The news that the K-8 Catholic schools in the Twin Cities must merge if they hope to survive should come as no surprise to church members, who have watched as their congregations have aged and the number of children being baptized into the faith has dropped.

To the general community, unaware of the internal dynamics, the fact that the St. Joseph’s Parish school was in such dire straits was a shock.

St. Joseph’s has been a central feature of the community for 125 years. The school’s closure – it will merge with Holy Cross School and St. Peter and Sacred Heart School – will ripple through Lewiston-Auburn

Moving beyond the loss will be difficult for the families of the 180 students enrolled at St. Joseph’s. But the leaders of the three schools and their churches have made a hard choice based on what they think is best for Catholic education in the Twin Cities.

A task force has been appointed to work out the details of the merger and to take a long-term view of Catholic education in Lewiston and Auburn.

Private, religious schools play an important role in the community and provide families with the option of seeking faith-based learning for their children. They give parents a choice beyond public education.

But they are not immune from the financial realities that every school district in the state must face – rising costs and declining enrollments.

By taking the drastic steps of merging the three schools into one, church leaders have safeguarded parochial education, at least for the short-term.

Now it will be up to the task force appointed by the bishop to develop a plan for the long-term. It’s a daunting puzzle we hope they will be able to solve.