Diocese statistics rebounding despite COVID, pastoral planning

By DAWN PROSSER
Director of Communications
 
As the diocesan Office of Pastoral Planning continually reviews data and statistics to gauge activities throughout the Diocese of Sioux City, staff noticed that Calendar Year 2024 showed an uptick in participation in the faith, despite recent challenges.
 
Most surprising is the increase from 29% diocesan Mass attendance in 2022 and 2023 to 32 percent attendance in 2024, based on parish Mass counts. The national average is 23% attendance according to Deacon Mark Prosser, bishop’s chief of staff and director of the Office of Pastoral Planning, who continually monitors the statistics.
 
He pointed out that there was concern voiced that church participation would decrease post-COVID-19, but that’s not what the numbers show. (see chart) The number of baptisms celebrated before COVID in 2019 was 1,097, dipped to 786 in 2020 and jumped up to 1,356 in 2024.Overall, the number of sacraments celebrated increased from 2022, with the exception of funerals. Also, the number of registered Catholics increased from 81,402 in 2022 to 88,122 in 2024.
 
“It goes against what we’re seeing nationally,” the deacon said of the growth in diocesan numbers. “But we are certainly not going back to the 1990s and 2000s levels yet.”
 
Pastoral planning effect
Some predicted that attendance and sacrament numbers would drop due to the pastoral planning actions including canonically merging parishes with some churches no longer offering regularly scheduled weekend Masses.
 
“Both Bishop Emeritus (Walker) Nickless and Bishop (John) Keehner received comments that pastoral planning and the merging of parishes doesn’t work and will diminish the faithful,” Deacon Prosser said. “I think there’s always been a concern about that because it’s a challenge and there’s pain and change involved.”
 
However, he pointed out that in 2024, there’s growth in most of the numbers “about roughly three to four years after a good chunk of our diocese has gone through pastoral planning.” The deacon pointed out that merging parishes takes some administrative burden off of pastors. There are currently 36 active priests serving 37 parishes with 70 functioning churches in the Diocese of Sioux City.
 
“It doesn’t show a huge cut in people practicing their faith because of pastoral planning,” the chief of staff said. “It does show that by merging our parishes, we are providing additional time and opportunities for our pastors to minister to the faithful and not have to administer the business of parishes through multiple meetings and that’s starting to pay dividends.”
 
Freeing up pastors
Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish, merged in late 2023, serves the faithful in Sioux Center, Rock Valley, Hawarden and Akron with a single priest. The parish is primarily located in Sioux County, one of the few counties that experienced population growth in Iowa in recent years, according to the U.S. Census.
 
Father Mauro Sánchez, pastor, hired parishioner Mayra Castalan as director of operations once the merger was complete to free his schedule from a great deal of administrative work.
 
“With her in the office taking care of things I’m not supposed to do, I can take care of the people and focus on the sacraments and working with our parishioners,” Father Sánchez said, noting it “works better” to have Castelan responsible for administrative tasks.
 Father Sanchez ministers to the faithful of Sioux Center, Rock Valley, Hawarden and Akron as pastor of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish. Administrative offices are in Sioux Center.Castelan, a local businesswoman, said her familiarity running a business and the banking and paperwork involved, the operations position was a good fit for her skills. She recognizes how her role benefits the pastor who ministers in four communities.
 
“I’m trying to help as much as I can to alleviate a lot of stuff so he doesn’t have to deal with it,” she said.
 
Her job includes work such as visiting all of the parish facilities in each community to ensure buildings are up to code, completing large scale purchases such as vehicles, maintenance issues, supervising staff and some bookkeeping functions.
 
To assist parishes navigating groupings and mergers and to free up pastors for ministry, the diocese offers a one-time $10,000 grant to help parishes finance a position like Castelan’s.
 
Attracting young families
 
In the past two years, several parishes report increased Mass attendance including Holy Trinity Parish of Webster County, Sioux City Cathedral Parish, Storm Lake St. Mary and others. Each parish was erected by combining two or more former parishes.
 
Holy Trinity Parish was established in 2006 by decree of then-Bishop Walker Nickless. The parish serves all the faithful in Webster County. The new church was dedicated in 2020. Today, there’s an increase in young Catholics in the parish.
 
“Things always ebb and flow with so many aspects of parish life, but at Holy Trinity, we’ve seen strong, steady attendance at Sunday Masses with many younger families filling the pews,” explained Msgr. Kevin McCoy, Holy Trinity and St. Mary Humboldt pastor and diocesan vicar general.
 Holy Trinity Parish of Webster County was erected in 2006, and is seeing an influx of young families in the pews. Holy Trinity is realizing growth in programming and activities due to the influx of young Catholic families.
 
“At one Sunday Mass, we offer a ‘children’s Liturgy of the Word’ and the catechists are troubled that sometimes as many as 60 kiddos (pre-sacramental age) are leaving families to join in this celebration. The problem is the room is becoming overcrowded. It’s a good problem to have. We’re exploring solutions,” the pastor said.
 
A mother’s group inspired by St. Gianna Beretta Molla is being formed. Also, weekly holy hours with adoration, evening prayer and the sacrament of reconciliation “has a consistently strong number of participants and the priest is busy hearing confessions for the entire hour.”
 
“I know we attract a number of folks from the surrounding area because of the availability of the sacrament of reconciliation,” Msgr. McCoy said.
 
Moving forward
 
Deacon Prosser pointed out that although the current numbers indicate an exciting trend for the diocese and parishes, it can be difficult, emotional and even painful for some of the faithful when parishes are merged.
 
“We know this is not an easy topic. It’s not an easy thing to do. It’s emotional, it’s painful and it takes time for healing,” he said, noting that the diocese often receives feedback from parishioners. “That’s why we want to proceed as efficiently and as effectively so our pastors can work with their faithful in the healing process if they go through a merger and really create programs and opportunities to come out on the other end better, more efficient and with a renewed vibrancy in liturgy and faith formation.”
 Father David Esquiliano, judicial vicar, center and Deacon Mark Prosser, bishop's chief of staff and pastoral planning director, right, spoke at a clergy meeting for the Diocese of St. Cloud this week regarding pastoral planning. He noted that over the next 10 years, nine active diocesan priests could retire, with 11 men currently in the seminary. Dioceses around the country are facing similar shifts including Youngstown, Ohio, Bishop Keehner’s home diocese, where a pastoral plan was announced Oct. 4. 
Also, the Diocese of St. Cloud (Minnesota) is preparing to create a pastoral plan and invited Deacon Prosser and Father David Esquiliano, judicial vicar to speak to their clergy earlier this week to share the Diocese of Sioux City’s experiences with planning.

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