Phase 1 of Into the Deep saw the formation of pastorates — groupings of parishes under the leadership of a single pastor or parochial administrator.
The next step in the process is merging the individual parishes in each pastorate into a single, canonical parish.
Each of these new, merged parishes will also need a new parish name.
Over the next two months, each pastorate will work to develop options for its parish name.
There are a variety of naming possibilities: The name of the Trinity; a name for Christ, invoked in the liturgy, or a mystery of his life; a name of the Holy Spirit; a name for Mary, invoked under a title for her used in the liturgy; the name of a holy angel; or, the name of a canonized saint. There are also a few limitations.
No blessed can be used and since the churches in each pastorate keep their names, it’s best not to use one of the existing names for the new parish name.
When proposing saint combinations, the duo should be saints who traditionally are named together, such as Ss. Peter and Paul.
In addition to helping us learn more about the saints, the naming process also offers some unique opportunities including selecting modern saints, saints who have a connection to a specific pastorate, or saints who reflect pastoral priorities, such as solidarity with the poor or evangelization.
All pastorates will submit three names to Bishop Hying by Ash Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024.