A vibrant church cares for a person’s mind, body, and spirit

For our Sounding Board column, U.S. Catholic asks authors to argue one side of a many-sided issue of importance to Catholics around the country. We also invite readers to submit their responses to these opinion essays—whether agreement or disagreement—in the survey that follows. A selection of the survey results appear below, as well as in the March 2025 issue of U.S. Catholic. You can participate in our current survey here.

There’s no more impactful institution in my life than the Catholic parish. I learned multiplication at our parish school. I fell in love with my favorite sport, volleyball, in our parish gym. More importantly, I fell in love with Jesus in our parish youth group, which led me to a life in ministry and nurturing my faith in the many parishes I have called home since then. I would not be who I am today without the vibrant church communities I’ve been honored to know in my parishes.

At the same time, I have been lucky. Not every parish is as engaging and well-resourced as the many I have called home. Many dioceses are merging and closing parishes in massive waves of restructuring. I have worked with many merged parishes and seen the hurt and healing needed in that process. Many people have also been hurt by members of their community, the clergy, or the institutional structures. I could tell you dozens of stories just from my own acquaintances.

Statistics, meanwhile, show us that younger generations have not experienced the abundant life of Christ that parishes are meant to bring to their local communities. They are leaving the church in droves. I worry that my own children might be among them. It’s clear, at least to me, that we need to rethink how we do parish life for the 21st century.

At the heart of the problem, I would venture to say, is the fact that most American parishes are structured for a different time. Our culture has shifted greatly over the past century, and we live in a society that no longer supports religious practice as it used to. Our parishes’ programming, structures, and organizational culture assume that parishioners are already disciples of Jesus who simply need to be sustained and grow in their faith.

But, in fact, more and more people are less and less religious and many only know the name of Jesus and nothing about his story. American Catholic churches, whether we like it or not, are planted in mission territory.

This is not, I would argue, a cause for anxiety but rather an opportunity to rediscover what it means to be a parish.

Canon law tells us the parish is a “certain community of the Christian faithful stably constituted in a particular church.” Parishes, in the canons, have geographical boundaries, a pastor, a bishop, and regular worship. But the canons only give juridical shape to the mystery of what a parish really is.

A parish is where the universal church encounters a local community, expresses itself in its languages and cultures, attends to its needs, and is enriched by its gifts. It is where people encounter Jesus in the proclamation of the Word, the celebration of sacraments, and the members of his body. Like the Eucharist, the parish is the real and active presence of the body of Christ pitching its tent in our midst (John 1:14).

To truly live out this mystery in the 21st century requires us to respond to Pope Francis’ call in Evangelii Gaudium (On the Proclamation of the Gospel in Today’s World) to operate from a “missionary impulse capable of transforming everything, so that the Church’s customs, ways of doing things, times and schedules, language and structures can be suitably channeled for the evangelization of today’s world rather than for her self-preservation.”

If we are to be a truly vibrant church that is the presence of Christ in our particular neighborhood, town, or county, then we need to know our community inside and out. If we are to share the gospel in a community’s languages and teach Jesus through its cultures, then we must become immersed in them. If we are to be a vibrant church that is enriched by our neighbors and their gifts, then we must welcome them with open arms.

The way we measure success, budget, do outreach, provide pastoral care, teach children, celebrate the sacraments—in other words, engage in all of parish life—should be operated and oriented around this desire to be with our community and the mission Christ gave us to “go and make disciples of all nations” (Matt. 28:19).

This missionary impulse will take as many forms as there are parishes in the world. There are specific characteristics a parish must nurture to follow that impulse in their own community. For example, an ideal parish is one that is welcoming, hospitable, and warm. It meets people wherever they are on their spiritual journey and walks alongside them in relational discipleship with patience and empathy. It connects them with mentors and peers who support them and listen to them when needed.

An ideal parish creates regular opportunities for people to encounter Christ through worship, scripture, reflection, and prayer. This doesn’t mean one specific type of prayer or music or a particular style of liturgy. These should exist in the cultural context of the local community and help each individual discover their identity as a beloved and redeemed child of God.

An ideal parish also helps people deepen their understanding of discipleship while caring for their whole person, mind, body, and spirit. It is a place where people listen, share their stories, and feel comfortable bringing their deepest hurts and their biggest challenges. It should be a place where the sacraments nurture and sustain each person’s faith regularly.

Finally, an ideal parish is a place where individuals can discover their purpose. It helps them find their gifts and practice discernment as they uncover what calling God has for them. A vibrant church understands that charity is a fundamental part of that calling and that, as Pope Benedict says in Caritas in Veritate (On Integral Human Development), “justice is inseparable from charity.” It is a place where people are challenged to be more just, more moral, more kind, and more giving without letting politics and prejudices supersede preaching.

Building a parish with this culture of evangelization takes time, work, and intentionality. It begins with assessing the current organizational culture and structure against our desired outcome. One must articulate a vision, persuade current parishioners, and be willing to lead change over many years. Organizationally, we have to prioritize relationships, discipleship, and shared leadership in everything that we do. Accompaniment, hospitality, and prayer must become daily habits.

I invite you to dream with me. If Christ were to come to your neighborhood, city, or county to begin his ministry today, what do you think he would do? Try not to see the negatives, but look through his eyes at the people, places, and gifts of your community. How would he want to express his love? Whom would he talk to? Where would he go?

Whatever your vision for a vibrant church is, I invite you to hold onto it. Keep your eyes fixed on it. Because an ideal parish for the 21st century is a parish that seeks after Jesus and tries to do God’s will. In spite of my deep belief in research-backed strategies, culture building, and systems, there is no foolproof plan to create the perfect parish. We must center Jesus in all of the work. At the end of the day, it is only Jesus who can transform and renew the church. He will never lead us astray.