to assist the Priest Personnel Board in making its recommendations to Bishop Galante this summer regarding those priests who likely will become pastors of the merged parishes once they are formally established by decree.
The diocese expects that it may take up to 12 to 24 months before Bishop Galante issues decrees establishing the new parishes.
Last month, the Vicar for Clergy, Father Terry Odien, wrote to all the priests of the diocese with a listing of all parish openings and requesting that all active priests complete a form indicating their choices for ministerial assignment and return it to his office by July 15.
Priests who currently are the pastors of parishes designated as a “cluster” or “stand alone parish” may choose to remain in their present assignments until their term expires, until they seek a new assignment at another time, until they retire, or seek senior priest status. They may also choose to apply to become pastor of one of the newly merged parishes.
Those priests who are not currently pastors of parishes designated as a “cluster” or “stand alone parish” and who are interested in becoming pastor of one of the newly merged parishes were asked to list at least three parish choices by preference.
The Priest Personnel Board will meet in early August to make recommendations to Bishop Galante for priest assignments.
Bishop Galante is then expected to announce later in August the names of those priests who will be the likely pastors of the newly merged parishes once they are formally established by decree. These priests will be called “Priest Conveners,” for their primary role and task will be to work beginning this fall with a small group of parishioners, or core team, from each parish in the merger to help create the new parish.
When the decrees establishing the newly-merged parishes are promulgated, existing pastors will cease to be the pastors, and the Priest Convener will likely be named the pastor at that time. Until then, parish life will continue under the direction of the present pastor.