Whereas Our Lady of Grace, Lancaster, was established as a mission of St. Philip Neri Parish, Fort Mill, South Carolina, on April 16, 2013; and

Whereas to meet the pastoral needs of this rapidly growing and spiritually rich community, it is now deemed necessary to form a new territorial parish within the Diocese of Charleston; and

Having sought and heard the counsel of the Presbyteral Council of the Diocese of Charleston on September 13, 2016, and in accordance with the norms of canon 515 §1-3 and by testimony of this document;

I HEREBY ERECT the territorial parish of Our Lady of Grace in Lancaster, South Carolina, and appoint Rev. Jeffrey F. Kirby, STL, as its administrator. The territorial boundaries will remain as previously established and include:

All that portion of Lancaster county, beginning at the point where Lancaster-York county line intersects SC-5 (Catawba River); proceeding north along the Lancaster-York county line until it ends at the South Carolina-North Carolina state border (Lancaster-Mecklenburg, N.C.); proceeding southeast along the South Carolina-North Carolina state border (through the junction of the Lancaster-Mecklenburg, NC-Union, NC county line) and then south along the South Carolina-North Carolina state border line (Lancaster-Union, N.C.) to Andrew Jackson State Park; proceeding west along an imaginary line through Andrew Jackson State Park to the intersection of SC-5 and US 521 (Charlotte Highway); proceeding westerly down the middle of SC-5 until it intersects with the Lancaster-York county line (Catawba River), and ending there.

I direct that this decree be published on the website for the Diocese of Charleston, www.sccatholic.org, which will be presumed the official notification of this action.

The erection of Our Lady of Grace, Lancaster, as a territorial parish is to become effective on the upcoming Feast of the Immaculate Conception, December 8, 2016, nothing the contrary withstanding.

Given at Charleston, South Carolina, on the 8th day of December 2016.