The results for the Disciple Maker Index (DMI) survey, conducted this past Lent, have been collected. The team at Catholic Leadership Institute (CLI) has diligently input 2,044 paper surveys. In total, there are 13,272 responses from all surveys: 2,044 paper surveys, representing 15% of all responses, and 11,228 online surveys, representing the remaining 85%.
When considering the total for the average mass attendance in the Diocese (33,974), this figure represents a 39% response rate from the surveys.
Since 2014, nearly 642,000 Catholics from 72 dioceses have participated in the DMI, providing valuable support and insights for individual parishes and dioceses. With the Diocese of Allentown now joining other dioceses on the national benchmark, CLI’s initiative continues to grow.
Pastors and Primary Points of Contact (PPOCs) in the Diocese of Allentown have been actively participating in the first webinar offered in a series of three webinars to help parishes understand the results of the DMI. Each webinar in the series reviews a different topic to help parishes understand their parish feedback and discern actions.
Webinar #1, titled “Accessing Your Results,” focuses on accessing and reviewing parish results. What to look for, how to interpret feedback correctly, and tips and resources for reviewing the information.
Webinar #2, titled “Common Challenges and Opportunities,” focuses on key areas of challenge and opportunity across parishes throughout the country, and showcases some common examples of parish strategies that have made a difference.
Webinar #3, titled “Discerning Actions,” focuses on how to turn your feedback into some actionable next steps.
The Diocese has completed the first series of webinars on Accessing Results, with the second series of webinars starting on June 13.
The portal with the DMI Reports opened today for Pastors and PPOCs. A date will be set in the future for Pastors to share their results with their parishioners.
Concurrently, Pastors and PPOCs have been completing an online application expressing their interest in the "Next Generation Parish" program offered by CLI, either through the intensive in-person track or the intensive virtual track.
This application will give them the opportunity to clearly indicate their preferred track and provide other relevant information.
The deadline to complete the application for the intensive tracks is next Friday, June 21.
When CLI started thinking about how they would revitalize the Church, their dream was to create a four-year initiative to accompany parishes throughout the entire United States and help reverse some of the trends that they had been seeing, expressed Maria Luby, Leadership Consultant at CLI.
“We've seen a rapid decline in the number of people who attend Mass on a weekly basis, and the number of people that are participating in the Sacraments over the last 10 to 20 years.
Part of the dream is to provide support to Pastors, parish staff, and key volunteers to be able to really address these issues with key learnings and tools that they can use,” explained Luby.
The goal at CLI is to share the tools and practices learned through the different services they provide, as well as the many responses received through the DMI survey from various dioceses, with the parishes they accompany.
“This is our dream and hope – that all parishes could be revitalized,” said Luby.
