Can I belong to two different parishes?

[sharkall2003]

I live right across the street from a Church in my hometown. I am a registered parishioner at this Church. However, I really enjoy going to another Church about ten minutes away and give regularly to that church. Can I also be a registered parishioner at this Church?

 

[Chatter163]

You may attend Mass anywhere you like. But you are, by virtue of where you live, a member of only one parish.

 

[YoungTradCath]

It doesn’t matter if you register or not. Registration is an administrative convenience that many parishes in the US do. Sometimes there are incentives like envelopes for collections or whatever, but it means absolutely nothing to Church law. You may attend Mass wherever you like, but you are not a parishioner anywhere, no matter if you register or not, except at your territorial parish.

 

[Lutgardis]

I know we have a couple of parishioners who live a little distance from our parish, but they began attending daily Mass at our parish because there is no daily Mass where they attend. These ladies are involved in our activilites, i.e. are extraordinary ministers, involved in our parish counsel, etc. . . I’m not sure if there are “rules” regarding these things, but our pastor is happy to allow these women to participate in our parish activities. I know they feel a part of our parish because I’m friends with both of them and they’ve told me so. I also know that a retired Monsignor who serves at our parish recommended to our pastor that these ladies be encouraged to be a part of things. You may want to talk to your pastor or the pastor of the church you enjoy attending that is ten minutes away and simply ask about these kinds of things. It feels so much more like you’re a part of things if you’re allowed to serve in the parishes you attend.

 

[losh14]

Yeah, you can attend where you wish and I see no reason why you shouldn’t go where you’re an active part of the community. We attend the next parish over from where we live (though through some fluke are allowed to be parishoners though we don’t live within those boundaries) partly because my wife’s grandparents attend and most of her family have been baptized there, and partly becuase the homilies are shorter and so attending with two small children is much easier to participate and not be a distraction to other parishoners.

The girls go to a school at another parish (the other local parishes have either closed their schools or don’t take children as young as ours) and we sometimes attend Mass there with our oldest’s friends’ families.

 

[Mrs_Sally]

As others have said, you can attend Mass at any Catholic church inthe world. You can offer to teach CCD, etc. at a parish other than your territorial parish.

The issue comes up when you need to receive certain sacraments and services like a wedding or funeral. According to canon law, the pastor of a parish is responsible for the souls of *every *person who lives within his parish’s geographical boundries. His obligation to those people may mean he is not available to you whenever you’d like, and he must refer you back to the pastor at your territorial parish.

That, and the fact that it is easier to build community and have the support of your fellow Catholics when they are your real neighbors – the people who live near you, whose children go to school with yours, who you see at the grocery, etc. leads me to always recommend that people attend their territorial parish whenever possible.

For me the fact that Father’s homilies are a bit boring or I don’t like the way the choir sings aren’t enough to make me start church shopping.

Attending a daily Mass at the downtown parish near work, or the one across town that has evening Masses, is not the same thing as leaving your ‘home’ parish altogether.

 

[Lujack]

It doesn’t matter if you register or not. Registration is an administrative convenience that many parishes in the US do. Sometimes there are incentives like envelopes for collections or whatever, but it means absolutely nothing to Church law. You may attend Mass wherever you like, but you are not a parishioner anywhere, no matter if you register or not, except at your territorial parish.

The exception would be (and there are a few of them still left around, although there are less and less) is if you are part of an ethnic parish.

 

[Lujack]

That, and the fact that it is easier to build community and have the support of your fellow Catholics when they are your real neighbors – the people who live near you, whose children go to school with yours, who you see at the grocery, etc. leads me to always recommend that people attend their territorial parish whenever possible.

The school part, for me, is one exception I think you might fairly agree on. Our territorial parish’s school was full; I couldn’t get in, so we went to the next church over, where we started going to Mass instead of at our actual territorial parish because that was my school. That parish didn’t have a high school, the nearest Catholic one being three towns away; once I was in high school, we started going there, for the same reason-that was the community we were a part of.

 

[couponfit]

I live right across the street from a Church in my hometown. I am a registered parishioner at this Church. However, I really enjoy going to another Church about ten minutes away and give regularly to that church. Can I also be a registered parishioner at this Church?

Normally you attend locally, however, many catholics do attend service outside their lines so to speak. Further, there no no actual lines anyways. So yes, you can attend where you feel called to within the catholic church.

 

[CMatt25]

I was informed by the Catholic diocese in my area that their particular diocean policy on whether Catholics may register at a parish outside of their territorial boundary is solely left to the discretion of the individual priests in the diocese. YMMV depending on the policy of your particular bishop at the time. And I suppose a new bishop could result in a change to a particular diocese’s policy. But I’ve called a couple of parishes in this diocese and both allow Catholics to register in their parishes if they reside outside of the parish’s territorial boundaries.

In fact I have one of these parish’s bulletins right in front of me and it states, “Please do not take for granted that you are registered in the parish just because you attend Mass here. If we have no record of your parish membership, it could be quite embarrassing to us, or to you or your family, when someone wishes to make wedding plans, have a baby baptized, or if you have been asked to be a sponsor for baptism or confirmation.”

So in this case it does appear it could matter and seems as long as you are a registered parish member of their parish outside of your territorial boundary, they will serve you. And of course even one’s territorial pastor may not be available at a time one wants.

