What is going on in the Church in America? Is She singing a swan song, or is She rising again from the ashes like the legendary phoenix?
In the spirit of legendary Yankee catcher Yogi Berra, who said, “When you come to a fork in the road, take it,” allow me to answer the latter question with a firm “Yes.”
On the side of Catholic decline-and-dying, many dioceses have made stunning announcements of parish closures and consolidations over the last few years. The most recent news in the Archdiocese of Dubuque was particularly dire. The diocese, which counts around 182,000 Catholics, has announced that its current 163 parishes will be reorganized into 24 “pastorates.” Practically speaking, there will be no regular Masses at 84 of the parishes.
Given the priestly numbers (69 active diocesan and 23 religious priests), some may be tempted to say this is just a matter of an Iowan clerical shortage. In reality, there is also a laity shortage. Nor is it just in Dubuque.
The Pew Research Center has reported for years that the number of people coming into the Church is tiny compared to the number going out (meaning formally leaving the Catholic Church by switching to other Christian groups or leaving Christian faith altogether). For years, their Religious Landscape Study showed the ratio at 6.5 people leaving for each one person entering. In their 2023-24 edition, released earlier this year, this ratio was calculated at 8.4 leaving for each one entering.
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