The Dedication of the Lateran Basilica, November 9, 2025
Two weeks ago, in this bulletin I provided the financial report for the fiscal year 2024-25. We had a good year, bringing in enough money to pay all of our expenses with no deficit. We also raised more than $1 Million for our urgent capital project, though much of this money came from outside our parish. We have a solid Historic Preservation Fund and we are making a significant payment each year on our debt. We are a long way from paying off our debt, but we are making progress each year. Our financial situation is good enough that from now on we must pay the Archdiocesan assessment of 12.5%.
While finances are an indicator of the health of a parish, Mass attendance is even more important. Every October, each parish must count the number of people attending Sunday Mass and submit those numbers to the Archdiocese. Here are our numbers for the past several years, including this year: 2022 297; 2023 358; 2024 432; 2025 415. Our Sunday Mass attendance numbers have gone up significantly since 2022. Comparing 2025 to 2024, there is a slight drop, small enough to consider the numbers to be nearly the same.
Saint John's is not like other parishes. More than 50% of our Sunday congregation are visitors and at least a quarter of our congregation are young adults, students or young workers. Our attendance varies a lot from week to week based on whether there is a large convention in town or whether there are street closures due to parades and races. But the trajectory is up from a few years ago and stable since last year. Our weekday Mass attendance is also up. The most reliable way to measure Mass attendance is to count those who are present for Mass, which is exactly what the numbers given above report.
However, often instead of comparing the actual number of those at Mass, we hear percentages, the percentage of Catholics who are at Mass. There are two ways to determine percentage statistics: either they are based on the percentage of registered parishioners who are at Mass OR they are based on self reports of those who say that they are Catholic and who also say that they attend Mass weekly. The Archdiocese of Philadelphia and many dioceses report the percentage of registered Catholics who are counted in the annual October count. The problem with this method is that some Mass attendees aren't registered in a parish while some people have moved from one parish to another and may actually be registered in two or more parishes. Because Saint John's has so many visitors and parishioners who are here only for a year or two before moving on, our registration is not reliable. It is better for us to focus on whether our Mass attendance numbers are up or down.
The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) at Georgetown University is considered the best sociological experts in Catholic Church statistics. Their method is to do surveys, asking people who identify as Catholics about their Mass attendance. 2025 CARA studies reveal hopeful news, that Mass attendance is now back to what it was pre-Covid, that is that 24% of those who identify as Catholic are at Mass on Sundays. The number had dropped to 15% after the Covid restrictions were lifted. According to CARA, Mass attendance is going up across the United States. But 24% attendance is not really good news in that 76% of Catholics are typically not at Mass on Sunday. That's why we need to evangelize, to invite and welcome.
Saint John's is a healthy active parish. If you love our parish and want to see it thrive and grow, please continue to be generous donors and please continue to be present for Mass, prayer and activities. Saint John's has a unique mission and our ministry has an impact on the lives of people and on the Catholic Church throughout the nation and the world. Let's work together to make our parish strong!
