People often ask: “How is it going in the Archdiocese of Seattle?” To which, I’m always more than happy to share some very positive news. Often, people respond with a bit of surprise to hear of our trends that seem to counter some national impressions.
Five areas of growth come to mind. First, our Mass count indicates that we are now at 97% of our pre-Covid numbers of people attending weekend Mass. While there is always room for improvement, this is great news. Many of the pastors I spoke with recently indicated their Holy Week and Easter celebrations were standing room only.
Second, across the Archdiocese, Catholic School enrollment is up. While there are a few schools where that is not the case, overall, our enrollment is strong.
Third, this Easter season over 1,300 people entered the Catholic Church. That is the largest number of new members professing the Catholic Faith in the Catholic Church than we have seen in many years.
Fourth, we have more men making application to the seminary this year than any of the previous five since I’ve been Archbishop of Seattle.
Finally, since it is one indicator among many, ordinary income (Sunday collections) is up across the Archdiocese. In addition, this year’s Archdiocesan Annual Appeal has broken all previous records!
While it is difficult to point to any one thing that could be responsible for these signs of growth and health, it does indicate that our efforts to renew this local Church are getting traction. I am grateful to all our pastoral leaders, and especially to the People of God who have taken our call seriously to live their Fatih more fully. Keep up the great work!
I’m happy to share our Annual Impact Report, which reflects some of the Good News we have to share. I invite you to take a look at this report and see all the good ministry and evangelization taking place in the Archdiocese of Seattle!
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