Pastoral Trends

What are we supposed to be doing as a Catholic community in our time and place? At one level, of course, our Catholic Christian project is always the same, and the gospels and Catholic tradition describe it well. At another level, though, each time and place has its own particular project, just as each of us may be said ultimately to have our own particular purpose. Our family lives, personal gifts, careers, and life situations are all different.

  Read more
THAT'S THE TYPICAL EXPLANATION for why Catholics stop attending their local parish. Perhaps they stop attending regularly, or go to another Catholic parish, or maybe-more likely than we might admit-they start attending a congregation that is not Catholic.

 

  Read more

The small church is dying in the United States. Protestant megachurches are growing. New and growing Catholic parishes are built to be large and getting bigger, while others consolidate. Why? In part, to benefit from economies of scale and to respond to the diminishment in numbers of priests, parishes are larger and churches are built bigger than before.

  Read more
Catholics have more than one way to pray and more than one sacrament. Yet it often seems as if our only prayer is the Mass and our only sacrament is the Eucharist. According to some liturgists, the worship style mainline Protestant churches use was adapted from a form of evening prayer and preaching Catholic churches used in the 15th century. And today we have the Liturgy of the Hours, Taizé prayer, solemn benediction, an increasingly common praise and worship style, and all sorts of other traditions.

But one would hardly know it from the schedule posted at most Catholic parishes: “Mass times.” Mass and Eucharist itself are indeed..  Read more
Preaching is about translation, ministering is about mediating. Yet preachers are seldom translators and ministers seldom mediators. Preachers instead seek to tell, ministers to do. But it is neither exposition nor tasks that matter in the end.  Read more
“Muchos bautizados, pocos evangelizados.” Many are baptized, few are evangelized. That is not simply something that might be said in Spanish-speaking countries, as it often is. It is a challenge faced by the church universal. It also leads us to consider what we might do differently. To what degree have we a misplaced relative overemphasis on baptism compared to our emphasis on evangelization?  Read more
Is reconfiguration moving chairs, adjusting slots—or building new possibilities for relationship? What is it doing more: destroying or creating a life-giving culture? . . .  Read more
Culture sustains Catholicism and our Catholic communities of faith, but not in the way we often think. Culture is not so much about static content—how we think about something—as much as it is about what we do and with whom we do it. Culture is about actions that sustain and enrich networks. Similarly, faith communities are not so much assembled groups of people as they are an interconnection point of many diverse networks.  Read more
It has been said many times that love depends on trust, a trust that is open to risk-taking. In this sense fear is the opposite of love—that which prevents us from loving. Sometimes, for a variety of reasons, pastoral actions, even preaching, can carry an undertone or motivation stemming from fear.  Read more
Have we ever really thought about what it means to do theology? On the one hand theology is rightly and justifiably understood as an academic exercise left to those who read, teach, and create big books. On the other, theology must be understood as something all believers must do if our tradition is to remain vital.  Read more
Catholicism changes. The Catholicism of the previous generation is different than that of the one before it—and the one after it. The same is true for individual Catholics: They are different in their Catholicism precisely because Catholicism is a living tradition.  Read more
If, as the ancient principle of “lex orandi, lex credendi” says, the “law of prayer is the law of belief,” then we need to pay attention to the “how” no less than the “what” of prayer. This maxim, after all, suggests that we might not, really, believe that we are universally connected across time and space as the Body of Christ if prayer is individualistic and isolated, or if we pray in a way that connects us with our local community and particular group without breaking through to a larger, more universal experience of human interconnectedness in our prayer.  Read more

Preachers address people who make many different choices and who live their lives in many different ways. There has always been human diversity, of course; in the past, people groups were different one from another, but diversity was not nearly as strong within people groups.

  Read more
Even though politicians in general may be often held in low esteem, one's local political representatives may be held in high esteem. While trust in the church as a whole might decline, confidence is one's own pastor or bishop might continue to be high. The observation of a wise Catholic politician—"all politics is local"—could be applied to church life as well. . . .
  Read more

When does a person commit to being a Catholic? The answer used to be easy: by being born into a Catholic home. The membrane between Catholic and non-Catholic used to be thick, and above all Catholic culture used to be stronger and richer than it is today. . . .

