Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate Georgetown University Washington, DC Parish Life Survey St. Mary of the Knobs Floyds Knobs, Indiana May 2013

St. Mary of the Knobs Parish Life Survey Designed by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) at Georgetown University Questions derived from CARA’s database of nationally tested questions Questionnaire distributed to those attending the parish liturgies over one weekend in February valid responses.

Demographic Characteristics of Respondents Age The average age of respondents is 55 years old. Responding parishioners were born between 1911 and 1995 and range in age from 18 to 98 years old. Those born between 1953 and 1962 (ages 50-59) represent one out of five respondents (22 percent). One quarter (26 percent) are in their thirties or forties. Almost half (45 percent) are age 60 or over, with one third of those currently in their sixties. The average (mean) age is 55, which is comparable to that of respondents at Catholic parishes nationally (an average of 53).

Generation CARA divides Catholics into the following four generations, reflective of the age categories used by many other Catholic researchers. The “Pre-Vatican II Generation,” ages 71 and over in The Pre-Vatican II Generation was born in 1942 or earlier. Its members came of age before the Second Vatican Council. Members of the Pre-Vatican II Generation make up 20 percent of the respondents. The “Vatican II Generation,” ages in These are the “Baby Boomers” who were born between 1943 and 1960, a time of great demographic and economic growth. They came of age during the time of the Second Vatican Council and their formative years likely spanned that time of profound changes in the Church. Members of the Vatican II Generation at St. Mary of the Knobs represent almost two fifths of respondents (37 percent). The “Post-Vatican II Generation,” ages in Born between 1961 and 1981, this generation, sometimes called “Generation X” or “Baby Busters” by demographers, has no lived experience of the pre-Vatican II Church. One third (33 percent) of respondents are members of the Post-Vatican II Generation. The “Millennial Generation,”ages in This generation, born in 1982 or later (up to 1994 among adults), has come of age primarily under the papacies of John Paul II and Benedict XVI. Ten percent of respondents belong to the Millennial Generation. One in three respondents is part of the Vatican II Generation or the Post-Vatican II Generation.

Generation Small number of responding parishioners of the Millennial generation This group of respondents will be combined with the Post-Vatican II generation for the subgroup analyses presented in this report, which brings this group’s size to 42 percent of St. Mary of the Knobs’ respondents.

Marital Status Three out of five respondents from St. Mary of the Knobs (61 percent) are female. More than three in four respondents (78 percent) are currently married or remarried. One in five respondents (22 percent) are currently not married, including those who have never been married (10 percent), those separated or divorced (5 percent), and widowed (7 percent). Three quarters of those without Catholic spouses (75 percent) say that their spouse feels welcome at the parish.

Children in the Household One in three respondents (29 percent) has at least one child (including stepchildren) living with them. About one in ten respondents (9 percent) have one child living in the household with them. About one in six (13 percent) have two children and about one in ten (8 percent) have three or more.

Religious Characteristics of Respondents Mass Attended Over four out of ten responding parishioners (43 percent) attended the Sunday morning Mass at 10:30 am. One third of respondents (34 percent) attended the Saturday, 4:30 pm service. One out of five respondents (22 percent) attended the Sunday, 8:00 am service.

Differences by Children in the Household

Parish Registration and Years Attending Parish 96 percent report being registered at St. Mary of the Knobs Parish 98 percent say this parish is their primary place of worship Most respondents have attended the parish for a long time – the average number of years attending St. Mary of the Knobs Parish is 34 years. One out of ten respondents has been attending St. Mary of the Knobs Parish for four or less years (11 percent) or five to nine years (10 percent). Seven out of ten respondents (71 percent) have been attending the parish for 15 or more years. On average, respondents have been attending the parish for 34 years and over half of the respondents have been attending the parish for at least 33 years.

Involvement in Parish Activities Two thirds of respondents (68 percent) report being involved in one or more ministry or activity at St. Mary of the Knobs Parish. One quarter of respondents (25 percent) say they are involved in one ministry or activity at the parish. Four out of ten respondents (39 percent) report being involved in two to four ministries or activities. One third of respondents (32 percent) say they are involved in no ministries or activities. The proportion of respondents who are involved in at least one ministry or activity at St. Mary of the Knobs Parish is larger than the proportion in parishes nationally (68 percent compared to 50 percent).

