January 11, 2008

Updated parish listings now on diocesan Web site

Many parishes in the Diocese of Buffalo have already merged and many more will merge this year as the “Journey in Faith and Grace,” the diocesan-wide parish restructuring program, moves well into its third year.

With a significant number of parish changes taking place this year, the diocesan Office of Communications has placed the latest parish listings from the 2008 Catholic Directory on-line at http://www.buffalodiocese.org/directory. The new directory will be published in the next few weeks.

Kevin Keenan, director of communications for the diocese, talked about the importance of keeping directory information up to date. “Our directory team has spent months on this project,” Keenan said. “The directory is a valuable resource and it is important that our users have access to the latest parish information. With a large number of changes taking place in the coming months, this new Web page will always contain the most up to date parish information.”

The “Journey in Faith and Grace” began in June 2005, with the first reconfigurations announced one year ago. Near the end of the transition process Bishop Edward U. Kmiec signs decrees creating new parish communities and setting the date for the establishment of the new faith communities. When the actual merger takes place, the on-line directory will be updated.

The final two parish merger announcements are expected to be made in February and April of this year.

Directories will be available for purchase in mid-January at the Catholic Union Store in the Catholic Center, located at 795 Main Street in downtown Buffalo.

For more information on the Catholic Directory, call 716-847-8719.

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