  Read more
How often do we hear people make the claim that they are “spiritual but not religious”? That, of course, is obviously false. To be spiritual one has to be religious. But what about those who are “religious but not spiritual”? That is a much more significant issue.
  Read more
Sometimes the word postmodern is used to describe our times. Sometimes we talk of a new globalization or an emerging church. Whatever we call our era, we have the sense that we are on the threshold of something new.  Read more
Pastoral leaders used to envision themselves speaking to families, and that was more often than not correct. Parishes counted the numbers of families who belonged, and donations and participation happened through families.  Read more
Change in human organizations, including the church, happens in “generational time”; change does not happen overnight. It takes a while for us to get used to something new and beyond the old. And that’s a good thing. There is something in the old we need to hold onto and something in the new that quite properly takes some time for us to adjust. We do not so much change as watch new generations rise and claim their particular place in time.  Read more
Studies confirm that vocations to priesthood and religious life depend on personal invitation. When fewer priests report inviting young men to consider priesthood, for example, the number entering seminary seems to decline. There is, however, another, perhaps even more important factor . . . .  Read more
The proportion of people who are Catholic is likely to collapse over the next two generations—unless, of course, the way we see and do church changes.  Read more
Why do we “need” to go to church? Putting theological questions aside for a moment, it is reasonable in our time to look at regular religious practice with new eyes. In a time of concern for efficiency, we know why we go to work or why we go to the grocery store. But why do we need to go to church when we effectively find ourselves doing the same thing, week after week?  Read more
We live not during the end of denominationalism but rather in a time of the denominationalization of everything: de-nomination, that is, the way truth is named. It is said that Protestant churches, even individual denominations such as Baptists, “grow by dividing.” People break away from one church congregation to form another, thus “growing” the church. Or people break away from one denomination to form another, presumably one truer, smaller, perhaps, but allegedly more true in some way . . .
  Read more
Are there any “card-punchers” who attend your church? These folks are the ones who fill the pews regularly, week after week, yet at the same time have a kind of “quick-in, quick-out” approach . . .
  Read more
We live in a time of “hollowing out” for religious institutions. We see the ranks of volunteers getting thinner. The most strongly committed are among the oldest members, something we also see among priests and laity. Frequently we see fewer and fewer middle-aged people—as well as few young adults. Maybe there are teens and especially younger people with families, but a smaller number of them. Activities take place, but with less energy; we keep on doing what we’ve done, but with fewer people and even whole generations missing in action . . .
  Read more
We learn it as children, but then we forgot: The power of play. The joy of taking on roles we can only imagine, of stepping outside ourselves. It is good, of course, that we grow into mature adults—that’s essential for us to become true disciples and not merely believers . . .  Read more
Recall a richly decorated church built years ago. Or imagine that you are in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. You are surrounded by the baroque—ornate images full of imaginative power. A thick visual cloud, full of life and energy. Scratch the Catholic imagination a little and you’ll see: Catholics still bleed baroque, full of amazing images of the saints, angels, the power of God, and the vision of the heavens . . .  Read more
Religion is about connecting, not control. We know this intuitively, yet how often in history has religion been more about control or only the “shall nots” of faith? How often have we ourselves wanted to control people—our children, for example, teens and young adults, new immigrants—in making them go to church or be the kind of Catholic we want them to be . . ?  Read more
As disciples of Christ we are asked to go well beyond our “human nature” and aim toward a higher, second nature. But such grace builds on nature. What exactly, we might ask, is at the heart of our human nature? . . .
  Read more
Humans literally cannot live without it, yet we fear its implications in our lives: Trust. Trust is important for everyday life; we trust that everyone will stop at the red light. Trust is also at the heart of our faith . . .  Read more
The great message of Hebrew scripture may be summed as “God is God, and we are not.” That statement is not about an abstract principle but a relationship, even more so in the New Testament. Truth for the Christian is not a thought-system, but a person: “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.” That is not to say that we cannot express truths in ways that are more adequate than others, nor is it to deny that truth, in itself, exists. But the disciple of the Lord understands that truth is revealed to be the living God . . .  Read more
Print media is contracting—but not because it is getting replaced by online media. It is dwindling because it is mass media. What is happening is that the massification of communications appropriate for the industrial era has given way to targeted and more fragmented communications . . .  Read more
We know we have to engage the culture if we are to preach and teach effectively and if the gospel is to take root in our time. But the problem is often a category error: We are confused over just what the category of “culture” really contains . . .
