Early in 2021, the Diocese of Columbus announced a multiyear consultative process titled Real Presence Real Future, asking clergy, lay ecclesial ministers, parish volunteers and all the faithful for their advice on the best path forward to increase the Catholic Church’s presence in the diocese.
The initiative began with prayer, including the diocese-wide 40 Days of Adoration for Lent, which has continued this year, and a two-day Eucharistic Gathering in August. Parishioners from each of the diocese’s 105 parishes were asked to fill out a survey titled the Disciple Maker Index (DMI) designed to identify ways in which they think their parish effectively supports spiritual growth and to help pastors decide where to focus their evangelization efforts.
The initiative grouped the diocese’s parishes into 12 planning areas, creating a plan for a comprehensive Catholic presence in each area that integrates missionary outreach, parish and school footprints, and leadership requirements for the next five years.
In fall 2021, more than 5,000 individuals registered for the parish consultation sessions involving the first round of parish draft models, and more than 2,600 people filled out the accompanying survey. Those comments as well as comments from the priests’ feedback on the first round of draft models provided the foundation for the second round of draft models, which were shown to the priests in January and the permanent deacons in early March.
The second round of draft models were then explained to pastors and parish leaders from each area at separate meetings throughout March at the Pontifical College Josephinum, led by Father Michael Hartge, moderator of the Curia for the diocese and director of the initiative.
Also answering questions at the meetings were the diocese’s regional vicars – Father David Schalk of Columbus Christ the King and St. Thomas the Apostle churches; Father Robert Penhallurick of Hilliard St. Brendan the Navigator Church; and Father David Sizemore of Newark St. Francis de Sales Church.
Father Hartge said the feedback from the fall pointed to four main areas that need clarification in the initiative: whether its principal focus was evangelization or parish realignment; why parishes needed to change; the meaning of possible changes; and the timeline for when they would occur.
“Everything in the Church starts with prayer, and it was that way for this initiative,” Father Hartge said at a meeting of pastors and parish leaders from Muskingum, Perry, Coshocton, Tuscarawas and Holmes counties on Monday, March 14.
“That’s why we began it with the 40 Days of Adoration and the Eucharistic Gathering and are having Father John Riccardo of the Archdiocese of Detroit coming to the state fairgrounds in June for a two-day program called the Rescue Project Live!
“The three focuses of the initiative are prayer, planning and support, with an overall goal of learning how to make the diocese’s missionary outreach be most effective. Diocesan offices already have undergone significant change based on results of feedback we’ve received. Pastors are critical to the success of this initiative. Resources to support them need to be better developed, and we’re trying to be as transparent as possible about this.
“We want to be much better at pastoral support in the future. The presence of a pastor where he needs to be is a major driver of evangelization and a major focus of this initiative.”
Answers to the DMI survey showed that pastoral presence and leadership were by far the principal reasons why those responding would recommend their parish to others. Other reasons were, in order of mention, the quality of Sunday Masses, a sense of welcome, the quality of homilies and ease in obtaining parish information. Pastoral presence was mentioned more often than those other reasons combined.
Diocesan statistics show that since 2000, Catholic marriages within the diocese are down 47 percent, infant baptisms are down 29 percent, confirmations are down 23 percent and 13 percent of baptized children do not receive first Holy Communion. These numbers reflect national totals.
In addition, Mass attendance fell by 44 percent, from 80,000 to 48,500, between 2008 and 2021 in the diocese, with 43 percent of its parishes having fewer than 250 people attending weekend Masses.
“Sacramental preparation is a real cause for concern, because we know the sacraments are encounters with Christ,” Father Hartge said. “We hope Real Presence Real Future will help us see what methods of sacramental preparation best resonate with the people to help them recognize the importance of the sacraments.
“Parishes are getting smaller, with fewer resources,” he said. “This is not to say small parishes are bad. Many people like small parishes and say they enjoy the family feeling a small parish provides. But it has to have adequate resources for proper support. No matter what may come out of this initiative, the diocese is committed to retain at least one church in each of its 23 counties.”
He also noted that 102 diocesan and order priests are active in the diocese, but 45 percent of the active diocesan priests are age 60 or older.
Priests who responded to fall survey said that they wanted to have an end date for when parish reorganization might take effect and that multiple-parish pastoring is very difficult and not sustainable for long periods.
They also expressed concern about the financial stability of struggling parishes and about the amount of work required to implement changes and the need for diocesan support in this effort.
They said parish cultural identities, socioeconomic conditions and worship styles might differ, expressed support for a broader Latino strategy for the diocese and emphasized the importance of Catholic schools in making evangelization efforts succeed.
A separate evangelization plan for Catholic schools, based on the components of faith, excellence and sustainability, is to be announced shortly.
Parishioners responding to the survey expressed similar concerns. They said that while they understood the need to close some churches, they wanted to keep as many open as possible, even if it meant priests had to be shared or Mass times had to be changed. Most parishioners who responded were women age 55 and older who have been members of their parish for more than 10 years.
The survey resulted in creation of four possible parish realignment models. One is the traditional “one parish-one pastor.” Another would have one pastor serving one parish consisting of multiple churches. A third would have one pastor and one staff member serving several parishes, each with multiple churches. A final model, with one pastor, multiple parishes, multiple churches and multiple staffs, was listed for consideration but is not being recommended.
Draft proposals have been made concerning possible groupings of parishes in each of the 12 areas of the diocese. Those proposals were discussed during area meetings at the Pontifical College Josephinum and can be found at www.realpresencerealfuture.org.
Father Hartge and the regional vicars emphasized that these are not final recommendations, but they provide a starting point for discussion.
“People are starting to realize Real Presence Real Future is not just an evangelization effort, but is an opportunity to re-envisage life in the diocese,” Father Penhallurick said. “I compare it to pruning a rose bush like the ones we have at St. Brendan’s. You may lose something, but you give the plant more vigor so it can grow strong. Getting rid of the dead part of the plant allows more air and light in.”
“Having all the parishes in our area together here today to hear the next steps in Real Presence Real Future in person has been extremely valuable,” said Robin Rokisky of Zoar Holy Trinity Church, located in the northeast corner of the diocese, following the March 14 meeting. “I’m impressed by the transparency and commitment that has been part of the initiative, and that no final decisions have been made, allowing parishes to have enough input to refine the process.
“I’m pleased that the diocese is looking to change and to adapt to what the Church needs today. Our parish always has been able to adapt and to flourish, even though it’s small and somewhat isolated, because our culture always has been not about the church building, but the people coming to it.”
“I sort of had an idea of what to expect, but this has been a super-informative meeting,” said Ed Hammond of New Lexington St. Rose Church. “I especially appreciated the honesty of the priests concerning the current situation.
“It’s great that we have ideas to take back concerning possible parish groupings, but they’re not set in stone. I’ll take this to the parishes (in the Perry County Consortium) in the hope that I hear from more people and that they all work toward what’s best for the Church in Perry County, the cradle of Catholicism in Ohio.”
“The drafts will get a lot more specific, based on what people are asking for, now that they have some ideas to look at. What’s been proposed probably are not the best solutions, but they’re a start,” Father Hartge said.
“We expect a lot more feedback from this second round of discussion. Since we don’t have a bishop, (the new bishop) will have to get to know the diocese before deciding on parish realignment. Targeted visits also will continue to be made to individual parishes by me and others involved with the planning process. So there’s quite of a bit of time left before any final decisions are made.”
