A letter released Saturday, May 18th by the Peoria Diocese has indicated plans to merge Holy Family and St. Paul’s Catholic Churches in Danville; along with with St. Anthony in Hoopeston, St. Mary in Westville, and St. Isaac Jogues in Georgetown; into one single parish, with Holy Family in Danville being the primary worship site.
The letter from the Peoria Diocese Office of the Bishop Most Reverend Louis Tylka further stated that St. Isaac Jogues will no longer be in use, and that the implementation of these changes will begin on July 1, 2024. The entire process is expected to take 36 months; and during that time, masses at all affected locations will continue. Leadership at all affected locations will remain the same during during transition except for at Holy Family in Danville. At Holy Family, Father Steven Loftus has been assigned pastor of Holy Trinity and Historic St. Patrick in Bloomington as of July 1st; while Father Peter Pilon has been been assigned pastor of Holy Family as of July 1st.
The letter also asked for each parish to work with its priests to coordinate convenient mass schedules, as well as calling for plans to study the facilities of Holy Family and St. Paul as far as how best to consolidate their resources as part of a common parish.
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Holy Family Parishioner Kari Matthews has told Central Illinois Media Group that one thing that needs to be remembered is that a “parish” is not a single building, but a group of worshipers. Matthews calls this “a nice compromise,” seeing this move as a way to consolidate administration costs, but at the same time keep St Paul’s, St. Anthony, and St. Mary operational so that the northern and southern areas of the county have places to go to Mass as well. She says there is no intention of closing down St. Paul’s.
Audio PlayerAUDIO: But it doesn’t mean that we’re necessarily closing buildings. They have designated St. Isaac Jogues in Georgetown as not in use, but the other four church buildings will stay open, and there will be opportunities to worship in those buildings. So, St Paul’s isn’t going anywhere.
Matthews says, yes, at first the plan did call for Holy Family to be designated at “not it use.” But she recalled how so many Catholic churches within the Peoria Diocese had around a 20 to 25% return rate following the pandemic; but that Holy Family’s was 48%. Matthews says an effort was made to keep Holy Family alive with parishioners emphasizing to the Peoria Diocese the church’s music program, food pantry, and other accommodations and amenities. She says, it worked. As for Schlarman Academy, Matthews does not see the school being affected during the upcoming transition. Matthews says Catholic education as a whole has been battling numerous challenges in recent years, and that will continue due to payroll and insurance expenses.
