The Archdiocese has been doing pastoral planning
for 35 years beginning with “For the Harvest” in the
1980’s then “Ministry 2010” and now in the last couple of
years, Beacons of Light.
Beacons of Light is a multiyear process of pastoral
planning for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. Rooted in
prayer, groupings of parishes will come together as one
faith community. These new Families of Parishes will be
stronger together, focused more on mission than on
maintenance. In the Families of Parishes, we will grow
closer to God, follow Jesus through the power of the Holy
Spirit, and radiate Christ in our lives. The primary goal is
to provide vibrant communities of faith in order that we
might fully grow as disciples of Jesus Christ while also
have fewer priests to serve as pastors in the future.
Fifty years ago, the Archdiocese was ordaining 20
to 25 priests a year and many of them are now retiring in
their late 70’s and 80’s. Today, the Archdiocese is
ordaining 7 to 10 priests a year, which means the number
of available priests is shrinking. Currently, 25 of the 149
Archdiocesan priests are 70 and older and 19 of 102
pastors are 70 or older. 52 priest retirements are possible
in 2021-25.
Having gathered sacramental and demographic
data on all 208 parishes in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati,
the Beacons of Light is reconfiguring the current 109
clusters into 60 “families of parishes” which will be led by
one pastor and served by additional priests as needed. The
draft plan for all 60 families of parishes was released
Friday and is open for public comment October 1st
through October 20th. Everyone is encouraged to provide
your input to this important initiative which will shape
the future of our archdiocese and our parish. Please be
sure to visit BeaconsAOC.org to study the plan and
provide your feedback in the comment box available on
the site. If you have difficulty accessing the website,
please try the Google Chrome web browser.
The new families of parishes will begin planning
together this Fall with implementation beginning July
1st, 2022 and phased in over a 2 to 3 year period
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