(From my site.)
According to a fascinating new study published by Crisis magazine, "The State of the Catholic Church in America, Diocese by Diocese," the answer is "Yes":
This analysis began with the question, “Does the bishop matter?” It arrives at an interesting pair of conclusions. The first is that there is no problem ailing the Catholic Church in America that is not being addressed successfully in some place, and typically in multiple places. Second, there is a cadre of bishops, invisible to the national media, largely unknown outside their dioceses, absent from Washington political circles, who are truly unsung heroes of the Church, presiding over vibrant communities, building the Church, and effectively proclaiming the Faith—men such as Bishop Joseph Kurtz of Knoxville, Archbishop Michael Sheehan of Santa Fe, and Bishop [and Cincinnati priest] Daniel Conlon of Steubenville, to name just a few.
The study's authors, Rev. Rodger Hunter-Hall and Steven Wagner, first measure things like the growth of ordinations, the number of priests (in relative and absolute terms), and receptions into the Church, and then rank dioceses accordingly. On that score Cincinnati is improving. Although we are still below the halfway mark, we have moved up 37 spots in the overall ranking since 1995.
By contrast, my home diocese of Rochester is sinking like a stone, slipping 14 to 174 and only a couple of spots away from dead last. Rochester's alarming 40% decline in the number of active priests during the past ten years is particularly scrutinized.
Although they are careful to identify the challenges we face, Hunter-Hall and Wagner paint a hope-filled and optimistic portrait, provided we learn why some dioceses are healthy and others are not. (Hint: It has much to do with what sort of man is wearing the pointed hat.) The concluding paragraphs are worth quoting at length:
That there should be such significant variation in the vitality of the American Church from diocese to diocese sends us, the Church—leaders and laity alike—several rather profound messages. The first is that the health of the Church in America is ours to affect. While a thorough confidence in the Holy Spirit is a sine qua non, as unusually successful bishops so evidently recognize, there is also a role for human will in achieving God’s plan for the Church. The Church has been slow to come to terms with changes in the societal environment of the United States in which it functions, most especially the emergence of a dominant culture that is thoroughly secular. Many—too many—in positions of authority have perceived their jobs as simply to manage the decline, having become dispirited over the adversity that this new cultural environment poses. But the Church is slowly, incrementally, coming to perceive the current reality with greater clarity. And the Church is decidedly, as one bishop put it, “moving beyond the post-conciliar silliness,” that dreadful period of confusion following Vatican II when all manner of “innovation” was attempted to make the Church “relevant.”
The best evidence for this optimistic appraisal is the existence of flourishing dioceses led by energetic, enthusiastic, and holy shepherds. The tough question now confronting the American episcopate and the Vatican curia is whether the Church is willing to recognize the characteristics common to successful bishops of the United States, and to systematically elevate priests with an appropriate profile.
The history has been uneven: The fact that some dioceses are robust reveals, by comparison, that many are not. But all persons who wish the Church in America well can rejoice in the fact that we are blessed to have extraordinary and effective (if unsung) leaders in numerous places across the country. Truly, there is no challenge the Church faces that cannot be confronted.
Growth in Dioceses
Growth has little correlation with diocesan vitality. One might well think that a diocese with a growing Catholic population is de facto a more exciting, vibrant faith community. But the data do not support such common sense. Some of the fastest-growing dioceses are among the least vibrant, and vice versa. And this makes sense upon reflection: Growth in the Catholic population has little to do with the quality of the diocese; rather, dioceses are captive to larger population dynamics, to which they respond more or less well. Regionally, the dioceses of the Pacific Coast region are the fastest growing, with an average ten-year growth rate of 29 percent. But the dioceses of the Pacific Coast have an average rating of 86, third best of five regions. The slowest-growing region for Catholics is the Industrial Midwest, which is the second worst in average ratings. —R. H. and S. W.
