DECREE ON THE EXTINCTIVE UNION – MERGER OF THE PARISHES OF SAINT JOSEPH THE WORKER AND THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY, LIVERPOOL, NEW YORK AND THE REDUCTION OF THE CHURCH OF THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY, LIVERPOOL, NEW YORK TO PROFANE BUT NOT SORDID USE
Whereas the parish of Saint Joseph the Worker was established in 1890 and its current church constructed in 1974, and the parish of the Immaculate Heart of Mary was established in 1950 and its current church constructed in 1951;
Whereas various factors (i.e., changing demographics of the village and the parish, financial concerns, limited resources, proximity of neighboring parishes, etc.) necessitated the linkage of the parishes of Saint Joseph the Worker and the Immaculate Heart of Mary in 2011 for the sake of proper pastoral care;
Whereas the shortage of people in the parish and clergy in the Diocese of Syracuse necessitated the placement of the pastoral care of the parishes of Saint Joseph the Worker and the Immaculate Heart of Mary under the direction of one pastor (can. 526 §1);
Whereas the parishes of Saint Joseph the Worker and the Immaculate Heart of Mary have been and continue to function as one parochial entity (i.e., shared clergy, finance and pastoral councils, faith formation and parish programs, bulletin, etc.) with two worship sites;
Whereas the parish trustees, finance council, and pastoral council reviewed the sacramental statistics, Mass attendance, vitality, and financial resources of both parishes, the current status and future maintenance needs of the church buildings and other facilities of each parish in relation to the needs of the parish, and the shortage of clergy in the Diocese of Syracuse;
Whereas the status of each parish and its church buildings and other facilities (demographics, finances, maintenance, etc.) was presented at three town hall meetings with parishioners, which resulted in a recommendation by the parish council and trustees to petition me to canonically merge the parishes and relegate the church of the Immaculate Heart of Mary to profane but not sordid use for the purpose of alienating the property in order to ensure the existence and vitality of the parish;
Whereas the petition to relegate the church of the Immaculate Heart of Mary to profane but not sordid use includes the following reasons: (1) there is a significant decline in the number of people attending Mass and celebrating the sacraments at the parish, (2) the financial resources of the parish are limited and diminishing such that it is no longer possible to maintain both church buildings, and (3) a preliminary campus assessment conducted concluded that the needs of the parish for worship, evangelization, and care of those in need can be adequately met at the church of Saint Joseph the Worker;
Whereas where grave causes suggest that a church no longer be used for divine worship, the diocesan bishop, after having heard the presbyteral council, can relegate it to profane but not sordid use, with the consent of those who legitimately claim rights for themselves in the church and provided that the good of souls suffers no detriment hereby (canon 1222 §2);
Whereas the grave cause of relegation to profane but not sordid use may exist not in one obvious grave cause but may arise from a combination of many just causes which combined together manifest a grave cause (see Congregation for Clergy, Procedural Guidelines for the Modification of Parishes, the Closure or Relegation of Churches to Profane but not Sordid Use, and the Alienation of the Same, April 30, 2013, Prot. No. 20131348);
Whereas, having examined the facts of the present case, it has been well established that grave reasons required by canon 1222 §2 are present, even if some of the reasons invoked may not by themselves constitute a grave cause, they do so when taken together;
Whereas after a careful examination, it was established that nobody could legitimately claim rights for themselves in the church, understood primarily as patrimonial rights or rights associated with patrimonial rights (see Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura, Final Decree of the College of Judges, 21 November 1988, Communicationes 20 [1988] 93);
Whereas, I convoked the Presbyteral Council on 6 June 2023 and presided over it according to the norm of law (cans. 127 §1, 166 §1, and 500 §1), placing the modification (extinctive union- merger) of the parishes of Saint Joseph the Worker and the Immaculate Heart of Mary as well the relegation of the church of the Immaculate Heart of Mary on the agenda ahead of time, ensuring that a summary of its status was provided to the members of the Council (can. 50), proposing the modification and relegation separately, seeking the informed and free counsel of the members concerning each individual proposed action (can. 515 §2), listening to arguments both for and against the proposed modification and relegation, and receiving unanimous support for the proposed modification and relegation;
Therefore, I the undersigned Bishop of Syracuse, after prayerful consideration, having weighed all the reasons and causes, have decided as follows:
DECREE
1. The parishes of Saint Joseph the Worker and the Immaculate Heart of Mary are hereby canonically merged via an extinctive union – merger for the sake of proper pastoral care. The name of the parish will continue to be, “Epiphany Parish.” The members and geographical territory of the parishes of Saint Joseph the Worker and the Immaculate Heart of Mary will become the members and geographical territory of Epiphany Parish. All sacramental registers hitherto preserved at each parish are to be conveyed to the office of the newly merged parish located at the church of Saint Joseph the Worker, where they are to be faithfully preserved according to the norms of can. 535 §§ 1-5.
2. The church of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, located at 425 Beechwood Avenue Liverpool, New York, 13088, of Epiphany Parish is hereby reduced to profane but not sordid use according to the prescripts of canon 1222 §2 for the grave causes mentioned above.
3. The church of Saint Joseph the Worker, located at 1001 Tulip Street, Liverpool, New York 13088, is hereby officially designated as the sole church of the parish.
4. Negotiations that may lead to the sale of the property of the church of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and its facilities can begin, following the proper procedures for alienation.
5. Prior to the alienation of the church of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, all sacred objects, relics, sacred furnishings, stained-glass windows, bells, confessionals, altars, etc. are to be removed for use in other sacred edifices or to be stored in ecclesiastical custody. In case the altars cannot be removed, they must be destroyed (see canons 1212 and 1238).
This merger and relegation will become effective on 7 October 2023, the Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary. This decree hereby revokes and replaces any decrees issued by my predecessor, the Most Reverend Robert J. Cunningham, concerning the parishes of Saint Joseph the Worker and the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
I further order this decree to be made public to all the faithful through its publication on 8 September 2023, the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This publication on the diocesan website (www.syrdio.org), in the local diocesan newspaper (The Catholic Sun), on the parish website, and in the parish bulletin will be the legitimate notification. A notarized copy of the decree will be sent to the pastor.
This decree may be challenged by anyone who feels aggrieved by it within the peremptory time limit of ten useful days from the legitimate notification of the decree, that is, on 8 September 2023, by seeking its revocation or emendation directly from me (can. 1734 §2).
Given at the Chancery of the Diocese of Syracuse on this seventh day of September in the year of our Lord, two-thousand twenty-three, Thursday of the twenty-second week in ordinary time.
Most Reverend Douglas J. Lucia
Bishop of Syracuse
Mrs. Danielle E. Cummings
Chancellor