Last month we included a post about the number of people entering the Catholic Church in the United States and around the world. That information came from the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA), which was founded at Georgetown University in 1964. Over the last 55 years, CARA has been researching demographic trends in the Catholic Church, both in North America and globally. If you’re at all in Catholic ministry, you need to follow CARA at Georgetown University. Their mission is to provide a “Catholic center for coordinated research and cooperation in all things pertaining to mission and international development of the Church.”
Many of their articles and research project findings are available for free on their website and can provide you with valuable information about the changing Catholic demographics in your region. Even better, CARA runs a blog which summarizes some of their more interesting projects. CARA is also rather active on Twitter and frequently shares graphs and maps related to Catholic demographic shifts.
Visit CARA’s sites from time to time and you’re sure to find an article or graph that can help drive decisions at your parish about budgeting, ministry focus, and much more. Now is the time to follow CARA at Georgetown University!
