Nearly a third of Catholic churches in one diocese face the axe under a radical restructuring due to declining attendance and a shortage of priests.

In a consultation sent to all parishes this month, the Bishop of Salford John Arnold suggests closing as many as 40 churches and cutting by half the 150 parishes. The number of Masses is also to be cut back as the diocese struggles to find even "supply" priests to cover when a parish priest is sick or on holiday.

The diocese covers Manchester and the Greater Manchester area and Bishop Arnold is giving parishes three months to respond. 

In the document, Arnold quotes Pope Francis who has said that parishes should be "missionary parishes".

It is too easy for a parish to slip into simply maintaining its own life and not look to the wider community around it, he continues.

"Our parishes need to be of a sufficient size to facilitate and sustain a dynamic and life-giving community," he says. "At the same time, we need to look at how we can serve these missionary parishes with fewer priests in the years ahead whilst also acknowledging that there are fewer people regularly attending our churches."

Salford, in common with many other dioceses throughout the Western world, has been hit by ageing priests not being replaced in sufficient numbers. In the UK, reflecting immigration patterns of the previous century, an entire generation of Irish priests is close to retirement and cannot be replaced. Meanwhile, dioceses such as Salford established too many parishes and built too many churches. 

The problem has wide repercussions because of the Catholic Church's involvement in schools, hospitals, prisons, in caring for the elderly and infirm, the homeless, refugees and those who need foodbanks.

"We must heed Pope Francis' teaching that we must be a poor Church for the poor," Arnold says.

More cuts are needed, even though 210 parishes have already been reduced to 150 and several churches closed and even demolished.

This year alone, Salford has suffered the death of one serving parish priest, the pending retirement of eight priests and just two ordinations to the priesthood. There are 15 priests still serving in parishes aged over 75.

Other countries manage their manpower differently. Arnold cites the case of Father Paul Mwamba in Zambia, whose parish has 45 mission stations covering an area larger than the whole of the Salford diocese.

"We must accept, too, that many Catholics have drifted away from any active participation in the life of the Church. While many people would wish to see their children baptised, they have no commitment to educating their children in their faith, by word or example."

 Examples of proposed cuts include the deanery of St John in Salford, whre 17 parishes, 19 churches and 14 priests would be cut to eight parishes, 14 churches and priests.

St Ambrose Barlow in South Manchester would go from 26 parishes, 31 churches and 26 diocesan priests to 14 parishes, 21 churches and 14 diocesan priests.