40,000 members of the faithful attended parish listening sessions; 17,000 completed online survey about pastorate proposals
DETROIT — The Archdiocese of Detroit’s restructuring process has moved into its refinement phase after tens of thousands of parishioners offered their feedback this spring and summer on the first draft of proposed changes to southeast Michigan’s parishes.
More than 40,000 members of the faithful attended 412 listening sessions held in each of the Archdiocese of Detroit’s parishes from April to June, during which parishioners heard for the first time a series of proposals for how to re-organize Metro Detroit’s more than 200 parishes into new groupings, called pastorates.
Following the listening sessions, another 17,000 people responded to an online survey seeking feedback on the proposals, which closed July 31.
The proposed changes come as the Archdiocese of Detroit, like many U.S. dioceses, grapples with how to manage declines in Mass participation, a critical shortage of available priests, and a surplus of aging and often sparsely attended churches.
As the two-year restructuring process nears its halfway mark, Fr. Mario Amore, executive director of the archdiocese’s Department of Parish Renewal, thanked all who participated in the process and said every piece of feedback will be reviewed, analyzed and considered.
Throughout August and into September, teams from the Catholic Leadership Institute, the Archdiocese of Detroit, as well as various consultative bodies made up of priests, deacons, lay leaders and parish staff, have begun to review the feedback, which will be used to inform changes to the proposed pastorate models this fall, Fr. Amore said.
In late September, priests and lay leaders selected from each of the 15 planning areas will work to shape a new round of proposals in response to the key themes that emerge from the feedback received. The revised draft models will then be shared with priests and key parish leaders for an additional round of feedback, and will be posted to the archdiocesan restructuring website in October.
While the new set of draft pastorate models will still not be final — a final decision by Archbishop Edward J. Weisenburger isn’t expected until April 2027 — they will be the result of months of cumulative prayer, discernment, feedback and careful listening by and on behalf of thousands of faithful, priests, deacons, religious, lay ministers and others about the future of the Church in Detroit, Fr. Amore said.
“These revised models will represent the fruit of the prayerful conversations that have happened over the past several months,” Fr. Amore said. “They might be similar to the models released this spring, or they might be very different based on the feedback that we’ve received.”
Although the public feedback phase of the restructuring process has concluded, parishioners may continue to provide thoughts on the revised models through their pastor or parish leaders, Fr. Amore said.
As part of the restructuring, dozens of sites are expected to no longer be able to offer a weekend Mass — a painful reality made necessary by a shortage of priests, limited resources and shrinking congregations. Since 2011, Mass attendance across the Archdiocese of Detroit has fallen by approximately 40%, and the number of ministry-age priests has also shrunk.
Although sites without a weekend Mass wouldn’t automatically close, a deliberate process to discern the future of such parishes would begin in July 2027.
Fr. Amore cautioned that in some cases, sites that retained weekend Masses in the first set of models might lose them in the second draft, or vice versa, as more information and feedback is received.
“That’s going to be shocking for some people, but that’s why we’ve tried to communicate throughout this process that these are not final decisions,” Fr. Amore said.
Unlike the first set of draft models, which included three proposals per planning area, the revised draft models will include just two proposals for each of the archdiocese’s 15 planning areas, Fr. Amore said.
Priests and key parish leaders will then be asked to evaluate the new proposals for another round of feedback, after which adjustments will be made if necessary, and then a final set of proposals will be presented to Archbishop Weisenburger for his discernment.
The archbishop is expected to release his decisions the weekend of April 17-18, 2027, with the final plans going into effect on July 1, 2027.
At the same time, priests of the Archdiocese of Detroit have begun to meet with the Priest Assignment Board to begin discussions about their new assignments, which will also begin on July 1, 2027, Fr. Amore said.
A vast majority of priests will receive a new assignment when the new pastorates begin, archdiocesan leaders have said.
On Sept. 1, more than 185 priests met at Sacred Heart Major Seminary for the first of a series of monthly implementation support sessions, which are intended to help priests navigate the months ahead, Fr. Amore said.
“We know that accompaniment is important in this restructuring process, and we know our priests carry a tremendous workload in this time of transition,” Fr. Amore said. “We want to be sure we are equipping them with the resources and support they need, and to help them know they’re not alone in this process.”
Over the next decade, the number of priests expected to be available to serve the archdiocese’s parishes is projected to decline by 40%. Already, many priests care for two, three or more parishes, with ministry burdens that are becoming unsustainable.
During the Sept. 1 session, Archbishop Weisenburger, Fr. Amore and other archdiocesan leaders encouraged the priests to prayerfully lean on one another, and offered their own support.
Archbishop Weisenburger particularly encouraged unity, patience and charity as difficult conversations continue in the months ahead.
“Our priests are leading our communities, and it’s important that we bring them together during this time of change, to know that all of us are going through this together,” Fr. Amore said.
The restructuring process is a lengthy, deliberate and difficult undertaking, Fr. Amore said, but one that’s ultimately intended to strengthen the body of Christ in southeast Michigan.
“We need to be mindful of the personal emotions we’re all facing, and also recognize what our brothers and sisters in other parish communities are experiencing during this time,” Fr. Amore said. “We need to remember that we’re all members of the body of Christ, that we’re all in this together, and we need to have a heart for one another through it all.”
