Though they agree that sometimes a parish must be closed, U.S. Catholic readers have plenty of suggestions on how the process might be improved.

Last year, the Archdiocese of Boston announced the closing of 65 parishes in what Archbishop Sean P. O'Malley called a "radical reconfiguring" of the nation's fourth largest Catholic diocese. The closings, coming two years after the clergy sexual abuse scandal, reignited the anger from that period. Many Boston Catholics blamed the cost of the legal settlements associated with the scandal for the archdiocese's financial crisis. Some parishioners at parishes targeted for closure responded by protesting, even risking arrest in round-the-clock vigils.

But the causes of parish closings go deeper than the financial problems created by the scandal. As Catholics have followed other ethnic and religious groups to the suburbs, they have left behind parishes built to serve the immigrant communities of generations past.

Most bishops have been reluctant to close parishes, sometimes leaving the burden to their successors. Until last year's closings in Boston, the largest mass closings of parishes had been in Detroit in 1989 and Chicago in 1990. The backlash that resulted from those closings has led most bishops to adopt a more gradual approach.

But continuing demographic shifts coupled with the growing shortage of priests suggest that more parishes will be at risk of closure in the near future. Given that reality, are there alternatives to closure or any ways of improving the process by which parish closings take place?

According to a recent survey of U.S. Catholic readers, the answer is yes. While many understand that there are circumstances in which parishes may need to close, they are also upset that laypeople often have little involvement in the decision-making process. Many readers believe that dioceses should be more aggressive in pursuing alternatives to closing, such as the use of lay pastoral administrators in cases where no priest is available to serve as pastor. And a significant number want the church to consider ordaining married men and women as a way of expanding the number of available priests.

A realistic assessment
Despite a very strong attachment to their parish communities, an overwhelming majority of U.S. Catholic readers (81 percent) agree with the statement: "Sometimes, for the greater good, some parishes need to be closed."

"With the current level of clergy, in justice, some parishes need to be closed," says Nancy Thomas of Walled Lake, Michigan. "It isn't fair that some pastors have 8,000 people to pastor, while others have 800 or fewer."

In addition to the priest shortage, a large number of readers (57 percent) cite the movement of Catholics to the suburbs as a major reason for parish closings. "In many parts of the country it's about demographics," says Bill O'Connor of Pittsburgh. "The population is shrinking in areas where there were several churches built 50, 70, even 100 years ago to accommodate different ethnic groups."

Msgr. John Bendik of Pittston, Pennsylvania has been the pastor of three merged parishes for more than 12 years. He suspects that more consolidation is coming.

"Because of the decreased population in our city, we are fully aware that some day we will be merged with other parishes," he says. "We are also aware that church buildings will be closed. My concern is that we do not lose sight of the fact that what is of essence to us is that we are a eucharistic community, a people bonded around the altar of the Lord. We need an ongoing process to make any transition less painful."

A difficult process
While they understand that sometimes parishes may need to be closed, U.S. Catholic readers express a great deal of frustration with the way closings are often handled. Most of their frustration centers on what readers believe to be inadequate communication from the bishop and other diocesan personnel as well as a perceived lack of lay involvement in the decision-making process. Many readers recall cases-although often without citing specifics-in which the bishop simply announced the closing without giving adequate notice to the affected parish.

Better communication and consultation is a priority for many readers, but they also want their input to be taken seriously and to have some impact on the outcome. Ken Conen of Two Rivers, Wisconsin, who has experienced a parish closure, recalls that "meetings were held for input, but the decision was already made at the diocesan level. Why deceive people and give false hope? It made the hurt more painful."

Experiences such as this may explain why less than half of the relatively small number of readers who had personally experienced a parish closure (7 percent) believe the closure had turned out to be a good decision.

It may be true, though, that no amount of consultation can fully assuage the grief of losing a parish community. A reader from Providence, Rhode Island still vividly recalls the closing of St. John's Parish in that city some 25 years ago. "At the last Mass, the priest from the diocesan liturgy office closed the doors and nailed two boards across it in an X pattern. We were all in tears as we marched down the street to a nearby church, our new parish," she says.

Silver lining
Despite many painful tales, some survey respondents were able to find a few moments of grace in the experience. James O'Neil of Wilmington, Massachusetts notes that when St. Alphonsus Parish in Beverly, Massachusetts closed in 2004, the parish "sent their parish statues and religious articles down to a remote, poor parish in South America. Some of the parishioners personally delivered these items."

Roseann Felder of Wakeeney, Kansas says, "Our bishop frequently visited a small rural parish to fill in as the pastor's health gave way. They had to know how much he cared, but he had no choice but to close the parish. Now they have scattered to other parishes, but some still don't feel at home yet."

Felder's story points out the difficulty displaced parishioners often have in adapting to their new parish. Many readers note that the transition can be particularly tough for elderly and disabled parishioners. But readers also told stories of the process working well.

Margie Saurer of Stillwater, Oklahoma says that in her home community in Minnesota, there were two small churches 17 miles apart. "In the winter the larger church was the place for Mass because it was heated," she says. "In the summer, every other Sunday, there was Mass at the smaller church. After several winters, the members of both churches agreed to move several beloved statues into the larger and warmer church, and the other was closed."

"The best way I've seen a parish closing handled was when parishioners of both parishes met with the bishop's representatives and worked together to make the closing and merger as painless as possible," says Elizabeth Person of New Orleans. "Of course, there was still a lot of sadness because the closed parish was quite an old one in the city."

Kathleen Chesto of Southbury, Connecticut also recalls a positive experience of a merger. "Two parishes, both with old churches, were combined and a new church was built. Both communities brought important symbols from their churches and processed with them to the new church. Both communities had a voice in the design and government of the new parish."