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The diocese, which serves more than 278,000 Catholics in 23 counties of central Ohio, is experiencing declining church attendance and fewer young priests, as.
The Vatican on April 2, 2022, announced that Pope Francis had appointed Father Earl K. Fernandes to be the next bishop of the Diocese of Columbus, Ohio. / Courtesy of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati.Denver Newsroom, May 26, 2023 / 15:40 pm (CNA).Ohio s Catholic Diocese of Columbus will close 15 churches as part of a parish reorganization and merger plan, but Bishop Earl K. Fernandes emphasized new possibilities for growth, especially if lay Catholics take on more responsibility for the Church s future."When I arrived, I said I m not interested in presiding over 25 years of decline in the diocese," the bishop said in a May 25 video series at the diocese s YouTube channel. "I want to grow the church, not for my glory, but for God s glory," he said.Fernandes said the reorganization plan was an effort to "try to come up with the best possible solution for the whole Diocese of Columbus."The bishop stressed the need for "an engaged lay faithful" who take