Involvement in Parish Activities

Enrollment of Children in Parish School

Differences by Children in Household Four out of ten respondents (43 percent) who report having one or more children living in their household say that one or more of their children have attended the parish school in the past five years.

Enrollment of Children in Faith Formation Classes One third of respondents (36 percent) report that they have had children attend faith formation classes at St. Mary of the Knobs Parish in the past five years.

Differences by Enrollment in Parish School Over half of respondents (55 percent) who have had children attend St. Mary of the Knobs Parish school in the past five years say that their children have also attended faith formation classes in the parish in the past five years.

Differences by Years Attending Parish Respondents who have been attending St. Mary of the Knobs Parish for 10 – 14 years are most likely to say that they have children that have attended faith formation classes in the parish in the past five years.

Spiritual Growth of Children Over eight out of ten respondents (84 percent) say their children have grown spiritually as a result of being at St. Mary of the Knobs.

Spiritual Growth of Children

Adult Faith Formation One quarter of respondents (26 percent) report that they have attended faith formation classes in the past five years.

Differences by Years Attending Parish Attendance at adult faith formation classes differs by years attending St. Mary of the Knobs Parish.

Spiritual Growth Nine out of ten respondents (90 percent) say that they have grown spiritually as a result of being at St. Mary of the Knobs, regardless of whether they have attended adult faith formation classes in the past five years or not and which Mass they attended over the weekend the survey was administered.

Comparison to 2007 Survey

Section II: Parish Life Aspects of Parish Life Nearly all respondents (96 percent) evaluate St. Mary of the Knobs Parish overall as “good” or “excellent.” Almost nine out of ten respondents (88 percent) evaluate the sense of community within the parish and the promotion of responsible stewardship among parishioners as “good” or “excellent.” More than eight out of ten respondents (86 percent) say the vision provided by parish leaders is “good” or “excellent.” Eight out of ten responding parishioners (79 percent) evaluate efforts to promote social justice as “good” or “excellent.” Over half (56 percent) evaluate St. Mary of the Knob’s Parish overall as “excellent.”

Differences by Generation

Parish Communication Overall, most respondents (86 percent) evaluate parish efforts to communicate with parishioners as “good” or “excellent” (not shown in the table). Sunday bulletins and announcements read at Mass are “somewhat” or “very” effective means of communicating parish news for almost all respondents. Over seven out of ten respondents (72 percent) say the Sunday bulletins are a “very” effective way of communicating parish news to them, and more than half of respondents (58 percent) say that announcements read at Mass are a “very” effective way of communicating parish news to them. Six out of ten respondents (60 percent) say word of mouth among parishioners is “somewhat” or “very” effective for communicating parish news to them. More than half of respondents say that to their work or home address (56 percent) and the parish website (53 percent) are “somewhat” or “very” effective ways of communicating parish news to them. Almost three in four respondents (73 percent) say that they regularly at work or at home (not shown in the table). Less than four out of ten respondents (37 percent) say Facebook and other social networking websites are “somewhat” or “very” effective ways of communicating parish news.

Differences by Generation

Attraction to Parish Over nine out of ten respondents say that the quality of the liturgy (94 percent), the quality of the preaching (93 percent) and the sense of belonging they feel at St. Mary of the Knobs Parish (92 percent) “somewhat” or “very much” attract them to the parish. More than eight out of ten respondents (86 percent) say that the opportunities for spiritual growth “somewhat” or “very much” attract them to the parish (38 percent say “very much”). About three in four respondents (74 percent) say that St. Mary of the Knobs religious education/formation for children and youth (74 percent) “somewhat” or “very much” attracts them to the parish, while another six in ten (62 percent) say that the faith formation for adults “somewhat” or “very much” attracts them to the parish. Another 54 percent are “somewhat” or “very” attracted to the parish by St. Mary of the Knobs Catholic School. The liturgy is very important in attracting respondents to the parish: respondents are “very much” attracted to the parish because of the quality of preaching (69 percent), the sense of belonging they feel at the parish (61 percent), the quality of the liturgy (57 percent), or the quality of the music (33 percent).

Primary Reason Attend SMK Almost six out of ten respondents (58 percent) say that the primary reason they first came to St. Mary of the Knobs is because their “roots were here.”

