(Printed below are excerpts of text taken from    

                Bishop Lennon’s letter of May 28, 2007 to Fr Snyder)

Dear Father Snyder,

 “Knowing the Holy Spirit is always with us, we are called to cooperate with God in pursuit of holiness for all people and the spread of the Gospel. We are called to be open to the guidance of eth Holy Spirit with confidence in God’s love and providence.

 “Your parish will continue to be clustered with St Bernadette Parish.

 “This cluster, as with each cluster in the diocese, is intended to provide a framework to enhance the vibrancy of parishes and strengthen the presence and pastoral care of the Church in an equitable manner throughout the diocese. As we face growing challenges with regard to changing demographics, finances and fewer priests, we need to take necessary steps now that will enable us to provide strong and lasting Catholic in every area of our diocese.

 “I wish to present the following issues and challenges for your cluster to address:

§         Continue to explore collaborative possibilities to strengthen pastoral care in an equitable manner.

§         Strengthen evangelization and the social and community services that serve the surrounding neighborhoods.

§         Engage all of our faithful in regularly attending and participating in the Sunday Eucharistic Liturgy.

§         Continue to support Church in the City partnerships through cluster-cluster cooperation.

§         Continue to monitor enrollment trends and collaborate to insure the long term presence of a strong stable Catholic school serving this area.

 “I ask that you and your parish leaders approach this work in a spirit of prayer and discernment.  I hope that we can all be open to the best possible insights for strengthening pastoral care with this cluster area ….  Please know that I remain very grateful for your cooperation as we work together to fulfill the Mission of Christ.”