Parish Survey Results
The main subject of this post is to report on the recently completed parish survey. Before that, I want to draw your attention to a couple of things.
Discipleship groups are now being formed. These groups learn about the eight habits of a missionary disciple of Jesus Christ and each participant develops a personalized plan of discipleship. For more information, and to apply to join a group, click here.
This Sunday, October 23rd, we are having an Oktoberfest celebration at the parish from 5:30pm to 9:00pm. I hope to see you there.
The parish Pastoral Council suggested a simple survey be conducted in connection with the Synod process of the Universal Church. Since that process did not specifically ask parishioners their thoughts about OLMC, the Council thought it would be helpful to get feedback on that. The survey used the Survey Monkey platform and was sent to parishioner mobile numbers/email addresses via Flocknote. The survey was sent on August 6 and had a single question, “Would you recommend OLMC to someone who is looking for a church to join?” It also had a box to provide comments, and asked if the respondent would be open to being contacted by an OLMC team member to discuss their survey comments.
The breakdown of responses to the question are as follows: Of the 322 responses, 278 (86%) said “Definitely Would,” 26 (8%) said “Probably Would,” 11 (4%) said “Not Sure,” 6 (2%) said “Probably Would Not,” and 1 said “Definitely Would Not.” The Pastoral Council analyzed and discussed the survey. Overall, they thought the survey results were excellent and reflected that parishioners were being well served at OLMC.
Comments could be divided into five main categories: Community, Staff, Doctrine/Teaching, Mass, and Feeling Welcome. The comments were overwhelmingly positive. The positive aspects most noted were: (1) Appreciation of Fr. Anthony and Fr. Ignatius, (2) Feeling welcome and the family atmosphere, (3) Conservative doctrine, and (4) Beautiful church and atmosphere.
One positive comment encapsulated many of the others. “Most vibrant and supportive community I’ve ever been a part of. The mix of reverence, the availability of the sacraments, charism, and evangelization is unparalleled in most Catholic Churches. OLMC represents the best of what the current synod hopes to achieve: there is something for every type of Catholic here: strongly traditional to cerebral/theological to charismatic, you can find community here.”
The Pastoral Council discussed negative comments as well. A few respondents complained about noisy children at Mass and wanted hospitality ministers to direct them to the cry room. The Council agreed that the presence of children at Mass was a good thing, that parents were doing their best to care for their children and respect the other members of the congregation, and that the cry room was not a practical option considering the large numbers of families with small children that come to Mass. There were a couple of complaints of people talking after Mass.
A few respondents said they felt unwelcome at OLMC, citing what they viewed as a cliquish mentality. The Council discussed a broader hospitality ministry that would extend to the courtyard after Mass. I think all of us can be more cognizant of new people we see and make an effort to greet them.
A few respondents said that the parish was not doing enough to minister to post-Confirmation teens and to young adults. Since my time as pastor, the staff has made many efforts in this regard; but these have not born much fruit. Previous efforts fizzled out due to a lack of interest by post-Confirmation teens and young adults and the high turnover in staff who were tasked with ministering to these groups. The Council members insisted that the parish should renew efforts to engage them. They discussed how the disengagement of young people was a problem affecting the whole church. They noted that some Protestant communities (e.g. The Rock) seem to be doing better in this regard. More effective use of social media, especially short videos, targeted to these age groups, was suggested.
I agree that we need to make a renewed effort to engage post-Confirmation teens and young adults. I’m currently engaging in a process of consultation and discernment as to the next steps.
I’m going to post this report of the parish survey on the parish Mighty Network so that you can easily post comments and interact with other parishioners. Any questions you post there, directed to me, will be answered.