Bishop issues decrees for parish mergers

Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., gathered with diocesan officers May 15 to formally sign the decrees for the mergers that will create seven new parish communities out of 14. The mergers, which take effect July 1, 2018, are part of a multi-year implementation phase that followed the Diocese’s Faith in Our Future pastoral planning initiative. 

The mergers include:

St. Catharine of Siena, Seaside Park and Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Seaside Heights, which will become St. Junipero Serra Parish.

St. Jerome, West Long Branch, and St. Mary, Deal, which will become Our Lady of Hope Parish.

Assumption, New Egypt, and St. Andrew, Jobstown, which will become St. Isidore the Farmer Parish.

St. Joseph and Jesus the Lord, both Keyport, which will become Our Lady of Fatima Parish.

Sacred Heart and Blessed Sacrament-Our Lady of the Divine Shepherd, both Trenton, which will become Sacred Heart Parish.

St. Elizabeth of Hungary, Avon, and Ascension, Bradley Beach, which will become St. Teresa of Calcutta Parish.

St. Mary, Bordentown, and St. Francis and St. Clare, Florence Township, which will become Mary Mother of the Church Parish.

For more information about this decree, follow this link.

CONTINUE TO WATCH FOR SPECIAL COVERAGE from The Monitor in June as these parish communities prepare for these significant milestones. To learn more about the Faith in Our Future process, visit dioceseoftrenton.org/faith-in-our-future.