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Article: Under canon law, Catholic parishes rarely 'close'.
- Article from:
- The Buffalo News (Buffalo, NY)
- Article date:
- March 13, 2007
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2007 The Buffalo News. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Jay Tokasz
Mar. 13--Ready for a short lesson in Catholic canon law?
There's a reason that officials with the Diocese of Buffalo keep using the term "merger" when describing instances in which a church will close.
Closing a parish is a rare and rather involved legal process that extends all the way to the Vatican.
What is happening in the diocese is a realignment of parish geographic boundaries, said the Rev. Paul A. Litwin, chancellor for the diocese and a canon lawyer.
"No parish is really ever closed unless there are no Catholics left there," said Litwin. "In reality, what seem to be closings are not really ...