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	Crest Parishioners Urge Bishop Not to Close Church By Trudi Gilfillian Press of Atlantic City June 6, 2008 http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/181/story/176264.html WILDWOOD CREST - Two months have passed since Bishop Joseph A. Galante announced plans to combine the Church of the Assumption with St. Ann's in Wildwood, but parishioners' disappointment about that decision remains high. The church is appealing the decision, and its members have sent many letters to Galante expressing their displeasure. "We are dead set against merging Assumption with St. Ann's at this time," said Nicholas Nastasi, a member of Assumption's parish council and organizer of the effort to maintain the parish. Nastasi said 1,300 families in the church have signed petitions asking the bishop to reconsider. "These voices must be heard," Nastasi said. Now, Galante is planning a visit to the church during a public meeting June 11 to hear those concerns in person. "Because I value you, I would like to meet with you to hear your specific concerns about the planned reconfiguration to share my reasons for this merger with you and to try to reconcile the concerns cited in your correspondence and communications," Galante wrote in a letter to the parish. Diocese of Camden spokesman Andrew Walton said Thursday that Galante's plan to visit the church is part of an ongoing effort to communicate with churches within the diocese. "He wanted to provide an opportunity for parishioners of Assumption to share with him any feedback that they have regarding his intention to merge Assumption with St. Ann's," Walton said. The diocese plans to have the two parishes merge with Assumption open only in the summer. "You cannot ask families to uproot themselves, worship at St. Ann's for nine months and then go back for three months to Assumption in the summer," Nastasi said. "You're breaking down a parish family." Nastasi said some churches within the diocese are even calling for Galante to resign. Under Galante's plan, the diocese would eliminate 58 parishes and 24 church buildings, reducing the Diocese of Camden to 66 parishes instead of the current 124. The decision came after years of planning involving parishioners from across the diocese. When he announced the plan in April, Galante told reporters that some of the parishes were already working together and could complete the merger in a few months, while others might take up to two years. Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland counties are part of the Diocese of Camden. Galante cited falling church attendance and a coming shortage in the number of priests among the reasons for the mergers. Nastasi said he hopes Galante's visit next week might encourage him to change his mind. Nastasi added that Assumption and St. Ann's both support the island's Catholic schools, Wildwood Catholic High School and St. Ann's School, and he feared the merger would be detrimental to them. "I'm hoping that he sees how vibrant Assumption Parish is," Nastasi said. To e-mail Trudi Gilfillian at The Press: TGilfillian@pressofac.com
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