When Katrenia Reeves drives from her West Kendall home for weekly services at St. Philip Neri, she hears hymns dating to when her ancestors were slaves -- Go Tell It on the Mountain and Somebody's Knocking at Your Door -- set to a background of drums and trumpets.

But the sounds of St. Philip Neri, built in 1952 by and for black parishioners, will be lost when the church shuts its doors next month as the Archdiocese of Miami closes 13 financially struggling congregations.

The archdiocese is encouraging the 141 members of St. Philip Neri to attend services at St. Monica, a Miami Gardens church where Ave Maria and the sounds of the organ may be more familiar.

``It's the tradition, it's culture, it's the whole atmosphere we're losing,'' said Reeves, 60.

When Archbishop John C. Favalora said Sunday that he will close the churches, many of which serve minorities, he added that it is time for Catholics of different backgrounds to come together under bigger, more diverse churches.

But many parishioners of the black and Haitian churchesfacing closure say they seetheir congregations as an essential part of their spirituallives.

``In a better world, we might all worship in one space equally . . . but I'm not expecting any kind of multicultural worship to happen,'' said the Rev. John Cox, pastor of St. Francis Xavier in Overtown, another black church that will close.

Come October, St. Francis Xavier's 114 members were told to attend Gesu in downtown Miami, the oldest Catholic church, but many members dislike the idea.

``Our people left Gesu in the age of segregation,'' Cox said. ``They had to sit in the colored-only pews in the back; they had to have First Communion after white people. We still have people alive who remember those days . . . that wouldn't necessarily be the case today, but those memories are deep.''

Cox doesn't expect any members to attend Gesu.

He has called for a meeting Wednesday of black Catholics from the two closed churches to meet at Holy Redeemer in Liberty City, where he also is the pastor. He is inviting them to join Holy Redeemer, which will become a bigger church with more than 500 members.

``Our aim is to be a place in the black community that is aware of the black story and aware of social issues that continue to prevail in black neighborhoods in order to have a strong sense of social justice,'' Cox said.

He's not the only one resisting the archdiocese's plans to shuffle parishioners.

On Saturday, members from the seven Broward churches set to close will gather at Divine Mercy Haitian Mission for prayer vigil.

Those at 890-member St. Joseph Haitian Mission in Pompano Beach plan a protest after Sunday Mass. Since May, when the archdiocese originally proposed closures, churchgoers have circulated petitions, organized letter-writing campaigns, increased fundraising and protested to no avail.

``We prefer to have our own church,'' said 46-year-old Herold Eugene, who joined St. Joseph 25 years ago when he immigrated from Haiti. ``We sing in Creole, we do worship dances. Our services are longer, up to two hours.''

Archdiocese spokeswoman Mary Ross Agosta said Monday that ``the tradition, culture and language'' of closing churches ``will move with them to the new parish.'' Agosta indicated that the worship styles of closing churches -- the list includes a Brazilian church in Broward County and a Hispanic churches in Allapattah, Hialeah and Opa-locka -- ``would not be lost, just transferred.''

Meanwhile, though Archbishop Favalora has indicated that closings are final, Catholics are holding on to hope. ``I'll do whatever I can do to help St. George,'' said Wilhelmina King, 66, who has attended prayer vigils for the predominantly black church in Fort Lauderdale. ``I do think God answers prayers.''

Catholic dioceses around the country have proposed dozens of church closures in recent months. Minority churches have been hard hit by closures, said Sister Jamie T. Phelps, director of the Institute for Black Catholic Studies at Xavier University in New Orleans.

``We can only reflect our faith in culture, whether is it song, dance or language,'' Phelps said. Yet, in the end, ``in those things that are essentially Catholic, there is no difference.''

Reeves of St. Philip Neri said she knows worship style isn't akin to dogma, but said it's still hard to let go of what she grew up with, and the church her mother helped establish.

As for the music at St. Philip Neri compared to St. Monica or even the churches closer to her West Kendall home, Reeves said, ``It's like ballads compared to R&B.''

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