Thanks for your comments, Elizabeth. It’s certainly true that a generation of Catholics doesn’t know its own faith too well. As you point out, though, direct evangelization may not be the right approach in a work situation. It’s tiresome to be with people whose every conversation has an agenda of some kind—even a wholesome one! What I think we could be better at is simple and transparent sharing of our customs and lifestyle: speaking of something funny that happened at the parish potluck, or how the kids fought over candy on St. Nicholas day (or maybe bringing candy canes for colleagues then)—that kind of thing—as naturally as we speak of soccer games and what we watched on television. I think we’re very good at “sharing” what we disapprove of, or what is hard about the faith, and not so good at inviting people into the everyday joy of it.

I think its because they haven’t heard the full message, honestly.  they just get the headlines.  I’ve gotten more “I can’t go to mass because I’m divorced and the Church wouldn’t welcome me” or “I can’t believe your faith won’t let you use contraception” or “you hate gays because you’re catholic” or “I don’t want to be a hypocrite and go when I don’t care if a person is gay or not”.  they just don’t understand the faith because, and I’m being very truthful here, no one’s taught them.  I went to religious ed in the 80’s and all I learned is that Jesus loves me, Mary’s the mother of Jesus, and the Hail Mary and the Our father.  NO one explained the why of anything.  We, as catholics, are abysmal at that.  And now, when we do, they don’t believe us.  I’ve gotten the response “You’re making it too simple.  That can’t be the reason.  I’ve never heard that and I went to Catholic school my whole life.”  Its an uphill battle that we haven’t been very good at fighting for decades now.

I agree with what Elizabeth said. Most of us are woefully inadequate when it comes to explaining the truths of our faith. Many of us simply never learned them. In my mother-in-law’s Methodist church, there is “Sunday school” for all age groups, not just children. Mens’, womens’, young marrieds’, singles. Not everyone attends every week but a goodly proportion of them do. It is just part of their culture, that you read the Bible and study it   in a group at church. I wish we could do stuff like that but I was involved in “parish catechesis” here for awhile, and it would make your heart break. We planned events and few people were interested. People in my large northeast culturally-Catholic-majority city feel they have done their duty by attending mass and sending their kids to CCD (or by paying tuition to send them to Catholic school). There is going to be a long row to hoe here before anything bears fruit. Just saying.

We had an adult education at our parish for a while (it occurred during the Sunday morning timeframe when the kids were in their faith formation classes).  The turnout was terrible.  It’s a shame, because it was a great program.  The timeframe seemed perfect for parents who had kids in faith formation, but they wanted to use that time to do things like grocery shopping.  In a way I can understand, because life is so busy.  But I think it’s a shame that often in Catholic parishes the ministries aren’t as much of a priority as they are in protestant parishes, and the participation is lower.  I also think that a lot of protestant parishes do a much better job with hospitality, fellowship, etc.  I also agree with the commenters who said that Catholics haven’t been well catechized and consequently aren’t great at communicating the faith.

I did learn the faith in the 80’s in my CCD classes.  I don’t have any desire for adult education classes anymore.  Although I have been thru plenty of them.  More knowledge does not help me to live my faith better at this point.

Over the years I’ve changed the way I view evangelization.  I learned more how to love and be present to people-all kinds of people.  It is hard.  I no longer feel the need to tell them how wrong they are or how much they never learned.  I will when asked give a good explanation of things.  Like a mom who recently asked what it is we do in “adoration” But mostly I let the Holy Spirit work on hearts.

I am surprised that less than 20% of Catholics go to church.  i was under the impression that our diocese keep growing.

We have to remember to Boston is in need of a lot of healing. Some people do not go to Church because they do not or did not want to support the leadership (Cardinal Law) after the grave failures of them.

Then there are also individuals who have left the Church after a great deal of study. They found they did not agree with the church and left.  They may have been confirmed in the church as a teenager but it was their parent’s choice and not theirs.  They have found other church homes and still seek God’s presence in their lives.  (At least this is part of what I hear from others)

I’m really glad that you got good catechesis in the 80s, but unfortunately that was not the case for many of us.  There are many Catholic adults who are ignorant about church teaching, or if they know that they church teaches against certain things (such as contraception), they don’t know the reasoning behind it.  I certainly don’t go around telling people that they need better catechesis, but I also appreciate when parishes offer it for those who are interested (and it’s sad that more people aren’t).  Anyway, the adult education program in my parish that I was referring to was more of a Bible study that taught about the Bible.  It was a way of studying the Sunday readings in more depth than is possible during a one-hour Mass.  And of course sometimes Church teaching came up when there was a teaching that was related to that week’s readings. Even if I had had great catechesis as a child (which I didn’t), there are always new things to learn about the Bible. I could study it my whole life and probably continue to learn new things about it.

