Electing a Pope

Electing a Pope, Information and Activities (The Catholic Toolbox)
Papal Conclave: How does the Catholic Church elect a new pope? (The Religion Teacher)
Pope Activities for Catholic Kids (Catholic Icing)
​Remembering Pope Francis​​ Use this download to talk to your kids about the late pontiff and the conclave ahead (OSV)
Talking to kids about Conclave (TeachingCatholicKids.com)
What is a Conclave video  English   Spanish  (Catholic Kids Media)
Who was Pope Francis? A short bio of Pope Francis for kids outlining his life and mission.  (Catholic Kids Media)

Sacred Listening, Deeper Faith

​A National Research Study Exploring the Impact of Listening on Faith Formation (Future of Faith)
​Our research shows that listening is not just a tool for connection—it is a catalyst for faith formation. Explore findings from our national study below, download free resources, and discover how ministries that prioritize listening are building deeper, more meaningful faith communities.

Disaffiliation, Deconstructing, De-Churching

Recent research reveals that 40 million Americans used to go to church but no longer do… we hear about the Nones, the disaffiliated, those who are deconstructing, reconstructing and de-churching.

For the first time, in the 8 decades that Gallup has tracked American religious membership, more adults in the U.S. do not attend church than those who do. Church as we know it is changing. Read or watch the following leaders share their experience in what this means for us today. 
Smith and Bartkus presenting their research at the McGrath Institute for Church Life at Notre Dame: "Parents, the REAL Pastors".
The Great De-Churching: Jim Davis (co-author of The Great De-Churching) on Carey Nieuwhof's Leadership Podcast
"How to Keep Our Kids Catholic" from Word on Fire. Vogt and Bishop Robert Barron discuss "Handing Down the Faith" (Smith and Adamczyk).
Dr. Christian Smith's research:
"Ask your father and he will tell you." A Report on Catholic Religious Parenting.  (Smith and Bartkus)
This 2017 report begins, "The vast majority of children of the millennial generation fall well short of what the Church would consider the most basic requirements for active membership. Dour observations about the rise of the “nones” among millennials— those individuals who identify with no religious tradition at all—have become commonplace. In such conditions, do Catholic parents who wish to pass on their faith have to steel themselves against a high probability of failure? Is theirs but a blind hope, a “Hail Mary,” as it were?" Read the report to discover what matters most in the transmission of the faith. What things impact faith development?

Books, articles and a video related to that research:
Pew research
Barna research
NEW “Gen Z and Mental Health:
​Insights for Faith Leaders” with Josh Packard
NEW What Gen Z Needs from Us
with Josh Packard
NEW! NCCL Catholic
  • The Insights & Practices from Research and Theory Series  explores the latest research and thinking on forming faith with families and age groups, and suggests practical strategies for forming faith that reflect the current research and age groups, and suggests practical strategies for forming faith that reflect the current research and thinking.  
  • 2023 Family Survey Report - ​In the Spring of 2023, NCCL conducted a national survey to identify how  Catholic parishes are implementing family faith formation and intergenerational (all ages together) faith formation. A total of 303 Catholic parishes completed the survey. ​
Planning Faith Formation for 2022 and Beyond (Lifelong Faith Training)
This Guide to planning faith formation helps you think systemically about what we need to do in faith formation to address the challenges of today. 
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“Called to the Joy of Love: National Pastoral Framework for Marriage and Family Life Ministry” (USCCB)
The framework is intended to assist dioceses and parishes as local pastoral planning and implementation continue to take place since the publication of the 2016 apostolic exhortation on the family, Amoris Laetitia. It provides guidelines for the pastoral accompaniment of married couples and families in every phase of life, drawing upon the teachings and recommendations contained in the apostolic exhortation.  Parish Inventory for Marriage and Family Life Ministry

Putting Parents at the Center of Our Ministry Movement (Dr. John M. Rinaldo, Parish Success Group, posted at USCCB)
Videos based on the above linked article:
Combatting Racism (USCCB)
Alpha evangelization program for youth
Alpha is an online program that introduces people to Jesus. They offer a program especially for youth which is very dynamic.  It is non denominational, completely free of charge and available online. Alpha is also run for people of all ages. It originated in England in 1991 and is currently available in 120 countries and 60 languages. Follow the easy directions on the website to create an Alpha for your parish or youth group.
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Lifelong Faith Associates Related Research (Lifelong Faith Associates)
Lifelong Faith Journal  (Lifelong Faith Associates)
An excellent source of research, resources and challenging articles on every aspect of faith formation including data on effectiveness and best practices on inter generational, life cycle and family based approaches to faith formation. The articles are available for free download.

CARA Report on Catholic Women in the United States (National Catholic Register)
Beliefs, Practices, Experiences, and Attitudes. A study by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA), commissioned by America media. 2018. 

Going Going Gone (CARA and St. Mary's Press)
This book by Robert J. McCarty and John M. Vitek looks at the phenomena of the Disaffiliated Catholics. St. Mary's Press commissioned the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate to study why are young people "going, going, gone".

See Bob McCarty talk about this topic in this webinar series (NFCYM, NCCL, NCEA, and NACFLM)
How to Influence Your Pastor   (Team RCIA)
A great article that reminds us that if we want to advocate for our ministry we need to put ourself in the other person's shoes.

​Joe Paprocki on Catechists' Journey (Loyola Press) ​
The Pope Francis Minute (Catholic Link)
Check out this effort to share Pope Francis' messages with families via animated video clips.