The parish of Holy Rosary in Cedar, MI was shocked at the news that their Pastor, Father Donald Libby, will be transferred this coming summer. He notified the parish of his new assignment during Masses this weekend. This announcement is part of an overall Diocesan realignment that will be formally laid out later this week, ie, the full plan for Church closings and reassignments of priests will be placed on the Diocese website on Tuesday, January 20, 2026.
The fact that Fr. Libby is being transferred is not unexpected in the sense that he has been at Holy Rosary for years; what is troubling is the location and the timing of the transfer. Although it is the norm that priests are not at any one parish for more than a few years (6-14 years, based on the Diocese and other circumstances), the situation with Fr. Libby is unique. He has been at Holy Rosary since 2007, and was named a pastor a few years after that, making the number of years he has been there significantly longer than most priests have at a parish.
But there are a good number of reasons that he was allowed to remain at Holy Rosary for such a long time. One reason is that he wants to be there; he enjoys the parish and what has been done there.
Another reason is that this parish is one of the most vibrant parishes in northern Michigan. It is a growing parish that can boast a young parish population. Multiple large and growing families with plenty of children is the norm at Masses and activities in the parish. It is one of the few parishes in Michigan with a 24 hour perpetual adoration chapel, a major feat for a rural parish where many parishioners travel for miles to man the chapel at all hours.
One of the most impressive supernatural fruits of the parish is the number of vocations that have come out of Holy Rosary. This one parish has supplied the vast majority of vocations for the Diocese of Gaylord in recent years, and in addition, has brought forth vocations for religious orders. This has been discussed in previous posts at Gaylord Diocesan Watch.
The parish is financially and structurally sound. Its sanctuary has been restored and enhanced since Fr. Libby has been its pastor. The parish has solid catechesis, numerous opportunities to partake in the sacraments, and has active altar server and girls groups to promote active faith participation. A music guild has been established at the parish and has promoted authentic Catholic music for the liturgy. The parish even has a well-stocked store to buy Catholic books and sacramentals. A previous Bishop once described Holy Rosary, under Fr. Libby’s leadership, as the “healthiest parish in the Diocese”.
But this is now in question with the announcement that Fr. Libby will be transferred to Cross in the Woods Parish/Shrine in Indian River. This announcement is troubling to many of the faithful in the Diocese and raises many questions. Why move a priest from a parish that is the only parish formula which has supplied any notable number of vocations to the Diocese? After all, aren’t we in a vocations crisis?
Perhaps Bishop Walsh would like to “spread the wealth” or “repeat the success” of Holy Rosary to other parts of the Diocese. But that’s not likely to happen with this move. Instead of transferring Fr. Libby to a larger parish with significant numbers of families or a school, Fr. Libby is scheduled to be transferred to Cross in the Woods, significantly more rural than Holy Rosary (which is less than a 30 minute drive from Traverse City), without a large number of families, and with a significant number of people who come to visit the Cross in the Woods Shrine for a few hours. This just does not seem to be a recognition of the graces given to Fr. Libby to further the Kingdom of God. Instead, it seems as if it is a demotion to a lesser venue to further isolate him.
This should not be a surprise; it represents a pattern seen in other dioceses and with other priests who have had similar success in their parishes. Was Fr. Libby’s long stay at Holy Rosary an attempt to keep his “rigid Catholicism” at bay and limit the influence of traditional Catholicism in the Diocese of Gaylord? If so, it was a failure, as Holy Rosary is a vibrant and healthy parish in the Diocese and is a popular parish for hundreds of Catholic families. Nonetheless, could this move be another attempt at isolating Fr. Libby and his influence in the Diocese, especially with regard to vocations? More than one faithful member of the Diocese have remarked that this seems to be a punitive, not positive, decision of the Bishop.
It is reasonable and rational that priests and parishioners not become too accustomed or cozy with each other. Also, good priests should be shared when they are good and mediocre priests should move on to spare the parish of too much suffering. (Bad priests should be removed.) However, is the good of the Diocese served when the Holy Spirit works through a priest like Fr. Libby and this grace is rewarded by moving him to a smaller parish with less chances for building up the parish?
One piece of good news in this is that the parish of Cross in the Woods will benefit, we believe, from this announcement. Also, Holy Rosary will receive a good priest (Fr. Brad Nursey) able to celebrate the Traditional Latin Mass. Fr. Nursey served under Fr. Libby for a short period of time; these facts make his move to Holy Rosary a good fit for the parish.
We hope that Fr. Libby will do well in his new assignment and that holy fruit will be sown from his transfer. We hope and pray that this move will not end up in putting a good priest out to pasture. We will keep our readers informed of more details as they arise from the Diocese of Gaylord restructuring process that is scheduled to be rolled out later this week.