Overview
- The initiative covers every parish in southeast Michigan and begins with parish data collection and clergy consultations already underway.
- Archdiocesan materials outline a shift to pastorates—groupings of one or more parishes under a single pastor—by the end of the process.
- Specific mergers or closures have not been decided, with financial reports to be shared at parishes this winter ahead of public listening sessions in spring 2026.
- Leaders expect a large-scale reassignment of priests, with implementation phased from July 2027 to July 2028 following the consultative planning.
- The archdiocese reports roughly 900,000 Catholics served but about 150,000 attending weekly across more than 200 parishes, with many buildings costly to maintain for smaller congregations.