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28 | May 23, 2019 | The wilmette beacon LIFE & ARTS wilmettebeacon.com Posted to WilmetteBeaconDaily.com 8 days ago New name of merged Wilmette churches announced Hilary Anderson Freelance Reporter Wilmette’s St. Joseph and St. Francis Xavier parishes soon will unite and have a new name. The two parishes formally will become one entity July 1 and be called Saints Joseph and Francis Xavier. “I received word yesterday, May 14, from Cardinal Blasé’ Cupich that he has chosen a name, based on the feedback and input from our parishioners from both churches sent to him,” said Rev. Wayne Watts, pastor of St. Joseph Church, who will serve as pastor for the unified parishes. Rev. William Netstraeter established Wilmette’s St. Joseph Church in 1872 and Rev. Edmund Byrnes founded St. Francis Xavier in 1904. “This new name honors and pays tribute to our rich histories and legacies and combining as one seems appropriate,” Watts said. “This honor and unification is played out well in the mission statement on which the joint parish councils worked together with me. The work of this team and the Cross Functional Team is appreciated. Dozens of parishioners from both churches have given of their time for oneness in Wilmette.” These changes reflect not only the history and growth of the area but societal ones as well. Other parishes throughout the Chicago Archdiocesan are uniting similarly. Most recently Northfield’s St. Philip and Hubbard Woods’ Sacred Heart united to become the Divine Mercy parish. They are the result of meetings and feedback from representatives from each parish in an Archdiocesan program, Renew My Church. The program, which began in September 2015, looked at the future church, parish and school structures. “These changes are necessary because the times are changing,” said Rev. Jason Mulave, liaison of Cupich for the Renew My Church process. “We cannot put our heads in the sand and pretend there are enough priests, as before. We no longer are the church of 20, 40 years ago. There are fewer people in the pews these days. We need to build our Catholic communities.” He added the Chicago Archdiocese will have only about 240 priests in 2030 to serve as pastors. According to early 2018 statistics, there were 347 Catholic parishes in Lake and Cook County. Active archdiocesan priests numbered 431 with 225 retired ones. That does not include priests from religious orders. About half of the retired ones help out at parishes and 50 percent of the retired priests are more than 80 years old. In celebration of the new SS. Joseph and Francis Xavier parish, there will be a Unity Mas 10 a.m. June 30 at Wilmette’s Vattman Park, Lake and Park Avenues. A free picnic lunch will follow. Food trucks also will be available to purchase additional food. In case of rain, the Unity Mass will be held indoors at St. Joseph Church and lunch will be served in the St. Joseph School gym. Wilmette’s St. Francis Xavier will merge with St. Joseph July 1. Photos submitted St. Joseph’s Rev. Wayne Watts will serve as pastor for the unified churches.
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