Boston, Mass., Jul 28, 2010 / 22:54 pm
The Archdiocese of Boston is planning a major campaign to urge inactive Catholics to “come home” to their faith. The campaign will use television ads, parish events and personal invitations, making the involvement of priests and parishioners “vital.”
About 10 percent of all American adults are former Catholics, the archdiocese reports, adding that its own weekly Mass attendance has declined from about 376,000 in 2000 to about 287,000 in 2009.
Janet Benestad, secretary for faith formation and evangelization at the archdiocese, said that the pews seem “emptier and emptier.” The goal of the campaign is to tell people “We are diminished by your absence ... and we want to issue a genuine invitation to return to the practice of the faith.”
The campaign will use television ads, parish events and personal invitations. The archdiocese will partner with CatholicsComeHome.org during Lent 2011.