Four Critical Issues Facing the Catholic Church with Real Solutions

By Bernard Dumond, President & CEO of Catholic Vitality 360

“The Church is the Church only when it exists for others...not dominating, but helping and serving. It must tell men of every calling what it means to live for Christ, to exist for others.”

- Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Understanding Church

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) “A church, is a house of prayer in which the Eucharist is celebrated and reserved, where the faithful assemble, and where is worshipped the presence of the Son of God our Savior, offered for us on the sacrificial altar for the help and consolation of the faithful - this house ought to be in good taste and a worthy place for prayer and sacred ceremonial. In this ‘house of God’ the truth and the harmony of the signs that make it up should show Christ to be present and active in this place. (CCC 1181) 

Thus, our church parish is a community of believers who gather to celebrate the Eucharist, received doctrinal teaching and seek to live out the expression of our Catholic faith in a supportive, charitable, loving environment. We are called, sacramentally to imitate the life of Jesus Christ, through the intercession of the Holy Spirit. 

Parishes of vitality are warm and welcoming, vibrant communities that are centered on the Holy Eucharist, offering ongoing faith formation and build quality social and personal bonds with one another.

As we prepare ourselves to confront our current reality, it is important to remind ourselves of why the Catholic Church matters in the world. The glory and majesty of Catholic Church can be seen in the following manifestations:

1. The Word of God is Truth – a divine illustration of a moral and sanctified life.

2. Jesus Christ calls us to be His spiritual ambassadors on Earth.

3. The Holy Eucharist contains the perpetual power of transformation.

4. Our parishes are places of welcoming and community.

5. The sacramental life provides mystical guidance and wisdom.

6. Our American Catholic schools educate over 1.7 million children in all forms of faith formation and academic excellence in an atmosphere of dignity and respect.

7. Each day, the Catholic Church provides more human, medical, social services and outreach to the poor and suffering than any other agency in the country.

8. We are encouraged and challenged to be a light in the world and be a force for good.

Four Critical Issues and Real Solutions

For my ministry, as I work in congregational effectiveness, the Bible is at the heart of liturgy, ministry, religious education and parishioner engagement. While I am witnessing a movement in our Catholic parishes to grow deeper in the message of the scriptures, we are also facing four critical issues: 1) Building an Understanding of the Real Presence of Christ in the Holy Eucharist 2) Proper and Ongoing Family Faith Formation for all members and age groups 3) Cultivating a Sense of Community and Connection and 4) Equipping Missionary Disciples to Serve and Leadership Development. Let’s examine these four issues and offer some workable solutions:

Critical Issue #1: Building an Understanding of the Real Presence of Christ in the Holy Eucharist:

In 2019, in a provocative and stunning announcement Bishop Robert Barron issued a statement and video reacting to the Pew Research study indicating that “75% of Catholics think the Blessed Sacrament is just a symbol.” Bishop Barron, rightfully indignant, discusses the failure of catechetics and educators to adequately place a holy emphasis on the miracle of the Eucharist. 

Real Solutions:

1. Place the Holy Eucharist at the center of parish life, with emphasis on the miracle of the Real Presence at Mass. 
2. All parish religious education and faith formation should be organized around this priority.
3. Offer Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration and special parish events that allow for Eucharistic prayer and prayer service. 

Critical Issue #2: Proper and Ongoing Family Faith Formation for all Members and Age Groups. 

Now is the time to reorganize our faith formation programs and processes around families and meeting people where they are at every stage of their spiritual journey. 

Real Solutions:

1. Organize new monthly Faith Formation nights, where the entire family is invited to grow in their faith. Each evening is combination of social connection, guest speakers and formation activities. 
2. Work with diocesan leaders to organize a new parish faith formation process that is fresh, edifying and formative for all age groups of the parish.
3. Offer a variety of opportunities to grow in your faith: bible study groups, small faith-sharing groups, travel groups, social justice work, etc. – all moving into missionary discipleship

Critical Issue #3: Cultivating a Sense of Community and Connection

As one of the prominent lessons from the Covid pandemic era, social connections are vital to heathy and thriving communities. A critical component of engagement is to build a welcoming environment with a variety of social events and activities. The community comes together each month for fellowship and needed connection.

Real Solutions:

1. Establish a new Social Events committee in the parish to organize parish events, gatherings and fellowship opportunities.
2. Organize a series of annual parish Listening Sessions to share the current state of the parish and solicit feedback on ministry and future needs. Compile the results and move to implementation.
3. Conduct a “Community Open House” twice each year to invite neighbors, local leaders and other churches to discuss community issues and solutions.

Critical Issue #4: Equip Missionary Disciples to Serve and Leadership Development

According to the Archdiocese of Chicago, “a missionary disciple is one who continues to grow in relationship with God, can easily share his or her relationship with God with others and goes outward to help others find God for themselves.” This dedicated and faith-filled person is Christ-centered, filled with the zeal of the Holy Spirit and able to share the salvific vision with others. 

Real Solutions:

1. Establish Leadership Development as a top priority of the parish, where we strategically identify, train and support ministry leaders.
2. Organize an annual Ministry Leaders Retreat and Leadership Summit to discuss the role of ministry, conducting ministry meetings, setting goals and working with parish staff.
3. Re-envision the Pastoral Council as an outreach group to support the work of ministry leaders, including ministry support, communication, funding and leadership succession planning.

As we at Catholic Vitality 360 illustrate through our Seven Circles of Catholic Vitality (see our website at catholicvitality360.com for information and the assessment scorecard), parishes that demonstrate vitality are vibrant and active communities of sound doctrine, engaging liturgy and strong social connections. The Sunday-Monday relationship must come through by calling parishioners to encounter Christ through thematic activities, special events, small-group sessions, prayer groups, adoration and liturgy – all supported by web/digital communication and promotion. This is your time to thrive! 

We Can Help

Here at Catholic Vitality 360, it is our ministry to serve your needs. Our mission is your vitality. All of the processes we share in our writings, videos and Zoomcast, THE CIRCLE are available to you. You are not alone in this work and we are happy to help. We consider you and your parish/school a vitality partner with us as we navigate building the Kingdom of God. Our proven approach will provide clarity, a working plan and a proven system that produces impressive results and engages more people in the life of the parish/school.

Engage others, share this dynamic vision, create a collaborative team and build ongoing vitality.

This will take time, patience, persistence, perseverance and PRAYER.

Do not fear, we walk in Faith and this is God’s work. 

Be Good and Do Good.