It certainly didn't die from lack of parishioners. It didn't die from the burden of financial distress, or from heart failure or any other kind of failure.
Instead, as Father Justin Hoye, the parish's last administrator noted in his homily at the final Mass, St. Raphael's young life - March 12, 1963 to June 29, 2008 - ended largely because of a growing crisis in the number and availability of priests.
He noted that exactly 100 years earlier to the day, the church in the United States lost its designation as a "mission territory," and gained in stature as a church strong enough to produce its own clergy and religious to meet the needs of its people.
"This is a poignant anniversary for us at St. Raphael's, on a day like today when we acknowledge that the cross we bear is tied to our ability to produce priests to meet the needs of our growing Catholic community," Father Hoye said. "Acceptance of this cross does not mean that everything was done right, does not mean that all issues have been resolved. Accepting this closure - this cross - means an acknowledgment of joining in the totality of Christ's life, including the losses Jesus faced."
via catholickey.org
It's hard to hear a young teen say she can't stop crying because she was baptized there, made her First Communion there and thought of the parish as her home without wanting to comfort her. It can't have been easy for her pastor to remind the congregation, as he prepared them for the eventual closure, that their faith calls them to follow Jesus, and that may just not be in the parish where they feel at home, but another.
Perhaps we can all say a prayer that neighboring parishes who assimilate those losing theirs will welcome the newcomers with open arms and hearts, like St. Anne's did.
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