Archdiocese of Philadelphia Announces Closure of Worship Site in Bucks County

Saint Joseph the Worker Church (Fallsington) will no longer serve as a worship site of Saint Frances Cabrini Parish (Fairless Hills) and will close as a Roman Catholic Church

Contextual Background

Saint Joseph the Worker Parish Merges with Saint Frances Cabrini Parish (July 1, 2014)

In July 2014, Saint Joseph the Worker Parish (Fallsington) merged with Saint Frances Cabrini Parish (Fairless Hills) as part of the Parish Area Pastoral Planning Initiative that has been ongoing in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Both parishes merged at the location and retained the name of Saint Frances Cabrini Parish.

At that time, the Saint Joseph the Worker Church building became a worship site of the newly formed Saint Frances Cabrini Parish and was available for the occasional celebration of Mass as well as funerals and weddings as is customary whenever possible in the case of a parish merger.

Additional information regarding that merger can be found at the following link: https://archphila.org/archdiocese-announces-parish-mergers-in-philadelphia-as-well-as-delaware-montgomery-and-bucks-counties-resulting-from-pastoral-planning-initiative/

Today’s Announcement

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia announced today that Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap. relegated the Saint Joseph the Worker Church building to profane but not sordid use effective November 1, 2015. This formal, canonical designation means that the church will no longer serve as a worship site and will close as a Roman Catholic Church.

This information was shared at St. Frances Cabrini Church at the Masses during the course of this weekend.  A copy of the official canonical decree regarding this matter can be found at https://archphila.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/St-Joseph-the-Worker-Decree.pdf.

 

Further Information Regarding Today’s Announcement

The formal request to close this worship site originated from the pastor of the parish, together with his Parish Leadership Committee. The request was then reviewed by the Archdiocesan Council of Priests and presented to Archbishop Chaput, who, after a careful review of all supporting factors, made the final decision. 

Saint Joseph the Worker

Saint Joseph the Worker Church requires a total of approximately $1,001,700 in repairs – most notably to the church roof and heating system, which it shares with an unused school to which the church is attached.  In addition, the annual cost of maintaining the combined church/school buildings is approximately $121,000 to provide for fuel, snow removal, lawn care, and security. Saint Frances Cabrini Parish, which had a deficit of approximately $240,000 in the last fiscal year, does not have the resources to repair or continue to maintain Saint Joseph the Worker Church without negatively impacting the vital ministries of the parish.

Additionally, there have been less than ten requests to utilize the church building for liturgical purposes in the past year.

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