Buffalo Diocese Announces Official List of Mergers, Closures

Diocese Faces Declining Attendance, Priest Shortage

The Buffalo Diocese has released an official list of mergers and closures for its parishes. The move comes after years of declining attendance and a shortage of priests. The diocese says the changes are necessary to ensure the long-term viability of the Catholic Church in Western New York.

Mergers

The following parishes will merge into one new parish:

• Annunciation and St. Anthony, Buffalo
• Holy Angels and St. Bonaventure, Buffalo
• Immaculate Conception and Assumption, Buffalo
• Our Lady of Pompeii and St. Katharine Drexel, Buffalo
• St. Andrew and St. Patrick, Buffalo
• St. Columba and St. Mary of the Angels, Buffalo
• St. Francis of Assisi and St. Luke, Buffalo
• St. John the Baptist and St. Joseph Cathedral, Buffalo
• St. Margaret and St. Teresa, Buffalo
• St. Martin de Porres and St. Stanislaus, Buffalo
• St. Michael and St. Peter, Buffalo
• St. Peter and St. Paul, Hamburg
• Transfiguration and St. George, Clarence

Closures

The following parishes will close:

• Holy Cross, Buffalo
• Our Lady of Lourdes, Buffalo
• St. Agatha, Buffalo
• St. Lawrence, Buffalo
• St. Rose of Lima, Buffalo
• St. Stephen, Buffalo
• St. Thomas Aquinas, Buffalo
• St. Vincent de Paul, Buffalo
• St. William, Buffalo
• St. Aloysius Gonzaga, Cheektowaga
• Our Lady of Czestochowa, North Tonawanda
• St. Mary Magdalene, Scio

Diocesan Statement

In a statement, the diocese said that the decision to merge and close parishes was "not made lightly." The diocese said that it had been considering the changes for several years and that it had consulted with parishioners and parish leaders before making its final decision.

The diocese said that it is committed to providing pastoral care to all of its parishioners and that it will work to make the transition to the new parish structure as smooth as possible.