Careful process matches priests with the pastoral needs of the parishes they serve
Behind every priest assignment in the Archdiocese of St. Louis is a careful, conversation‑driven process that matches priests with the pastoral needs of the parishes they serve.
At the same time, different methods of parish administration — such as sharing a pastor, being administered by a parish life coordinator or perhaps a cluster of parishes served by priests at one site — have become more common in St. Louis.
Changing demographics and priest distribution among the parishes of the archdiocese have resulted in a call for greater collaboration among the faith communities that a priest serves, as well as a shift in perspective beyond the boundaries of individual parishes to understand how and why priests are assigned, said Father John Brockland, episcopal vicar for clergy.
“In my experience, there is a concerted effort to make the best pairings, if you will, to suit the right man to the right community,” he said.
Shift in priest personnel
There are 147 parishes and missions in the Archdiocese of St. Louis. One hundred and twenty-nine of those parishes and missions are staffed by archdiocesan priests, with the rest served by priests of religious orders.
In the past 15 years, priest retirements have outpaced ordinations by more than 2 to 1. From 2011-2025, there were 61 ordinations and 137 retirements.
When all departures are counted (retirements, deaths and those who left ministry), the total rises to 277, which means for every 1 priest ordained, 4.5 priests have left active ministry. In 2023, during All Things New, the archdiocese had 29 priest retirements against five ordinations.
The number of retired priests outpacing newly ordained ones means more shared pastors, said Father Brockland said. This year, seven parishes will experience a reduction in clergy as a result of priest personnel assignments in July.
Given the current number of priests in active ministry, the archdiocese is approaching the point that any configuration of parishes — whether one, two or more — serving approximately 1,800 Catholic households or less will likely be staffed by a single priest.
That could vary depending on the specific situation, Father Brockland stressed. “Hypothetically, you could have four parishes in rural communities that might add to 1,800 households, but they might not have the same day in and day out demand” as a similar-sized parish with a large school.
By July, 29 of the 86 men who serve as pastors, or roughly one in three, will be assigned to shepherd multiple parishes. The majority of those will oversee two or three parishes, but there are some cases in which a pastor will have several parishes and non-parish churches. Seventeen of those 29 pastors have an associate or senior associate pastor, with the other 12 pastoring multiple parishes single-handedly or with a deacon.
A process of discernment
It’s the archbishop’s responsibility to provide pastoral care for all the people of God, and he does that through his priests as his co-workers, Father Brockland said.
“The Lord calls each of these men to the ministry, but just as was the case with the first 12 (disciples), each of those whom He calls is different,” Father Brockland said. “They have different strengths, different charisms, different shortcomings and they have different bandwidth.”
Priests are gifted with differing skill sets. Whether it’s a suburban parish that has more than 2,000 households, a full staff, ministries galore and a large grade school, or a rural parish with a couple of hundred households, no school and a handful of volunteers who help with the parish’s upkeep, it’s going to take the right personality for the work, Father Brockland said.
For priest assignments, the Archbishop Mitchell T. Rozanski relies on feedback from priests and the archdiocesan Priest Personnel Board, which is composed of seven elected priests who each represent their brother priests according to groups delineated by year of ordination and other ex officio members, including the archbishop, vicar general and episcopal vicars of the three vicariates.
The Personnel Board typically meets from September through May, with the goal of making larger priest reassignments around the ordination of new priests in late May.
“The board will typically begin meeting in the fall, anticipating the number of newly ordained who will need a first assignment, and then also beginning to anticipate what may or may not become necessary because of age,” he said. Priests are required by canon law to submit their resignation at age 75. Other factors to consider include pastors who have been at a parish for 10 or more years or others who have a desire to move into a new role.
As the need for personnel changes becomes apparent, the Personnel Board examines how best to serve the parish and makes recommendations from among the presbyterate that make the most sense, Father Brockland said. Board members also have a good sense of a parish’s charisms and personality, as well as a history of its previous leaders.
As vicar for clergy and episcopal vicar for the Western Vicariate, Father Brockland said that one-to-one conversations with priests throughout the year is another priority. Father Scott Jones and Father Michael Lydon, episcopal vicars for the Northern and Southern Vicariates, also participate in those conversations.
Ultimately, each priest is called to serve his community at the request of the archbishop, and they do so with the obedience that they promised at ordination. “The uniqueness about diocesan priestly life is that at the end of the day, we don’t always choose who we live with or who we work with,” said Father Brockland, who has been a priest for 35 years.
For people in the pews, the shift in priest personnel could mean fewer priests at their parish, changes to parish ministries and sometimes the loss of long‑standing “favorite” Mass times, Father Brockland said.
It might not be practical to have four Sunday Masses in a church that seats 500 but sees only about 630 people over the weekend. Schedules are changed to accommodate the real pastoral needs, not past practice or convenience. When one priest is responsible for several parishes, it’s unrealistic for each parish to run at full capacity. That can mean consolidating ministries and depending on lay leadership or deacons.
“The challenge is always to see and appreciate with an open mind what’s going on with the bigger picture,” Father Brockland said. “Eventually it will impact everyone. It’s just going to impact different communities at different rates.”
