Odd. There are nearly a million Catholics in that diocese, if I remember correctly. There has been some consolidation, certainly, but I am not aware of a loss of Catholics there.
There has been a net gain of Catholics in the last 20 years - significantly so - and only some of those are immigrants.
Okay, I see what you are saying. You are simply stating that there may be LESS churches but the # of Catholics is staying the same. However, either that is a faulty belief or Catholics just don’t give any money.
There are several churches consolidated in numerous cities. The primary reason is funding. If there were so many Catholics, why would money be an issue?
Just my two cents.
And you are right about the Diocese here. This is a VERY Catholic town. And very Democratic too.