As some of you know, St. Thomas the Apostle parish in Irondequoit underwent a rather tumultuous clustering process from 2005-2006. The end result was a three parish cluster that included St. Thomas the Apostle, St. Salome, and Christ the King. The plan was decidedly opposed by the St. Thomas the Apostle Parish Council, when they voted 6-3 against the three parish cluster. The council’s alternative suggestion was for a more manageable two parish cluster with St. Salome.

This is what the 6 council members had to say in an addendum that was submitted as part of the cluster recommendation to Bishop Clark:

Few members from St. Thomas are enthusiastic about the three parish cluster. The support from the Parish Council for this cluster was primarily from the Parish Council’s IPPG(Irondequoit Pastoral Planning Group) representatives.

In its desire to find a consensus, the IPPG has pitted St. Thomas parishioners against each other. Rather than the free exchange of ideas in order to find a practical solution to the priest shortage, the IPPG has(sic) appears to want to silence all dissent for its recommendation.

In light of this, there is an interesting item from the St. Thomas Parish Council minutes of December 10, 2008:

There is a marked decline in Mass attendance in Irondequoit (down 38%) and at St. Thomas (down 41%). This is not only taking place here but also across the region in both Catholic and Protestant traditions. It is a result of the population becoming more and more secularized and not going to any church rather than being dissatisfied with a particular church or pastor.

One of the primary concerns of many of the parishioners at St. Thomas regarding the cluster, was the fear of a loss of parish identity. Many thought that the three parish cluster would come to be dominated by Christ the King and would damage St. Thomas the Apostle. Let’s see if their fears were legitimate.

In the year 2000, average weekend Mass attendance was 858 at St. Thomas and 1348 at Christ the King. So far, in 2009, average Mass attendance is 446 at St. Thomas and 1023 at Christ the King. That’s a 48% decline in 9 years for St. Thomas and a 24% decline for Christ the King. In 2006, before the cluster, weekend Mass attendance at St. Thomas was averaging about 700. The 446 current average weekend Mass attendance at St. Thomas represents a 37% decline since the cluster was formed less than two years ago. I think it’s safe to assume that Christ the King’s numbers have remained stable or increased since the clustering.

Beyond the problems in Irondequoit, the DOR has a particular problem with declining Mass attendance. In June of 2008, Dr. Mary Gautier of the CARA Research Center at Georgetown University, had this to say about Mass attendance across the U.S.:

Gautier further explained that the percentage of Catholics attending Mass has remained stable over recent years. Though the researchers had expected Mass attendance to drop due to the sexual abuse scandal, they found it to remain constant throughout the recent turmoil, she said.

Going back a couple of years, the CARA Research Center had this to say:

There is no evidence in CARA’s national polls that Mass attendance has declined between 2000 and 2005.

For an in depth study of the dramatically declining Mass attendance in the DOR, check the DOR Catholic’s website for a devastating analysis.