The St. Cloud Diocese, which stretches across 16 counties in central Minnesota, is planning the closures in response to steady declines in both the number of priests and parishioners, as well as trends of people becoming less religious, though there has been an uptick in devotion among young men in recent years.
The mergers will affect most of the 110,000 worshippers in the diocese stretching from the South Dakota border to Elk River, even some whose churches won’t be shuttered.
“Right now, all of our 131 parishes have Mass every weekend,” said Brenda Kresky, director of pastoral planning for the St. Cloud Diocese. “We’re reducing that by [about] a third and saying, even if you remain open, you won’t have Mass on the weekend.”
Bishop Patrick Neary plans to begin issuing merger decrees in the next few weeks. Though the order is coming from the diocese, the plans are based on proposals submitted within the last year by more than two dozen regional committees made up of priests and parishioners. That doesn’t mean everyone is happy.
“This is just devastating for us,” said Carly Serbus, a member of St. Anne’s in Kimball, another church that’s likely on the chopping block. “It’s ripping the heart out of our community.”
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