The Church Must Demand More, Not Less, From Her Members

[Michie]

Parishes today cater to the modern family's busy lifestyle in order to attract and keep members. But perhaps it's that attitude that is driving people away.

Religious bodies across the board—Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, you name it—are losing members in record numbers. But there are a few exceptions, and at the top of the list are the Amish. Fully 90% of those who grow up Amish remain Amish. Any Catholic bishop worth his salt would give his miter for retention rates even close to that.

What’s amazing about the Amish’s ability to keep their members is that their religion is one of the most demanding in the world today. Modern religious conventional wisdom argues that religions must “meet people where they’re at” and most importantly not demand much from their members. Doing so would drive people away, according to this logic. Yet the witness of the Amish shows that the opposite is true—demanding religions retain their members.

Why? Because people yearn for deeper meaning and structure in their lives, and full religious participation—not just checking the box each Sunday—provides that. And if that’s true of the Amish, how much more must it be true of the one true faith?

Continued below.

The Church Must Demand More, Not Less, From Her Members

By Eric Sammons - Parishes today cater to the modern family’s busy lifestyle in order to attract and keep members. But perhaps it’s that attitude that is driving people away.

crisismagazine.com

 

[mourningdove~]

What as great article!
These points got my attention:

The Catholic Church can offer a life of true meaning, but it requires hopping off the modern train to nihilism and entering the barque that leads to heaven. ...

It’s not a matter of being more involved in the parish; it’s a whole new way of living in which home life is centered around the parish’s sacramental and devotional life.

While there’s sure to be some members who recoil at such demands and leave, parishes that take this approach will find that many more will be attracted to a whole different—and wholly Catholic—way of living. If the Amish can retain their members with only part of the Gospel, surely a Catholic parish that demands its members seek first Christ’s kingdom and his righteousness will find a similar if not greater response from its parishioners.

I am no expert on Catholic things, but, whether one agrees with them or not, it 'does sometimes seem that part of the Traditionalist Catholic movement involves consciously working to incorporate the faith into their home and family lives. Again, just an impression I get ...

I talk of 'the old days' alot, cuz that's what I've got ... lots of old day experience.
And in the old days ... talking pre-Vatican II ... Catholicism was more evident in family home life. More central to it.

... Family life was much different back then, too.

So maybe the family structure then was more conducive to a family incorporating their faith into daily life, as opposed to nowadays.

It would be nice to see the trend reverse ...