The National Catholic Reporter just published my article, “Cultural Catholics: The Loosely-Tethered Half of the American Church,” which covers some of the findings from my most recent book. While the book is geared more for those in ministry, with “everyday Catholics” being an important secondary audience, the article closes with some key points for everyday Catholics to consider as they reach out to the Catholics in their lives. It is probably timely given the proclivity of conversations about faith that can arise at the Thanksgiving table! It may also give you some ideas to bring to your parish as you anticipate the increase in cultural Catholics’ attendance during Christmas Eve. Lots of food for thought!

The proofs are just in, the cover is eye-catching, and the book is available for pre-order! It still has some time for it’s mid-October release, but I am pleased to update you with this news! I can also share some advanced praise with you from a CARA scholar and a young adult practitioner:

“Cultural Catholics is a very readable and engaging look at that half of the U.S. Catholic church on the margins or totally outside of parish life. Maureen Day digs into the subtle issues of cultural Catholics versus active Catholics with a sensitive sociological and pastoral eye. She highlights the critical question of ‘who’ mediates the Church, be it parishioners, parish staff, deacons or priests—and how those on the margins experience this mediation. Includes lots of pastoral insight and suggested actions.”

Tom Gaunt SJ, CARA and editor of Faith and Spiritual Life of Young Adult Catholics in a Rising Hispanic Church

“For anyone who cares about the Catholic faith surviving; for anyone willing to imagine a new way of defining ‘a lived faith’; for anyone enthused by the idea that there is a new path forward for Catholic identity; this book is for you! This research and its application help all of us in church life to reframe our understanding of the role Catholic identity plays in the lives of so many, and encourages us to be innovative in how we respond to the concept of ‘cultural Catholicism’ as a positive starting point. In this light, all of us can be considered ‘cultural Catholics’ anew, and I am hopeful for the path forward.”

Nicole M. Perone, National Coordinator, ESTEEM, Chair of the Board of Members, National Institute for Ministry with Young Adults

Thank you to both Dr. Gaunt and Ms. Perone for their thoughtful read and generous assessment!

You can tell I am running behind when I am posting 2024 predictions in March! Well, better late than never. I was collaborating with the folks at USC’s CRCC to think through what religious and social trends might await in 2024. Here are our predictions (details in link):

1. Faith-Secular Partnerships Reignite 21st Century Movements for Progressive Change
2. LA City Council Races Will Bring Racial Tensions Back to the Surface
3. Disability and Inclusion Warrant More Serious Conversation for Many American Congregations
4. Self-care as the New Religion
5. Friendship and Community Becomes Commodified
6. Blockbuster AI Movies Prompt Questions on What it Means to Be Human

What are some of yours?

In an election year and with primaries underway, more and more folks are weighing in on how Catholics will vote, or how they approach political issues more broadly. There is much talk of polarization among Catholics, and in some ways this is accurate, but in theological matters, Catholics remain very much united.

The Politics and Religion Journal recently published a special issue called “Catholics and Contemporary American Politics“; my thanks to Dr. Corwin E. Smidt for his editorial leadership! It is filled with helpful analyses, and you can read my article, “Polarization? Identifying What Divides and Unites American Catholics” to explore this through a national survey of 1500+ Catholics. Here is the abstract to give you a taste:

Polarization among American Catholics has been a subject of both scholarly and media attention. Using a nationally representative survey of over 1500 Catholics, the first part of this article explores the extent to which race, gender, generation, and commitment to Catholicism shape polarization among Catholics; these different characteristics affect Catholics’ political and civic beliefs and practices to varying degrees. The second part of the article parses Catholics into their political party groupings–Democrat, Republican, and Independent–to determine the ways party affiliation affects Catholics’ understanding of non-political religious beliefs and practices. The analysis reveals that political divisions are evident among some of the Catholic subgroupings, but that theological unity nevertheless prevails across party lines.

I am a few days late getting the news to you, but on the Feast of St. Francis, Dr. Geoffrey Karabin’s book, Pandemic Reflections: Saint Francis and the Lepers Catch Up with COVID, was released! It is a great collection that explores the connections between St. Francis’s encounter with the leper and our recent pandemic. The back cover blurb reads:

St Francis of Assisi, one of the most acclaimed and enduring of saints, is particularly significant when reflecting upon the COVID pandemic. Francis lived, and ministered, amid a leprosy pandemic. How he lived in relation to that pandemic makes him a source of insight to as well as a potential critic of contemporary responses to COVID. In turn, one can use COVID to question Francis. Did he exhibit a harmful form of religious devotion, perhaps fanaticism, by exposing himself and others to a lethal pathogen? This edited collection examines a highly visible and impactful religious figure with the intent of bringing him into conversation with one of the defining issues of the early 21st Century.

I was very happy to contribute a chapter that explored the ways the pandemic unfolded in Africa–which revealed a lack of justice and mercy from the global community–as a contrast to Francis’s encounter with the leper. If you order it from the publisher’s website, you can use the code FRANCIS33 to receive 33% off. Enjoy!

I’m so happy to announce that I am working with Liturgical Press on a book that explores the beliefs, practices and ministerial possibilities for engaging Catholics who attend Mass infrequently. The working title is Cultural Catholics: Who They Are, How to Respond and will use the most recent wave of the American Catholic Laity survey. In analyzing the self-reported attitudes and behaviors of over 1500 Catholics, this book allows us to compare the 53 percent of American Catholics who attend Mass “a few times a year” or less often with more regular Mass attenders, offering ministerial insights for reaching out to Catholics who are less engaged with parish life.

This book will explore how cultural Catholics understand and enact their Catholic identity, their political and civic beliefs, their experiences in parish life and thoughts on Church leadership. It is geared primarily for parish, campus and diocesan leaders who want to cast a wider net in their accompaniment and ministerial offerings and will likely be a useful read for a variety of ecclesial leaders.

The American Catholic Laity Study team is happy to share that we have a contract for our book with NYU Press. This is the sixth book in the series of surveys that William D’Antonio started in the late eighties. This round we are also incorporating interviews with about 60 Catholic leaders (e.g., bishops, employees at the USCCB, public influencers, leaders of lay apostolates, etc.). Drs. William D’Antonio, Michele Dillon, and Mary Gautier oversaw the survey aspect of the research and Drs. James Cavendish, Paul Perl and I are taking the lead in the interviews. We’re quite far along in the writing process and will have a manuscript–tentatively titled Catholicism’s Crossroads: The Present and Future of America’s Largest Church–to NYU Press by January… probably sooner. The six main themes of the book are Church, authority, race, citizenship, sex and family, and future.

We’re unearthing some great insights for both scholars and Catholic leaders… really for religious leaders broadly as many of the challenges Catholicism faces are not unique to Catholicism. Stay tuned for updates!

Spring is here and along with the blossoms comes the Spring issue of The Way. Here you’ll find my latest contribution, “Franciscan Roots of American Catholic Social Justice Ministry.” It shows the way American social ministry was informed–wittingly or not–by key elements from the Franciscan Tradition: transformation, Christ, community, mercy, compassion, and gift. I hope it gives you some thoughts and inspiration for bringing some healing to our world!

Happy Easter!