Church leaders in the Diocese of Steubenville are facing a number of challenges regarding the economy, loss of population and the shortage of clergy.

Bishop Daniel Conlon announced major changes, which include the closing of a half-dozen churches and the construction of a new cathedral.

The Diocese of Steubenville was established in 1944 from 13 Eastern Ohio counties formerly part of the Diocese of Columbus. The Catholic population in the Diocese has been dwindling over the years from more than 60,000 in 1950 to less than 40,000 now.

And so has the number of priests. There are currently 70 parishes in the Diocese with 51 active priests. More than half of those priests are over 60 years of age.

Several years ago Conlon commissioned a task force to study the changing circumstances in the city of Steubenville and the needs of the eight parishes.

The task force recommended that Holy Family and St. Peter parishes should stay open and the remaining six parishes will merge into one parish, which would serve as the Diocese's cathedral. But that decision isn't sitting well with all parishioners.

"We still have a lot of pain, even anger expressed on the part of people who are members of the six parishes who are merging, because no one likes to lose a parish that has been an important part of their life," said Conlon.

Some Catholics have questioned the need to build a new cathedral because there is already a beautiful church, St. Peters downtown, which was renovated in 1994. Conlon said he looked into remodeling the church a few years ago and the estimated cost was more than $3 million.

Conlon said more people are realizing the practicality and wisdom behind building a new cathedral for $9 million. Nearly $7 million have already been pledged, he said.

"When we're finished, we're going to be maintaining one church rather than five. It will be a brand-new building, which will be a lot more efficient," he said.

The Rev. Tim McGuire will oversee the new parish. Triumph of the Cross will be built between Catholic Central High School and Holy Rosary Church.

Once it's complete, weekend Masses in the city will be reduced from 15 to four, and only two priests will be needed instead of eight, Conlon said.

The Rev. Leonard Cencula, who is the pastor of St. Pius, one of the six scheduled to close, said he has received mixed reactions from his parishioners.

"There's people who are opposed to it ... and some very much in favor of it," he said.

Church leaders said the task force did not want to put a Band-Aid on the problems facing the Diocese and deal with more critical problems down the road.

"I think 10 years from now we're going to realize even from a lost point of view this is the smart thing to do," Conlon said.

They hope to break ground in June for the new cathedral, which will seat 800 people. The project should be completed by the end of 2008.