The parish family initiative is part of the archdiocese’s extended Partners in the Gospel renewal initiative.
Northwest Catholic, the news outlet of the archdiocese, said in a report on Saturday that the merger will see 170 “parishes, missions, and stations” grouped into 60 parish families. Pastoral leadership for the families will be announced in April, while the mergers themselves will take effect in July.
In a letter announcing the mergers, Etienne said he was “grateful to the thousands of people who engaged in the consultation process by providing insights during the input phase, sharing new ideas, and praying for this renewal effort.”
“My hope is that parish families will benefit from the shared gifts of people, time, finances, talents, and more so that we, as partners in the Gospel, can truly renew parish life,” the archbishop said.
“We need every member of the Church to share their God-given gifts to build up the body of Christ,” Etienne added.
The archdiocese said that the family arrangements “were developed based on parishes’ size, geography, cultural and ethnic makeup, financial health, school presence, and other considerations.”
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