My MIL, who lives in the boston archdiocese didn’t go for a long time because they of the sex abuse scandal. When I was visiting for thanksgiving they are still finding out about them continuing to cover up or hide them. I saw it on the boston globe newspaper that they left a bunch of priests off their list.
My husband, who doesn’t go to church doesn’t trust the people in charge. Here are a few things he says ” if the church is so good then why does it bear such rotten fruit?, How can you have faith that your priest is a good one?, why does the priest have special powers to consecrate the host and impart absolution of your sins? can’t anyone say the prayers and do that? where in the bible does it say you have to go to mass once a week? and most recently why is the vatican calling for a world bank and global value added tax when they don’t have the economic expertise and the bible says render unto caesar the things that are Caesars and to God the things that are God”.
And at my own church, our priest retired due to illness, and the archidiocese transferred the other latin tridentine mass priest to another area and assigned a new priest that doesn’t know the latin mass so we have a different priest from around the area each week for our mass, and the new priest assigned a music director unfamiliar to the latin mass but nevertheless inputs changes to the traditional music that the schola had been chanting for over a decade without need for a director.

I don’t know whether your husband’s questions are rhetorical or whether he really wants to know the answers, but several of them (about the consecration, the sabbath requirement, etc) could be answered if parishes did a better job teaching the meaning behind the doctrine.

My parish is very vocal about church teaching and makes it very clear.  Yet, there are still those whose disagree.  So I don’t think the problem with 80-90% of Catholics is that they have never heard the teaching or reasoning behind it.  They have heard and they disagree.

I grew up knowing all the doctrines and rules but I never understood how to put that into practice in my own life on a very personal level.  It was through loving and grace filled people who reached out to me that I learned how to live Truth.

I think people are most drawn in by personal connections and are moved when people reach out them in their time of need.  I know there is always more to learn on our faith but for now I need to be able to focus on my simple relationship with God, my marriage and raising my family.  More info is just too much for me right now and does not help me personally with the obstacles I need to overcome to grow in holiness.  I spent many years studying theology and church teaching previously so it is not that I do not think that is important. I’m sure adult classes are helpful for many people to find a deeper relationship with God.

The topics at the forefront are contraception, divorce, homosexuality, abortion but contraception seems to be the one most of the hearts of those at faith and family or maybe just the one I hear the most.  I know other topics are discussed.  The best way to teach this teaching is by living the example.  When others see the gift of being close to God in your marriage they will wonder what makes it that way.  So let the holy spirit work on someone’s heart over time to show them the best way to live their marriage.  Be patient and loving.  The is the way to bring Truth to others.  (At least for me that is the most effective way…)

As for the husband above who does not trust church leadership.  I don’t have a great deal of trust in them either.  They are human beings.  I do place my trust in God and the grace I receive from the sacraments.

Unfortunately, I don’t think your parish is the norm.  I think there’s an epidemic of parishes that don’t teach church teaching, or if they present it, they don’t explain the reasoning behind it.  Of course there will always be people who disagree, but accurate information is an important starting point, as is the personal witnessing and relationships.  Obviously for someone like you who has been well catechized, more information is probably not the best focus;  the fellowship aspect is probably more important.  (I still think that Bible study can be helpful, though, even for those who have been well catechized.)

I think Catholics Come Home has some excellent points.  My feeling is that we should stop blaming catechesis, or post Vat 2 catechesis for the dwindling Sunday Mass attendance.  I would argue that most adult Catholics know that it is an obligation to hear Mass on Sunday, the Holy Days of Obligation and receive communion once during the Easter season as well as the sacrament of reconciliation. That’s pretty basic stuff.  If they have never heard any of that, that tells me that they have never attended Mass previously, or spoken to any other Catholics about the faith.  Moreover, my hunch tells me that they do *know* this, but they choose not to do it.

In my wealthy, culturally Catholic suburb of NYC, I think the reason why many families don’t regularly attend Sunday Mass is the amount of sports and extra curricular activities that are scheduled for Sunday mornings, or late Saturday afternoons.  And even if a family chooses not to participate in every soccer league out there, there is such burnout to the weekly grind, that I would suppose that for some families, just staying home Sunday morning and being with the family without the stress of getting to the Church in time takes over.  And then after a while, it becomes habit to stay home from Mass.  I don’t know what the answer is, but I trust that the Holy Spirit will continue to guide the Church during these turbulent times.

I always knew about Sunday obligation and holy days of obligation, but I thought missing Mass was just a venial sin, and I never knew about the requirements for Communion and Confession.  But when I was talking about poor catechesis, I wasn’t really referring to people not knowing about the obligation to attend Mass.  I meant that poor catechesis can result in people leaving the church because they don’t always know the reasoning behind some very hard teachings.

