It was announced by Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the archbishop New York, on Sunday (11/01/2014) in celebration of All Saints Day.
Merging the parish was part of the diocesan pastoral plan, known as the program "Making All Things New" which began in 2010.
The news was causing grief to themselves those churches will be closed, as reported by the Christian Post quoted from the New York Times (04/11/2014).
"There were sobs and tears at Holy Rosary Church in East Harlem. At Sacred Heart Mount Vernon they embraced in the dumps. "
The church of Our Lady of Peace in the East Side promised to fight for their church which threatened to be closed. While the congregation from Staten Island to the Catskills region seems relieved that church does not belong to be closed.
Merger and closure of dozens of churches, which was triggered by a decline in the number of church clergy and congregations who regularly attend church, planned to be completed in August 2015.
In general, the number of Catholic clergy and church members in the United States continued to decline in the last 40 years, according to statistics compiled by the Georgetown University. So the problem is not actually experienced by the diocese in New York alone.
In 1970 the number of Catholic clergy in the United States is estimated at 59,000 people. But in 2010 that figure slumped to 40,000.
Georgetown University estimates that in 1990 there were approximately 19,600 parishes across the United States. However, currently there are only less than 17,500, or the smallest number within the last 50 years.
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