SW News: The American state of Ohio's Columbus diocese has announced the closure of 15 churches as part of a parish reorganization and merger plan. However, emphasizing new growth possibilities, Bishop Earl Fernandes called the lay Catholics to take on more responsibility for the Church's future in Columbus.

The move to close the churches was made following two years of discussions among clergy and parishioners within the diocese. This came after a national fall in church attendance and a shortage of priests. During a video series on the diocese's YouTube channel, the bishop said the reorganization plan was aimed at developing the best possible solution for the diocese.

He further emphasized the importance of an active lay faithful who share responsibility for the evangelization mission of the Church and the future of their parishes with the clergy. The diocese announced the closure of two schools besides the 15 churches, including nine in Franklin County. Bishop Fernandes reduced the list of 19 churches that research had originally recommended shutting down. The diocese operates 108 parishes in 23 counties.

The prelate also mentioned that the diocese is showing signs of expansion simultaneously. According to Bishop Fernandes, Africans who speak French and a lot of Hispanic believers have recently arrived in the diocese. He continued by saying that although the diocese has 15 new potential seminarians this year, it will still take years of study and preparation for them to be ordained.

"Columbus, like many other dioceses, has an aging clergy, so something needed to be done, not just for the retraction of the diocese, but for the mission of evangelization," the prelate said.

In the meantime, the prelate also expresses his hopes that the proposed modifications will serve as the diocese's building blocks for a better future.

The diocese's reorganization process, titled "Real Presence, Real Future," began in 2019 under Fernandes' predecessor, Bishop Robert Brennan.