According to canon 515.2 of the Code of Canon Law, "The diocesan bishop alone is competent to erect, suppress or alter parishes..." The Second Vatican Council, in its Decree on the Pastoral Office of Bishops in the Church, "Christus Dominus," number 32, teaches that in creating or in any way changing the status of a parish, the bishop is to be motivated by his concern for the salvation of souls. This teaching was expanded upon by Pope Paul VI in his apostolic letter, "Ecclesiae Sanctae I," number 21, "Every possible effort should be made that parishes where, because of too great a population or too large a territory or for any cause whatsoever, apostolic activity can be exercised only with difficulty or less effectively, should be suitably divided or dismembered, as the circumstances require. And likewise parishes which are too small should be united as conditions and circumstances demand."
The merger of St. Mary of the Assumption Parish, South Bend, with St. Jude Parish, South Bend, will strengthen the pastoral care of the area and add resources at St. Jude's, which will make possible the strengthening of the educational and pastoral ministry of St. Jude's.
This decision was made after consultation with members of the parish on July 30, 2006. This consultation was conducted after I celebrated the 11:30 a.m. Sunday Mass. It was advertised beforehand so as many as possible could attend. Among those in attendance were Father Michael Heintz, the vicar forane for the area, along with Father Derrick Sneyd, the pastor, and Father John Delaney, the incoming pastor.
There had been previous consultations with the pastor and the vicar. In addition, I visited St. Mary's Parish on previous occasions to consult about the changes in the school.
Due to the present shortage of priests, it is not possible to place a priest in all the parishes of our diocese. It is necessary to distribute priests properly. While the addition of 22 priests from other countries has helped, most of these priests stay for a limited term. Accordingly, the joining of parishes to strengthen pastoral care needs consideration and, in this case, needed to be implemented.
A further reason is financial. Taken into serious consideration was the fact that St. Mary of the Assumption has a debt to the diocese of $610,000. In the most recent fiscal year, this debt was $48,000, and $26,000 if we eliminate the cost of the school.
In light of the need to better distribute our priests and the serious financial condition of St. Mary of the Assumption Parish, which has continued to deepen, the close proximity between St. Mary's and St. Jude's, and the need to strengthen pastoral care in the area, it was believed to be necessary to consult further.
On Oct. 26, 2006, I convened the Presbyteral Council of the Diocese for the purpose of consulting with them regarding the status of St. Mary of the Assumption Parish, South Bend, Ind., and St. Jude Parish, South Bend, Ind., in accord with canons 127 and 515.2. The matter was presented to the council for advice. After lengthy discussion, each member was asked individually for his advice. The advice of the council, without a dissenting opinion, was to merge St. Mary of the Assumption Parish with St. Jude Parish.
Several years ago, a committee, under the leadership of Bishop Daniel Jenky, CSC, recommended several mergers, including the merger of St. Mary of the Assumption with St. Jude's.
Therefore, after careful consideration of the advice of the Presbyteral Council as well as the input of the various members of the parish communities of St. Mary of the Assumption Parish and St. Jude Parish and the aforementioned committee, I decree the following:
I, the undersigned bishop of the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend, in virtue of my pastoral office and in conformity with the Code of Canon Law, after consultation with the Presbyteral Council in accord with the norm of law, as well as with various members of both parish communities, do hereby decree that St. Mary of the Assumption Parish, South Bend, Ind., is merged with St. Jude Parish, South Bend, Ind. The effective date of this merger will be Jan. 28, 2007. The parish will retain the name of St. Jude Parish, and its territorial boundaries will be:
Beginning at the intersection of Trunk Railroad and Indiana 223 (Crumstown Highway) and moving clockwise: Trunk Railroad to Grant Street to Indiana Avenue to Brookfield Street to Prairie Avenue to Gertrude Street (which becomes Linden Road) to Norfolk and South Railroad Line to Donmoyer Street to Twyckenham Street to Clayton Drive to York Road to Byron Drive to Sampson Drive to Southern View Drive to Ironwood Road to Kern Road returning to Indiana 223 (Crumstown Highway).
Further, in accord with canon 121, St. Jude Parish will assume all assets and debts of St. Mary of the Assumption Parish.
Further, I decree that all parish records and registers from St. Mary of the Assumption Parish, South Bend, Ind., will be transported to St. Jude Parish, South Bend, Ind., where they will be maintained and preserved in accord with the norm of law.
