As flocks shrink, many churches sell old buildings

Columbus Dispatch: As flocks shrink, many churches sell old buildings (HT: Presbyweb)

MILWAUKEE — For sale: a charming, well-maintained building with high ceilings and classic architecture. Enjoy 38,000 square feet of space on a sprawling 14.25-acre lot. Minutes from downtown. Altars, bells and stained glass not included. Asking price: $4 million.

Population shifts, declining Mass attendance and a shortage of priests in many areas have forced Roman Catholic leaders to consolidate parishes and sell off churches.

But selling a house of worship is no easy task. Pastors must placate parishioners upset by the sale and find a buyer who will respect the building’s history.

Parishioners in Pittsburgh were riled in 1996 when the former St. John the Baptist Church became the Church Brew Works, a restaurant that brews beer near where an altar once stood. ….