The U.S. Catholic Bishops need your support to continue to strengthen the Catholic Church at home and help mission dioceses right here in the United States, including the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee.

The Catholic Home Missions Appeal supports dioceses in the United States and its territories that lack the resources to provide basic pastoral ministry to their populations. Through annual grants, Catholic Home Missions funds catechesis, seminarian education, lay ministry training, Hispanic ministry, and other pastoral programs for dioceses in need. As a result of parishioners’ generosity, Catholic Home Missions impacts the lives of nearly nine million Catholics. The dioceses funded by the appeal comprise nearly 45 percent of all U.S. dioceses.

For the Diocese of Crookston, Minn., the call to a New Evangelization rings home. While there are approximately 35,000 Catholics living within the borders of the diocese, several thousand of these Catholics have become estranged from the practice of their faith. In order to reach out to these people, the diocese must overcome the challenge of distance, as well as a shortage of priests. The small Catholic population spans 14 counties, with only 36 active and 12 retired priests. This shortage leaves one county in the diocese with only a single Catholic church and one priest.

With a grant from Catholic Home Missions, the diocese is training seven seminarians for the priesthood. These young men will return to their diocese in order to administer the sacraments within the parishes and to evangelize those who have fallen away and are waiting to be called back into the fold.

Mission dioceses often struggle with high rates of poverty and a lack of educated pastoral and lay leadership. With your support, the Catholic Home Missions Appeal can continue to provide catechesis, lay leadership training, funding for seminarian education, and other essential pastoral outreach in home mission dioceses. Please be generous in the Catholic Home Missions Appeal and help strengthen the Church at home. Your support will truly make a difference.

To learn more about this appeal or to find additional resources,
please visit http://www.usccb.org/catholic-giving/opportunities-for-giving/catholic-home-missions-appeal/index.cfm