Some may even know something about other dioceses in the country. But what about the whole country? Maybe even all of North America?
David M. Cheney has taken upon himself the task of keeping current information about the dioceses in North America. The results of his work are posted on The Catholic Church in North America, www.fortunecity.com. Usually, I tend not to spend much time on Web sites that are solely the work of one person because these sites sometimes do not stay current or are not routinely checked for their accuracy. However, this one is excellent with the latest information. I was amazed that, on the day I checked, it included some information I did not know.
The entire Web site is a series of cleverly interlinked databases that tell the story of present and past bishops and important Church leaders in North America. In telling the story of the bishops, the story of the diocese, the Church, is likewise recounted. The facts found on the various pages of this Web site are certainly found elsewhere, but not as conveniently presented. Simple mouse clicks will instantly bring up the basic statistics of a diocese, the list of previous bishops with some basic biographical information. The links to each piece of information is clearly listed, and there does not seem to be any danger of getting lost in a maze of links as can sometimes happen on Web sites that are not as cleanly designed as this one.
For each diocese there are about 20 years of statistics. As parishes and dioceses continue to plan for effective ministry in an era of fewer priests, this information is invaluable. The model presented here could likewise be applied at the local level, the parish, so that parish pastoral councils could see what is objectively happening in their parishes. When we discuss ministry and spiritual needs, some people object to using numbers. However, the reality of the number of practicing Catholics in any given area must be given consideration when planning for pastoral needs.
I was very impressed with how well the author has managed to integrate all the information. Click on any bishop’s name and find his brief biography; click on a year and find significant information for that year; click on the name of a diocese and find information for that diocese. Admittedly, after a while I was going around in circles, but that was not the Web master’s fault. It was mine since I keep trying to dig deeper.
Cheney also has some links to his other Web sites. Each one is worth a visit by using the links provided. One favorite of mine is the liturgical calendar up to the year 2174. Through a clever use of abbreviations, he is able to outline the major liturgical moments and seasons in each group of 10 years.
Some may see this type of information as if it were fodder for Catholic Trivial Pursuit. Rather, I would say that these facts help us understand how human the Church really is. The tremendous spiritual growth of the Church in North America has taken place through the efforts of many spiritual leaders guided by the Holy Spirit. The Church has one foot on the earth and one in heaven. These pages help us better understand both dimensions.
(This article courtesy of the Arlington Catholic Herald.)
