ARTICLES

Priest shortage to hit home soon in many parishes

By Steve Neill
Of The Catholic Virginian

As the number of priests serving in parish ministry continues to decrease, the number of parishes which may become part of a cluster is likely to increase.

This is the consensus of the Diocesan Pastoral Planning Commission which is seeking to develop a viable, open and transparent process in which Catholics of the Diocese of Richmond will be consulted for suggestions and ideas on continuing to provide the sacraments with more people in the pews and fewer priests.

The commission has asked for the formation of 19 geographical planning groups in which members of each group would develop a five-year strategic plan for the parishes of their own group. The groups would be smaller than each of the 12 geographical regions already established in the diocese and larger than a cluster.

Each planning group will be made up of all the pastors, pastoral coordinators and campus ministers as well as two other lay representatives from each parish in its geographic area.

“We need to plan because the change is here,” said Beth Neu, director of the diocesan Office of Pastoral Planning.

What is triggering the need for a strategic planning process is the expected decline in the number of priests available for Sunday Mass and the sacraments for the 152 parishes in the diocese.

“It is becoming increasingly difficult to cover all the parishes with the limited number of priests we have,” Mrs. Neu said.

“We project we’ll have a net loss of 18 to 20 priests over the next five-year period.

“That’s a net loss, even though men now in the seminary will be ordained during the next five years,” she added.

This net loss is due in part to retirement of currently active priests and those who will have to step down because of illness or death.

Priests of the Diocese of Richmond are eligible for retirement at age 70. However, some past that age choose to continue in active priestly ministry and others who have retired continue to celebrate Mass on Sundays and are considered sacramental priests for a specific parish community.

Among them are Father John Kloepfer, who goes every weekend for Mass at Immaculate Heart of Mary, Blackstone, Sacred Heart, Meherrin, and St. John, Crew; Father Robert McEleney, who celebrates Mass on weekends at Transfiguration, Fincastle, and St. John the Evangelist, New Castle; Msgr. Chester Michael, who at 90 travels to parishes as needed, and Father William O’Brien, who is in residence and celebrates the sacraments at St. Bede, Williamsburg.

Bishop Emeritus Walter F. Sullivan, who recently turned 79, often celebrates Sunday Mass at St. Paul parish in Richmond and in July is scheduled to celebrate Mass on different Sundays at St. Bridget’s, Richmond; Good Shepherd, Smithfield; St. Nicholas, Virginia Beach, and at St. John’s, Dinwiddie.

Two Benedictine priests who are pastors of two parishes are 80 and older. Father Adrian Harmening, pastor of St. Joseph’s parish in Richmond, is 80, and Father Paschal Kneip, pastor of St. Andrew’s in Chincoteague, is 84. Father Rollie Hautz, a Glenmary priest who is pastor of St. Bernard’s, Gate City, and St. Patrick’s, Dungannon, is 79.

“We rely heavily on retired priests to help cover Sunday Masses,” Mrs. Neu said.

There is also a growing number of international priests who have come to the diocese in the past few years to serve in parishes. But recently one of them, Father Patrick Cannon, who was serving as parochial vicar at St. Augustine’s in Richmond, was asked by his bishop to return for ministry in his home diocese in England which is also experiencing a priest shortage.

While several parishes are already clustered, such as the three Portsmouth parishes and St. Mary’s, Bower’s Hill, Chesapeake, it is almost certain that others will join together in some way.

According to Mrs. Neu, there are 152 parishes in the diocese. In addition, the Newman Community of Virginia Tech in Blacksburg has a full-time priest (Father John Grace) as campus minister.

“The groups will be based on geography,” Mrs. Neu said. “They’ll be given data on the parishes — such as average weekend attendance at Mass, the number of families, the number receiving the various sacraments, such as first Communion and Confirmation.

“With these figures, you can look and see is the parish growing or is it shrinking?”

But regarding the possibility of clustering with a neighboring parish, other factors must be considered.

“Is the next closest Catholic church an hour away or 15 minutes away?” Mrs. Neu asked.

Mrs. Neu hopes all parishioners interested will participate in the planning process. Three open meetings are scheduled to take place this Fall:

• September 29 at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Salem

• October 20 at Immaculate Conception in Hampton

• November 3 at St. Michael’s in Glen Allen.

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