SS Peter and Paul Church on Cherry Street in Jamestown (Google Maps)
Holy Apostles Church in downtown Jamestown will not close nor merge with another parish.
The “Save Holy Apostles Parish!” Facebook page announced on Saturday that they had received a decision from the Dicastery for Clergy regarding the appeal of the extinctive merger of Holy Apostles Parish that said the Dicastery has revoked the merger decree and Holy Apostles Parish, also known as Ss. Peter and Paul Church, will not be merging with St. James Parish.
The post went onto say that the Dicastery has found no just cause exists to merge the parish based on its financial situation, attendance, registered households, number of sacraments, number of priests, or age of the congregation (or any other factor).
Additionally, they found that the Buffalo Bishop presented no information about how this merger will benefit the parish or any other parish. As such, they have revoked the merger decree on the basis of merit.
Additionally, this letter was accompanied by a letter stating that they have accepted the appeal of the assessment for examination and have suspended the “action” of the assessment.
The merger had been initially placed on hold by the Buffalo diocese in February and then suspended by the Vatican in April
In September 2024, the Diocese announced the decision to close and sell four churches in Chautauqua County including SS. Peter and Paul in Jamestown.
Parishes that would remain open include St. James in Jamestown, Sacred Heart in Lakewood, and St. Patrick in Randolph. Holy Apostles St. John site in Jamestown will remain a secondary worship site.
A group of current and former parishioners of Holy Apostles Parish at SS. Peter and Paul Church have been working since Fall 2024 to prevent SS. Peter and Paul Church from being closed and sold.
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