Vatican says 2 parishes in Buffalo will not have to close amid diocesan merger plan

Two parishes in the Diocese of Buffalo, New York, have won reprieves from the Vatican and will not have to close amid a diocesan-wide closure and merger plan.

Mary Pruski, the leader of the advocacy group Save Our Buffalo Churches, told EWTN News on Aug. 14 that the parishes of St. Josaphat and Our Lady of the Rosary both won appeals at the Holy See over closures that were mandated by the diocese’s “Road to Renewal” plan.

That plan was announced in May 2024 , with Bishop Michael Fisher revealing that the diocese would merge about a third of its parishes amid declines in attendance and financial struggles.

The Save Our Buffalo Churches group has advocated against multiple closures in the diocese since the announcement. In December 2025 the Vatican said multiple parishes in the diocese that had petitioned the Vatican would not have to close .

Pruski told EWTN News on Aug. 14, meanwhile, that the St. Josaphat Parish “won their appeal to not merge and close,” while Our Lady of the Rosary “won their appeal against being reduced to common use and sold.”

She said a few parishes represented by the group “continue to await their appeal decision from the Dicastery for the…