  Read more
The church is not a baseball field. We cannot say, to borrow a phrase the movie Field of Dreams, “Build it and they will come.” But in the sacramental economy of the church there is nowhere else to go besides the church for those who want the sacraments of the church . . .  Read more
The great theologian Karl Rahner is said to have observed that in the future all of us will be mystics—or non-believers. In other words, in our time and certainly in times to come it will not be enough simply to accept the faith one has inherited . . .  Read more
Approximately 19 times of encountering a new idea are necessary before a person truly knows a new idea. Extensive exposure to something new—hearing it, saying it, thinking it, trying it out—is absolutely required in order to expand one’s horizon . . .  Read more
We are told that the jaws of death will not prevail against the church, but we are never told that the church will continue to exist in a certain place forever . . .  Read more
Just about anything we encounter has a shadow side, one that points toward problems, challenges, and even what seems like impossibilities. Each thing also has an element of grace. Grace, given its source, might sometimes appear relatively small within the problematic side we can see all too easily. So what will it be? . . .  Read more
We should be dissatisfied with ourselves as church. Not despondent, but certainly not smug. We all know the numbers: Something like one in three of Catholics who come in the front door through the sacraments of initiation go out through the back door. Or that something like one in ten Catholic young people attend Mass regularly . . .  Read more
It is not uncommon for a school, parish, or even religious community to be closed and merged into a neighboring school, parish, or religious community. What is uncommon is for the result to have more active students, attenders, or members than the previous entities had when they were separate . . .  Read more
We live in an age of secularism, and many who once would have identified as Catholic are now “nones” who espouse no religion. The odd thing is that many core beliefs and practices of so-called secularists have all the telltale marks of religion, even a specific religion . . .  Read more
Perhaps two-thirds of those raised Roman Catholic remain so throughout their lives. That this number is not 100 percent is troubling, but that various studies suggest that this figure is perhaps normal for any religious organization in the United States is interesting. It seems that in spite of the fluidity of religion in the U.S. today, and in spite of the fragmentation that marks personal identities today, sacramentality is sticky . . .  Read more
Describing one’s own time as one of breakdown and collapse is a consistent and characteristic mistake in social and church commentary. It’s similar to the tendency of the older generation to describe the next in disparaging ways, and in both cases it may spring from the relative age or point of view of those making the critical observation . . .  Read more
Our little brains cannot hope to enter into the whole reality of God’s promise! We see as through a glass, darkly (1 Corinthians 13:12). For this reason theological language is best expressed often in practical theological engagement rather than speculative theological constructions . . .  Read more
Is God a great big “Skydaddy” ready to step in with magical superpowers? Scratch the surface of many religious people and see if this isn’t the ordinary understanding of God . . .  Read more
One of the distortions that can appear under the capitalist system is to reduce everything to dollars and cents: The worth of something is the same as how much one can be paid for it or its use to make something else for which one will be paid . . .  Read more
Religion is about connecting, not control. We know this intuitively, yet how often in history has religion been more about control or only the “shall nots” of faith? How often have we ourselves even wanted to control people . . .  Read more
Communication is about communio, fellowship. That means it is the work of the Holy Spirit. Yet how frequently do we see social media, including social media in the church, as a work of the Holy Spirit? . . .  Read more
The single greatest trend in parish life today is scarcity: fewer personnel available, fewer parishioners attending, and, above all, fewer resources. The most common response is fear . . .  Read more
Today we have fewer and fewer of the “grandmothers and grandfathers” of the faith who came of age in a previous time and who can share their formation in the current era . . .  Read more
Identity is the crucial issue of our time. We cannot inherit it, we have to make it. In that sense we do indeed construct our reality. But as the African maxim says, “I am because . . .  Read more
Vocations to consecrated religious life in the context of a religious institute are always a vocation to a community. A vocation to a spouse is different. Both are vocations within communities, but the second is fundamentally to a person . . .  Read more
Christian life is a team sport. As the African saying would have it, “I am because we are.” No one can be a Christian by oneself; faith is shared and always in communion with God and one other. Yet Christians have to adapt constantly, improvising as they go along, just as in a team sport where there are basic rules and strategies but constant moments of unpredictable play . . .  Read more
In social psychology a “master frame” a way of organizing and seeing the world, typically though mental images or narratives. This concept helps to explain what makes Latino . . .  Read more
The megatrend in religion today is how church connects to larger society . . .  Read more