My dear family in Christ,

On Pentecost Sunday this year I had the joy to offer holy Mass at Holy Cross Church in Mallets Bay for the combined communities of St. Mark’s, Our Lady of Grace and Holy Cross. These three distinct parishes, under the leadership of Father Dallas St. Peter and Father Tom Mattison, had made the decision to forgo the usual weekend Mass schedule totaling four Masses to come together in one celebration of the Eucharist followed by a Ministry Fair for the parishes and a community brunch. While there was some fear that this effort might fall flat, it was a great success. An almost full church of nearly 500 parishioners, a choir of over 20 voices, and a welcoming spirit resulted in a beautiful and reverent celebration. Many parishioners expressed a desire to hold a similar Mass in the future. This is a wonderful example of what can happen when parishioners and their pastors work together, and it serves as a fitting introduction to this letter in which I wish to address changes to Mass schedules and pastoral coverage around the Diocese.

Every year the Diocese of Burlington conducts a “Mass Count” in the months of May and October. Over the course of three weekends local churches count the number of attendees at the weekend Masses and provide the totals to the diocesan chancery office. This information presents me with a snapshot of the faith practice of Catholics in Vermont.

In May of 2025, the average weekend Mass attendance for all the weekend Masses celebrated in Vermont was 14,500 people. While this number may appear to be large, it represents attendance at more than 150 Masses in over 90 churches, out of a total population of 100,000 Catholics in Vermont. Breaking this down means that every weekend we average just over 90 people per Mass per church. While some congregations are larger and others are smaller, there is no one Catholic church building that is filled to capacity at every Mass celebrated. In fact, most Masses are in buildings less than half full.

To better appreciate the present situation, 25 years ago the average weekend Mass attendance was 44,000 being served by more than 100 priests. Just 10 years ago, 24,000 people attended weekend Masses served by 70 priests. There are numerous factors that have contributed to the decline in attendance and the decline in the number of priests serving in active ministry in our diocese. Additionally, we will face a further decrease in active priests in the coming years while we strive to increase the number of seminarians in formation. As you can appreciate, our present situation is somber.

In the meantime, I believe we need to examine carefully our present Mass schedules and pastoral alignments to ensure parishioners around Vermont have access to holy Mass and the other sacraments. While I wish I could promise that the changes needed will be limited, I would be misrepresenting the seriousness of our pastoral situation.

In a recent webinar I held with the priests of the diocese to discuss Mass attendance, pastoral realignments and priestly assignments, I asked them to work cooperatively with their parish councils at the county and deanery levels to rework parish Mass schedules to make it possible for people to attend Mass. Some churches with multiple Masses, especially on Sundays, will be asked to reduce the number of Masses, while schedules at the county/deanery level ought to be staggered to offer different times for attending Mass. It is likely that some churches which presently offer a weekend Mass will no longer have regular weekend liturgies.

While I am not proposing a large-scale closure and suppression of parishes and churches, it is clear that the status quo cannot continue. My hope is that if we can improve our vocational situation and continue to build up our parish numbers, we will be able to increase the number of Masses offered. However, this hope cannot be realized without our willingness to sacrifice on behalf of the entire diocese.

Couldn’t priests just offer more weekend Masses to keep the current schedule?

While this might appear to be a simple solution with minimal impact upon our churches, it would place an ever-increasing burden on the priests who remain in active ministry. Additionally, the Church, while recognizing the Eucharist as the source and summit of all its ministries, places some restrictions on the number of Masses priests can celebrate daily. Ideally, a priest would celebrate one Mass per day; however, the possibility of offering two Masses (binating) or even three Masses (trinating) are meant to be exceptions (cf. Canon 905 of the Code of Canon Law). Without reducing the number of Masses, priests could be faced with having to regularly exceed the limits set by the Church.

It is also important to remember that the Catholic Church in Vermont developed and prospered when the state was still largely agrarian in nature and travel was difficult. Churches built in small towns recognized that families could not travel easily due to inadequate roads and lack of transportation. This is no longer the case. Most of us travel easily throughout the state to pursue something we deem important, e.g. work, groceries, entertainment, etc. If the Eucharist is the source and summit of our lives of faith, I pray we all are willing to make the sacrifice and travel a bit further, when necessary, to attend Mass. Many people already drive to a church further away from them because they believe they are better fed spiritually at a church other than their territorial parish, or they prefer a Mass time at a neighboring church.

So what am I asking all of us to do?

First, pray for the renewal of parish life in our diocese, especially through the reverent and joyful celebration of the Mass in our churches. If we do not turn first to prayer and trust in the grace of God, all our efforts will fail. Additionally, I am encouraging each of us to invite back to church those family members and friends who have stopped practicing their Catholic faith. People may decline the invitation, but we must at least try to welcome them home.

Second, continue to encourage vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life among our children and young people. If we value the priests who have served us in the past and serve us today, why would we not be happy if our sons, grandsons, or brothers discerned that God was calling them to serve at the altar? Or if our daughters, granddaughters, and sisters felt called to serve God in consecrated life?

Next, at the parish level, take an honest look at weekend Mass schedules and attendance. For instance, if your church holds 300 people and offers two Masses with a total attendance of 200 or less, consider merging the Masses. Also, consider staggering weekend Mass times among neighboring parishes in order to provide people some options in the event personal schedules conflict with the Mass times in their parish. Are all Vigil Masses in each area at the exact same time? Are Sunday morning Masses scheduled at the same time?

Additionally, we need to be honest in evaluating the necessity of every Mass celebrated and every church we presently use. Here are a few questions to reflect on and pray with: beyond emotional attachments, is there a real necessity to maintain a church or a Mass whose attendance is regularly 30 people or less? Should some churches be used only during certain seasons when numbers increase? What burdens would be placed upon parishioners if a church no longer had regular weekend Masses? What is the distance to the next closest church? What changes can we make to ensure that Catholics in Vermont can continue to attend Mass and receive Our Lord in Holy Communion, and celebrate the other sacraments?

In my years serving our diocese as Vicar General and now as Bishop, I have visited and offered Mass in every Catholic church in Vermont, and I understand the personal attachment that parishioners have to their churches and their histories. However, I also have a very clear understanding of the challenges we face together if we are not proactive in caring for our parishes and our priests as we move into the future. Therefore, I am asking every parish and Church community to engage in this conversation in the coming months to propose changes for implementation in June/July of 2026. It is my hope these changes lead to all Masses being celebrated with the reverence and joy I experienced at Pentecost.

Finally, as we move into the coming years, realizing that sacrifice is going to be required of all of us, let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. Our concern must be first and foremost the salvation of souls and not the maintenance of buildings or the preservation of a specific Mass time. Join me in seeking the guidance of the Holy Spirit as we work together to implement changes that will be difficult but necessary to ensure the future of the Catholic faith in Vermont.

In closing, I wish to express my profound appreciation for the priests serving in the Diocese of Burlington. Whether they are native to the state or externs from abroad, they strive to share the Gospel and celebrate the sacraments, especially holy Mass, for the benefit of all our parishioners. Though few in number, they are great in faith and for this I am truly grateful. Please pray for your priests and that more young men accept the invitation to join their ranks and serve the Church in Vermont.

God alone suffices!

The Most Reverend John J. McDermott

Bishop of Burlington

 

 

Below is a video of Bishop John McDermott reading the letter.