May 28, 2016 - Statement of the Archdiocese of Boston*

"The Friends of St. Frances are invited to rejoin the wider community of Catholic faithful in the Archdiocese of Boston.
 
From the beginning of the vigil at the former St. Frances X. Cabrini Church in Scituate, the Archdiocese has maintained an open line of communication with the prayerful hope for reconciliation between the former parishioners and the universal Church.
 
Their sense of loss from the closing of the parish is understandable.  For this reason the Archdiocese kept its commitment to allow the appeals process to conclude both in civil and canonical courts.
 
The most important step we can now make as a Catholic family is to continue to work towards reconciliation.  In this regard we offer the assistance of Archdiocesan representatives to the former parishioners with the hope that this can lead to them rejoining the parishes of the Archdiocese of Boston. 
 
Despite our disagreement over the closing of the parish we have never lost sight of the fact that we share a commitment to follow Jesus Christ in and through the Roman Catholic Church which he established.  With the conclusion of the vigil we endeavor to memorialize the spiritual home that was once St. Frances X. Cabrini Parish.
 
In this Year of Mercy we invite the Friends to walk through the Holy Door and to join us in the important work of evangelization that is so essential to living out our faith today and in the future."
 
About the Archdiocese of Boston: The Diocese of Boston was founded on April 8, 1808 and was elevated to Archdiocese in 1875. Currently serving the needs of 1.8 million Catholics, the Archdiocese of Boston is an ethnically diverse and spiritually enriching faith community consisting of 289 parishes, across 144 communities, educating approximately 38,000 students in its Catholic schools and 156,000 in religious education classes each year, ministering to the needs of 200,000 individuals through its pastoral and social service outreach.   Mass is celebrated in nearly twenty different languages each week. For more information, please visit  www.BostonCatholic.org.