Journey in Faith and Grace

This is the title the Diocese of Buffalo has given to the strategic plan for the closing and merging of parishes of Catholic Churches in the Buffalo area. I belong to Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Church in Colden, NY. I have gone to this church for 20 some years. I made all my sacraments there, with the exception of baptism, Warren and I were married there, and my girls were both baptised there. My church is being merged with another church to form a new parish.

While I realize intellectually that the definition of Church is not defined as a building, it is still hard to let it go. I believe that we are part of a greater plan, and this will eventually be a good thing for both parishes. Right now however, I feel sad. I feel like I am moving from a safe secure family home, to a new place, and in my heart there will be a hole. We as a parish family have been preparing for years for the possibility that this could happen to us. I served on the Parish Council around 5 years ago, and I know we discussed this as a possibility then. We thought then the merger would be due to our ageing priest retiring and the lack of new priests in the Catholic Church. While our merger is part of a Diocesan plan, we were a little better prepared for the possibility. (There was a whole dramatic revealing of which parishes in the Diocese were to be affected and it took over a year)There were things we did to try to be proactive just in case this should occur. I can tell you truthfully that I did not think (and do not believe most of the parishioners did either) that this would happen to us. We are a self sufficient church, we do not take money from the diocese but lend it, and also have a reputation for generosity for Catholic Charities. We are vibrant in our ministries and although probably not growing in family numbers, we are a close community. The church we are merging with had not at all been preparing for the possibility that this would happen. I am not part of the transition team that is responsible for the planning for the future and formation of our new parish, and I don't know what lies in the hearts of this other parish family. I know that we will be OK, and I know that it will be an adjustment for all of us, and we have to give it time. My true hope is that we will together form a larger more vibrant parish family. I think that with God all things are possible...

But, I am still sad.