About this publication
Save Our Lithuanian Parishes documents and defends America’s Lithuanian Catholic parishes — beginning with Divine Providence Lithuanian Catholic Church in Southfield, Michigan, as the Archdiocese of Detroit decides its future.
The Archdiocese of Detroit is restructuring, and Divine Providence — a Lithuanian national parish whose roots reach back to 1908 — is among the parishes whose future is being weighed. This publication exists to put the full story on the record: the history, the data, the Church’s own law, and a promise the Archdiocese made in writing in 1968.
The case, in three parts
The data. By the Archdiocese’s own parish workbook, Divine Providence is debt-free and among the most resource-strong small parishes it has — top 5% in savings per member, and already back in the black. (By the Numbers.)
The law. Under canon law it is a personal — or “national” — parish, defined by a people rather than a neighborhood, which makes territorial metrics the wrong test. (A Personal Parish, Not a Place.)
The promise. In 1968 the Archdiocese formally established Divine Providence as a national parish, in writing, on the condition that the Lithuanian community fund it themselves. They did. (In Writing: The 1968 Letter.)
What you can do
The single most important thing you can do right now is take the Archdiocese’s Listening Session Feedback Survey — it is open until July 31. Speak from faith first. Our How You Can Help page walks through every way to make a difference.
Subscribe below to follow the story as the restructuring unfolds, and share it with anyone connected to the parish.
Contact
Questions, stories, or want to help? Email info@saveourlithuanianparishes.org, or visit SaveOurLithuanianParishes.org.
Faith first. Culture as its vessel. The mission — for the next generation.
