Tuesday, May 25, 1999
Two more parishes to merge
St. Francis de Sales likely to stay open
BY JULIE IRWIN
The Cincinnati Enquirer
St. Francis de Sales Church in East Walnut Hills and Holy Angels Church in Hyde Park will merge in September, the latest victims of a priest shortage and changing demographics in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati.
The two parishes, which are about a mile from each other on Madison Road, are in talks now to figure out how the merger will work. The move was recommended by Ministry 2000, a task force begun nearly five years ago to address questions of demographics and staffing in the archdiocese.
Two churches have merged, four others are slated for merger and another five have closed since the task force began its work. Members of St. Francis and Holy Angels had known for some time that a merger was likely.
“We talked about it for two or three years, but when it becomes a reality it's always hard to cope with,” said the Rev. Ed Jach, pastor of St. Francis de Sales, where about 250 people attend Mass on Sundays. “It's always a surprise when you're affected by it.”
Holy Angels' pastor, Monsignor Robert Amann, is retiring Sept. 1, the day the merger is scheduled to take effect. His church attracts about 500 for weekend Mass and about 50 for daily Mass.
“They're disappointed, of course, but it'll work out all right,” Monsignor Amann said of his parishioners.
St. Francis de Sales recently underwent a $200,000 renovation in anticipation of its sesquicentennial, which officially kicks off in September. That investment and the fact that St. Francis has a school means the church will likely stay open.
Last year the archdiocese closed local parishes at St. Michael in Lower Price Hill, St. Charles Borromeo in Carthage, St. Pius in Cumminsville and St. Aloysius in Elmwood Place. The St. Charles building has become home to the archdiocesan Hispanic ministry, and St. Aloysius serves the Vietnamese community. Mother of Good Counsel in Felicity closed in 1997.
Our Lady of Loretto and St. Margaret of Cortona in Madisonville merged in 1995. Four parishes on the east side — Assumption in Walnut Hills, Holy Name in Mount Auburn, St. Andrew in Avondale and St. Mark in Evanston — are slated for merger. The four churches, which serve predominantly African-American congregations, are discussing among themselves how a merger would work.
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