I totally agree with you about the sports issue.  I’m concerned about how to handle this in the future if my son wants to do a sport that has a big time commitment and makes it hard to attend Mass.  Mass will always come first, but I hope we’ll be able to find a way to let him pursue sports if that’s something he wants to do.

I understand what you are saying Claire, but I think we have to go beyond education or catechesis to reach out to lapsed Catholics.  I teach CCD in my parish and I’ve come to the sad conclusion that it is an absolutely useless waste of time to sit around with the DRE and fellow CCD teachers and complain about all the children who don’t attend Mass regularly. So what? We have to get beyond that because it’s not really our concern - it’s their parent’s responsibility.  As a CCD teacher, my only responsibility is to teach the faith, the rest is up to the Holy Spirit. 

I agree with you that the Church has done a lousy job in teaching the faith in the last 40 some odd years, but we have to stop blaming and complaining and just go out there and evangelize the best way we can.  For some that may mean teaching CCD, for others it may mean volunteering in a food pantry or soup kitchen, for others it may mean driving an elderly woman to daily Mass.  For others it may mean to be the best mother or father of sister or brother that they can be.  It all comes down to relationships and love.  Education is a part of the whole, but not the whole.

Lisa, you’re talking like the Pope! Here’s something he said to the bishops at Fatima during his visit there:
“The courageous and integral appeal to principles is essential and indispensable; yet simply proclaiming the message does not penetrate to the depths of people’s hearts, it does not touch their freedom, it does not change their lives. What attracts is, above all, the encounter with believing persons who, through their faith, draw others to the grace of Christ by bearing witness to him.”

A priest friend of mine was telling me about a program they’re using in his parish that begins with the premise, “People belong before they believe.” Very important insight! As you say, this is not to diminish the necessity of clear teaching: only to say, as the Pope does repeatedly, that it’s insufficient.

Lisa, boy do I feel what you are saying about “meaningful relationships that are authentic”. Although I’ve been in our parish for 21 years, and have had 5 children go through the parish school, I feel so alone. I have met many women who are “friends”—as long as our children are in the same classroom, and as long as I agree with the current projects and will volunteer to help. However, I quit volunteering when I could no longer stand to be “shut out” when I spoke “truths” of Archdiocesan policy (we’ll do it our way, thanks) or even suggesting things that would support the faith, but are not “popular” (but we HAVE to have a Halloween party!) oh, and “these songs aren’t that bad—it’ll be ok”. There are two other moms who regularly attend weekday Mass…one homeschools, and must leave right after Mass and another who often works and has other things to do. I’m grateful for their friendship and support, but never get to talk to them or “do” anything with them otherwise—and believe me, I have tried. I love my faith, and right now, see my loneliness as a small cross, but it would thrill me to know end to know other women who want to share “meaningful, authentic relationships”...and thus why I ‘hang out’ here and at other on-line, like-minded sites.

Lonely Mom, I could echo your comments exactly!  I have one friend that does attend morning Mass with me, but most others have gone back to work or are with small children.  We used to have a women’s ministry group but it went by the wayside when the mom who organized it went back to work.  I’m not of the organizing type, so I realize some of this my own fault.  Last year I did organize a small group during Lent and we watched and studied Fr. Robert Barron’s DVD study “Seven Deadly Sins, Seven Lively Virtues”.  It worked because it was for a set period of time with a short term commitment.    Good luck to you ......As for our church, I can say they are doing nothing to evangelize to the greater community, other than service projects.

“We need to go beyond distilling information (we are all saturated with information), and instead build meaningful relationships which are authentic. “

I couldn’t agree more.  You hit the nail on the head.  I came to my understanding of my Catholic faith thru meaningful relationsips with people who loved the faith not thru an adult program about learning the Catholic faith.  I have read all the theology there is too read about the church and more facts and info is not what I need at this point in my life.  I need the meaningful relationships that challenge me to see what it is God wants me to be doing.

So true! “It is God who calls us and gives us the grace to respond to His call.” I think we must all be in constant prayer for our Church and priests.

Truth!  Truth!  When it is spoken it is a gem in our faith community.  It may have to be repeated several times but it has the power to change lives for today and the hereafter.  Please pass our Catholic truth on!

JEanne,
I have to say, being a life long north-easterner, that I have only good memories of the Masses I attended in your neck of the woods.  Sure, it was summer dress but it was Tampa in the fall!  It was the Mass and that’s what we needed as we awaited permission to fly home with our newly adopted son and, then again, as I prayed for myself and our daughter’s birthmom as we loved our baby girl in the limbo of the post-birth, pre-relinquishment timeframe.  Was there some variations in non-essential surroundings? Yep.  But the essential was there, Our Lord and His Church, beautiful in it’s catholocity!!!  Not better, not worse..simply His Presence in the Eucharist that I so needed.