PHILADELPHIA (CNS) – Twenty-four parishes will merge into 10 as a result of the latest wave of parish consolidations in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia’s parish planning initiative.

Archbishop Charles J. Chaput accepted the recommendations for the mergers from the Archdiocesan Strategic Planning Committee.

The mergers, in which the parishes will form new, consolidated parishes with some of the churches becoming worship sites, are occurring in four geographic areas: Lower Northeast Philadelphia, Northwest Philadelphia, West Philadelphia and Delaware County.

The wave of mergers follows another announced a week earlier, involving two parishes that will become one and one of those churches becomes a worship site.

Although not a part of the group of parishes under formal study since last fall, it also was announced June 2 that Incarnation of Our Lord parish in Olney, Pa., will merge with two other parishes. Incarnation Church will become a worship site.

In a week’s time, a total of 29 parishes in the archdiocese have been affected by consolidations.

All of the mergers take effect July 1. In the meantime, the pastors of the merging parishes will form transitional teams of lay leaders to help build the new parish community.

Churches designated as worship sites may be used for weddings, funerals, feast days, ethnic celebrations and devotions and Sunday Mass.