Differences by Mass Attended

Differences by Years Attending Parish

Differences by Mass Attended

Differences by Generation

Staying at Parish Seven in ten respondents (70 percent) mention the pastor as the first, second, or third reason for staying at St. Mary of the Knobs. For six out of ten or more respondents, “my family roots are here” (60 percent), “the liturgical experience” (61 percent) and “the spiritual, emotional, intellectual & physical needs of my household are being met here” (66 percent) are one of the top three reasons for staying at the parish. Only one-quarter (25 percent) list “because of the school” in their top three reasons for staying at the parish. One-third of respondents (35 percent) placed “variety of programs/ministry offerings” in their top three reasons for staying at St. Mary of the Knobs Parish.

Section III: Parish Strengths Overall, the results of the St. Mary of the Knobs Parish Survey are positive. Nine out of ten respondents (96 percent) say that St. Mary of the Knobs Parish is “good” or “excellent.” Two areas in particular are consistently rated highly by respondents. These two areas of parish strength are: – Liturgical life and spirituality – Faith Formation

Liturgical Life and Spirituality Six in ten respondents (61 percent) evaluate Masses and liturgies as St. Mary of the Knobs Parish as “excellent.”

Difference by Mass Attended Respondents who attended the Sunday, 8 am Mass are less likely than those who attended the Saturday, 4:30 pm Mass or the Sunday, 10:30 am Mass to evaluate Masses and liturgies in general as “excellent” (54 percent compared to 61 percent and 64 percent respectively). Over nine in ten respondents evaluate readers/lectors (98 percent), homilies (94 percent) and hospitality or sense of welcome (93 percent) at St. Mary of the Knobs Parish as “good” or “excellent.” Over eight out of ten respondents evaluate opportunities for Eucharistic Adoration (86 percent) and Confession/Reconciliation (84 percent) as “good” or “excellent ”. About eight out of ten respondents (82 percent) evaluate music overall at St. Mary of the Knobs as “good” or “excellent”, with similar proportions saying that the music group at the Mass they regularly attend (81 percent) and song selection (78 percent) is “good” or “excellent”. Eight in ten (80 percent) evaluate opportunities for devotions as “good” or “excellent”. Three quarters of respondents from St. Mary of the Knobs (75 percent) evaluate people’s participation as “good” or “excellent”. Homilies at St. Mary of the Knobs are highly evaluated, with two-thirds of respondents (65 percent) saying homilies are “excellent”.

Differences by Mass Attended

Children’s Liturgy of the Word Over eight out of ten respondents (82 percent) would support starting Children’s Liturgy of the Word for preschoolers through 8 year olds during the Mass at St. Mary of the Knobs.

Differences by Mass Attended

Parish Spirituality Nine out of ten respondents (90 percent) say that they have grown spiritually as a result of attending St. Mary of the Knobs Parish. Likewise, nine in ten respondents say that they are satisfied with their religious experience at St. Mary of the Knobs Parish. Nine in ten respondents (90 percent) evaluate the parish efforts to nurture their relationship with Jesus Christ as “good” or “excellent.” Over eight out of ten evaluate St. Mary of the Knobs Parish efforts to foster spiritual growth (87 percent) and help them practice Gospel values in their daily life (84 percent) as “good” or “excellent”. Three out of four respondents (76 percent) evaluate the parish’s efforts to offer a Catholic view on current issues as “good” or “excellent”. Around three out of ten evaluate the parish’s efforts to foster spiritual growth (35 percent), to help them practice Gospel values in their daily life (29 percent) and to offer a Catholic view on current issues (28 percent) as “excellent”.

Differences by Generation There are no significant generational differences in respondents’ evaluation of parish efforts to nurture parish spirituality. About nine in ten respondents, regardless of generation, evaluate parish efforts to nurture their relationship with Jesus Christ and foster spiritual growth as “good” or “excellent.”

Faith Formation More than eight out of ten respondents (85 percent) evaluate the efforts of St. Mary of the Knobs Parish to educate parishioners in the faith as “good” or “excellent”. About four out of ten respondents (39 percent) evaluate the efforts as “excellent.” Of those who responded, nine out of ten or more respondents evaluate St. Mary of the Knobs Catholic School (94 percent) and RCIA at the parish (90 percent) as “good” or “excellent”. Over eight out of ten respondents evaluate St. Mary of the Knobs’ Sacramental preparation program (86 percent) and children’s faith formation programs (84 percent) as “good” or “excellent”. More than eight out of ten respondents evaluate youth ministry (75 percent), faith formation for adults (74 percent) and Bible study (72 percent) at St. Mary of the Knobs Parish as “good” or “excellent”. Two thirds of respondents (65 percent) evaluate retreats at the parish as “good” or “excellent”.

