Changes, Closures Possible For Area Catholic Churches

Changes are on the horizon for area Catholic churches.

Parish planning teams from Neligh, Tilden and Elgin are among those who have been meeting for several months under the direction of the Omaha Archdiocese. Other Antelope County parishes will likely be impacted as well; however, they are not part of the study at this time.

The Rural Central Deanery is the second area in the Omaha Archdiocese to go through this process. The deanery includes St. Francis of Assisi in Neligh, Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Tilden, St. Boniface in Elgin, St. John the Baptist in Petersburg, St. Joseph in Pierce, St. Leonard in Madison, St. Michael in Albion, St. Patrick in Battle Creek, St. Peter in Stanton, St. Paul in Plainview, Sacred Heart in Norfolk, St. Bonaventure in Raeville, and St. Francis de Sales southwest of Battle Creek.

The main reason for this process is the declining number of priests, which is expected to cause a shortage across the archdiocese. According to data provided by the Omaha Archdiocese, there were 139 priests available within the archdiocese in 2011, but that number is projected to drop to 93 by 2045. 

Planning teams have answered numerous questions about their parishes, and this input will be considered as the archdiocese considers the future of churches located within the Rural Central Deanery. No decisions are expected to be announced by the archdiocese until the fall.

These parish planning teams were recently asked to share this information with their entire parish and gather their input as well. About 50 parishioners attended the meeting at St. Francis of Assisi in Neligh last Wednesday night. Del Ames gave a presentation showing which key areas the planning team had identified as areas for improvement: welcoming new parishioners, increasing involvement, and building a stronger sense of community. In addition to Ames, other team members are Millie Clemens, Carla Teel, Richard Eilers and Jenny Higgins.

Neligh and Tilden currently share a priest, Fr. Christopher Onuoha; and Fr. Kevin Vogel serves the parishes of Elgin and Raeville. Each of these planning committees listed the current situation as their first choice, but other alignments are possible. The final decision will be made by the archbishop and other administrators within the Omaha Archdiocese.

"Even if they close our parish, heaven is open," Fr. Onuoha said with a smile. "This is not something new. This is the result of what has happened in the last 50 to 60 years. The church is shrinking."