BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Parishioners at St. Michael's Church in downtown Buffalo can breathe a brief sigh of relief, for now, as the planned closure of the more than 150-year-old church has been postponed.
In September the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo announced it was closing or merging dozens of churches, including St. Michael's. The diocese claims the move to resize and reshape comes as attendance has seen a big drop over recent years.
The last mass at St. Michael's was planned for Sunday.
"You were planning the last service here on Sunday," I said to parishioner Craig Speers.
"They were. We weren't," replied Speers.
Speers has been a volunteer and parishioner at the church for more than 20 years.
"There is tremendous commitment from parishioners to keep the church open," said Speers. "When it was announced during mass that the church was going to remain open during the appeal process, there was tremendous applause, and people thanked our lord for intervening."
It's unclear how long the appeal process will take. The appeal would need to be approved next by the Supreme Court of the Vatican for the final decision.
"The financial problems of the Diocese [of Buffalo] due to the priest scandal is not justification for losing any parish or any school in this dioceses," said Speers. "If you destroy the faith communities, you also destroy diocese."
