Vatican to Review Some N.Y. Churches Set to Merge or Close

By Melanie Grayce
Wall Street Journal
June 19, 2015

http://www.wsj.com/articles/vatican-to-review-some-n-y-churches-set-to-merge-or-close-1434740590

In a move offering promise to hundreds of Roman Catholic parishioners across the region, a Vatican office has decided to further study several parishes that appealed recent orders, made by the Archdiocese of New York, to either merge or close.

The Congregation for the Clergy, a Vatican office that handles issues concerning parishes and priests, sent letters to at least seven parishes this week notifying each that a decision on an appeal won't be reached until Sept. 1, weeks before Pope Francis is expected to visit New York.

The notifications are important because they allow parishes affected by the reorganization to continue their appeals at the Vatican.

“It’s a good sign that they are continuing to study it, and I’m glad that they are giving it careful consideration,” said Janice Dooner Lynch, a parishioner of Our Lady of Peace, an Upper East Side parish that is part of the group that appealed to reverse a decision to merge with another parish.