News and Events

News Releases

Archdiocese of Chicago Provides Updates on the Blue Island, Posen, Robbins and St. Walter Renew My Church Grouping

March 9, 2021

The Archdiocese of Chicago today announced an update on the Blue Island, Posen, Robbins and St. Walter Renew My Church grouping. This grouping includes St. Benedict (Blue Island), St. Donatus, St. Stanislaus Bishop & Martyr (Posen) and St. Walter Parishes and the St. Peter Claver Mission (Robbins).

Over the past several months, the grouping’s Feedback and Discernment Team, made up of representatives from each of the parishes, the mission and schools, met to review and discern the future parish, school and church structures. Based on its meetings and discussions with the larger parish communities, the team submitted feedback reports to the Archdiocesan Standards and Recommendations Commission, which includes representatives from across the archdiocese. The commission reviewed the feedback reports and other materials and information, including demographic data, financial summaries, and parish and grouping trends.  

During the past several weeks, Cardinal Blase J. Cupich, archbishop of Chicago, the archdiocese’s auxiliary bishops and Presbyteral Council discussed the commission’s recommendations. Based on those discussions and prayerful consideration, the following decision has been made for the Blue Island, Posen, Robbins and St. Walter grouping:

The Blue Island, Posen, Robbins, and St. Walter Renew My Church Grouping includes the following parishes, mission and schools:

  • St. Benedict Parish and School (Blue Island)
  • St. Donatus Parish (Blue Island)
  • St. Stanislaus Bishop & Martyr Parish (Posen)
  • St. Walter Parish and School (Chicago)
  • St. Peter Claver Mission (Robbins)

The new structure will be:

Effective July 1, 2021, St. Benedict, St. Walter and St. Peter Claver Mission will unite as a new parish, with a new name, one pastor and pastoral team.  

  • Monsignor Dennis J. Lyle has been designated as pastor of the united parish.
  • St. Benedict will be the parish church where the sacramental records are kept. 
  • Masses on Sunday will be held only at St. Benedict.  
  • St. Walter will continue as a sacred space and will host a Saturday Vigil Mass. The church may additionally be used for school Masses, funerals and other special occasions. 
  •  St. Peter Claver’s Gospel Mass will be incorporated into the style and schedule of Masses at St. Benedict Church and the site will remain available for occasional events.   
  • The local community will discern possibilities for the new name of the parish, within guidelines provided by the archdiocese, and submit three to five options to Cardinal Cupich.  
  • St. Stanislaus Bishop & Martyr will join the St. Christopher and St. Damian grouping to continue discernment to the west. Fr. Pius Eusebius Kokose, pastor of St. Stanislaus Bishop & Martyr, will receive a new assignment in another parish effective July 1, 2021. A priest administrator will be assigned to St. Stanislaus to lead the parish through the continuing discernment.
  • St. Donatus will remain in its current structure with Fr. Diego Cadavid as its pastor. 

Next Steps

Over the next few months, the archdiocese and the pastors of the current parishes will support the communities in their transition to the new parish and school structures. The archdiocese’s Renew My Church Accompaniment Team will work with local leaders to ensure the uniting faith communities and staff are supported through this time of change. All parishes will embark on the next phase of renewal to become stronger, more sustainable and more capable of reaching people in their work of making disciples of Jesus Christ, building communities and inspiring witness.

About Renew My Church

Renew My Church is the Archdiocese of Chicago’s response to Christ’s call and our invitation for renewal. The Renew My Church process will transform the archdiocese over the next several years by working with groupings of parishes to determine how they will achieve the goal of having vibrant, life-giving faith communities accessible to all Catholics. To learn more about Renew My Church, visit renewmychurch.org.