Detroit — A merger of two Detroit parishes and one Hamtramck parish will result in Detroit’s first parish named for the late pontiff, Blessed John Paul II.

In a decree also issued Dec. 17, Archbishop Vigneron granted that Transfiguration-Our Lady Help of Christians Parish and St. Louis the King Parish in Detroit, and St. Ladislaus Parish in Hamtramck would merge into a single parish named Blessed John Paul II Parish. The merger would take place Jan. 1.

The churches involved in the merger would remain operational and keep their current names, but the Catholic community which uses them would congregate under the new name.

The parish’s geographical boundaries would entail those that had been served by the three current parishes.

Additionally, St. Andrew Kim Catholic Community in Northville, which for more than two decades has existed as a faith community for those of Korean descent,  has been made into St. Andrew Kim Parish. A decree from Archbishop Vigneron dated Dec. 17 states that it will be “a personal parish for those of Korean descent in the Archdiocese…”

In the decree, Archbishop Vigneron acknowledges that the request for St. Andrew Kim Catholic Community to become a parish came to him from the pastor. Fr. Dong-Hyuk Jeon will continue to serve as pastor of the newly declared parish. The archbishop granted the request because the community, “has demonstrated its capacity for unique ministry to those of Korean descent, financial stability, and fitting support for a priest,” the decree states.