On July 1, 2014, St. Mary and St. John parishes merged to form Sts. Mary and John Parish. What does the Parish name change mean? Previously, there were two parishes (St. Mary and St. John the Apostle) and each parish had their own church. After the merger, these two parishes became one PARISH with two CHURCHES (campuses). The new PARISH is named Saints Mary and John Parish and both CHURCHES kept their original names. This new parish name allows us to respect the history and traditions of both, St. Mary and St. John. You may be wondering what the difference is between a parish and a church. We tend to use these terms interchangeably, but they are different. A church is the building in which we worship. A parish is a geographic region, an area of our diocese, within which the pastoral care of people is carried out.
