News Release

Two parishes in Minersville are merging to create a stronger, more unified Catholic presence in the community. The newly created parish will be named Holy Family Parish of Minersville. Both the St. Matthew and the St. Michael church buildings will remain open, and the merged congregation will use both churches for worship. .

The Diocese of Allentown will hold a prayer service for reconciliation in our nation this Friday, June 19 at 7 PM at the Cathedral of Saint Catharine of Siena in Allentown. People from throughout the Diocese are invited to participate in prayers for healing the wounds of all the divisions present in our society.

With declining enrollments and financial losses made insurmountable by the economic effects of the pandemic, two elementary schools in the Diocese of Allentown are closing at the end of this school year. Parents of students at Sacred Heart School in Bath and St. Francis Academy in Bally were notified today.

Attendance remains voluntary for now; health precautions will be in place

With continuing uncertainty about how the Coronavirus will affect the usual return to classrooms in the fall, the leader of the Diocese’s Catholic school system has reassured parents that schools will adapt and be ready.

As the stay-at-home order is lifted in Carbon County, the Diocese of Allentown will begin taking steps to reopen churches there to the limited participation of the faithful. .

Building on the success of a highly successful event two weeks ago, Catholic Charities, Diocese of Allentown will again be collecting grocery donations in a drive-through, socially distant event this Saturday, May 16 at the Vegan Butcher, 768 Union Boulevard, Allentown from 10:30 AM to 1:30 PM. .

Father Allen Hoffa has been named Interim Head of School at Marian Catholic High School, effective July 1, 2020. Father Hoffa succeeds the current principal, Mrs. Jean Susko, who is taking a new leadership role at Marian as Director of Academic Studies. .

In a letter from the priests of the three parishes that sponsor St. John Neumann Regional School emailed to parents today, it was announced that the school, with campuses in Palmerton and Slatington, will open for the 2020-2021 school year.

St. Theresa School’s K-8 grades will close at the end of this school year because of steadily declining enrollment, which is causing a financial drain on the parish that operates it. The Hellertown school’s Pre-K program will continue.