Toledo Diocese Urges 33-Church Reduction
From Times Wire Reports
The Toledo Roman Catholic Diocese has recommended closing or merging 33 churches, citing shifting populations and a declining number of priests.
The plan would reduce the number of parishes to 131 from 157. The diocese has about 307,000 Catholics.
Toledo Bishop Leonard Blair said the proposal was unrelated to the clergy sex abuse scandal that began in Boston in 2002. Boston Bishop Sean P. O’Malley has ordered 82 churches closed there by year’s end.
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