Opportunities for Improvement Evaluations of the aspects of parish life are generally positive overall and most parishioners report that they are satisfied. This section explores some areas of parish life in which some respondents are satisfied and some areas in which at least some respondents are less satisfied. Two areas for improvement: -Outreach and Evangelization -Participation and support of the Liturgy and in Parish Ministries

Parish Outreach More than eight in ten respondents evaluate parish outreach to senior citizens (85 percent), families (85 percent) and those sick or homebound (84 percent) as “good” or “excellent.” Note: Non-response for some of these questions is very high, indicating that respondents may not be familiar with the parish outreach to these groups or may not have an opinion of the parish outreach to these groups. Interpret with care. Eight out of ten respondents evaluate parish outreach to children (80 percent) and new parishioners (80 percent) and visitors and guests (79 percent) as “good” or “excellent.” Less than six out of ten respondents evaluate outreach to single parents (59 percent), those divorced or separated (57 percent) and single young adults (53 percent) as “good” or “excellent.” About three out of four respondents evaluate outreach to those who are grieving (77 percent), adults (76 percent) and teens (73 percent) as “good” or “excellent.” Over six out of ten respondents evaluate outreach to parishioners in financial need (65 percent) and married young adults (62 percent) as “good” or “excellent.”

Evangelization Eight out of ten respondents evaluate St. Mary of the Knobs as “good” or “excellent” at spreading the Gospel/evangelizing, but less than half evaluate as “good” or “excellent” parish efforts to reach out to those who do not belong to a faith community or Catholics who do not come to Mass regularly. Two third of respondents (65 percent) say they have invited guests to attend St. Mary of the Knobs Parish in the last year. Differences by Involvement Respondents who are not involved in parish ministries or activities are less likely than those who are involved to say that they have invited guests to attend St. Mary of the Knobs during the last year (56 percent compared to 70 percent). Differences by Generation Respondents from the pre-Vatican II Generation are more likely that those from other generations to say that they have invited guests to attend St. Mary of the Knobs during the past year (42 percent compared to 34 percent).

Priorities for Community Outreach Nine out of ten responding parishioners (90 percent) say “some” or “very much” priority should be placed on charities such as homeless shelters and food banks. More than three out of four respondents say outreach to groups that advocate for respect for life (78 percent) and outreach providing empowerment of the poor (76 percent) should be “some” or “very much” a priority for the parish. About six in ten respondents say groups that advocate for the poor (62 percent) and those addressing global issues through organizations like Catholic Relief Services (59 percent) should have “some” or “very much” priority. Only half of respondents from St. Mary of the Knobs (51 percent) say adopting a parish in a developing country or disadvantaged area of the US should be given “some” or “very much” priority.

Differences by Generation

Volunteering and Impediments to Involvement Eight out of ten respondents (82 percent) say that the parish has challenged them to give their time talents and treasure in support of the Lord’s mission Eight out of ten respondents (81 percent) say that their busy schedule or lack of time “somewhat” or “very much” prevents them from volunteering more for the parish. Over half of respondents (53 percent) say that they are “already volunteering as much as they would like” and this prevents them from volunteering more for the parish. Over one third of respondents (37 percent) give “not being sure who to contact” and “not having been personally invited” as reasons for not volunteering more at the parish. Three out of ten respondents (29 percent) say “not being aware of parish needs” prevents them from volunteering more. One out of five or fewer responding parishioners say “being a caretaker for someone” (19 percent), “health problems for a disability” (18 percent), “already volunteering for the parish school” (14 percent) or “lack or child care” (14 percent) prevents them.

Stewardship More than four in five respondents (87 percent) evaluate the efforts of St. Mary of the Knobs to manage parish finances as “good” or “excellent.” About the same proportion evaluates parish efforts to promote responsible stewardship among parishioners as “good” or “excellent”(88 percent) and agree that the parish has challenged them to give their time, talents and treasure in support of the Lord’s mission (82 percent)