 

[utah_rose]

It doesn’t matter if you register or not. Registration is an administrative convenience that many parishes in the US do. Sometimes there are incentives like envelopes for collections or whatever, but it means absolutely nothing to Church law. You may attend Mass wherever you like, but you are not a parishioner anywhere, no matter if you register or not, except at your territorial parish.

I believe that now you can register at any parish, and it need not be the one closest to you(but it may depend on the diocese). We used to belong to the closest one but we began attending a Latin Mass at another parish. Our pastor refused to consider celebrating one, so we de-registered at our home parish and registered at the other.

If you don’t register at any of them, you may have a problem with a wedding or funeral if you aren’t listed as a member. But you do have the responsibility of de-registering at your parish and registering at the new one.

 

[SMHW]

So in this case it does appear it could matter and seems as long as you are a registered parish member of their parish outside of your territorial boundary, they will serve you. And of course even one’s territorial pastor may not be available at a time one wants.

I believe what happens in such cases is that the pastors (with the bishop’s approval) delegate each other authority over sacramental matters to the parish where the parishioner registers as a “member”. So technically a person will still be a member of the territorial parish but that fact is pretty much hidden from both parishioner and parish. Most likely this kind of agreement will be between parishes in the same deanery or other parish administration group.

In many dioceses, the diocese and individual parishes use the same or compatible database software. The info in them is synced between parish and diocese at regular intervals. So you are “on the grid”, so to speak, regardless of which parish you register in as a member.

 

[HonoraDominum]

The exception would be (and there are a few of them still left around, although there are less and less) is if you are part of an ethnic parish.

My FSSP parish is a “personal” parish and falls under the same guidelines. I never de-registerd from my old parish, though, just registered at the FSSP parish. I’m not even sure how to de-register, really.

 

[tee_eff_em]

You may attend Mass wherever you like, but you are not a parishioner anywhere, no matter if you register or not, except at your territorial parish.

Not relevant to the original post, but to the question in the title: Can I belong to two different parishes? Canon Law seems to say the answer is “yes, but only one at a time” (by my non-canon lawyer read). One acquires as many proper pastors (and I presume: parishes) as maintained domicile or quasi-domiciles, but one’s proper pastor at any given time is that of his current residence.

tee

 

[CMatt25]

I believe what happens in such cases is that the pastors (with the bishop’s approval) delegate each other authority over sacramental matters to the parish where the parishioner registers as a “member”. So technically a person will still be a member of the territorial parish but that fact is pretty much hidden from both parishioner and parish. Most likely this kind of agreement will be between parishes in the same deanery or other parish administration group.

In many dioceses, the diocese and individual parishes use the same or compatible database software. The info in them is synced between parish and diocese at regular intervals. So you are “on the grid”, so to speak, regardless of which parish you register in as a member.

So you’re saying in the case of the diocese I gave, the pastors allowing member registrations from outside the territory under bishop approval, reciprocate with each other? But if a pastor in the same diocese were not to allow member registrations from outside his territory, then he just wouldn’t be in the agreement?

 

[SMHW]

So you’re saying in the case of the diocese I gave, the pastors allowing member registrations from outside the territory under bishop approval, reciprocate with each other? But if a pastor in the same diocese were not to allow member registrations from outside his territory, then he just wouldn’t be in the agreement?

That’s how I suppose it would work.

 

[CMatt25]

I believe what happens in such cases is that the pastors (with the bishop’s approval) delegate each other authority over sacramental matters to the parish where the parishioner registers as a “member”. So technically a person will still be a member of the territorial parish but that fact is pretty much hidden from both parishioner and parish.

So while a person is always a technical member of his or her territorial parish even if they never register, they can also be a registered parishoner elsewhere assuming of course this is the policy of the diocese. But if someone did register previously at their territorial, they just have to go in and have their registration voided?

 

[SMHW]

So while a person is always a technical member of his or her territorial parish even if they never register, they can also be a registered parishoner elsewhere assuming of course this is the policy of the diocese. But if someone did register previously at their territorial, they just have to go in and have their registration voided?

Let’s be careful with semantics.

“Registered” is one of those words that means what whomever is using it intends for the word to mean. It doesn’t necessarily mean the same thing as “member”.

Typically, “registered” means that a person’s name and information is known to the parish. And there is probably some label “Registered” in a database with a next to it. There might be another that says “Member”. Or those might be considered to mean the same thing. There are usually all kinds of check boxes that describe the kind of affiliation a person has with a given parish. There are plenty of people who are active in multiple parishes so they are listed in multiple parish databases.

But back to your question…

Typically the diocese and the parish will sync their databases a couple of times a year. If someone is showing up as a member in multiple parishes then this will probably get fixed at that point even without the involvement of the parishioner. But it is certainly good policy and polite to inform a parish if you no longer will be a member so the database can be updated at a more convenient time.

 

[sharkall2003]

I need a greater understanding. So, I have a few more questions.

The territorial parish is the one you are closest to, or has a “right” to your membership by default according to street address?

However, as I have for many years, I can choose to go to another Catholic Church, but if I want to have children baptized or have their sacraments performed in the Church it must be done at the territorial Church unless permission is granted to have it performed at said other Church I live further from?

Both of the Churches that I go to are in the same diocese in the same county. I’m not sure if that makes a difference?

 

[CMatt25]

I need a greater understanding. So, I have a few more questions.

The territorial parish is the one you are closest to, or has a “right” to your membership by default according to street address?

However, as I have for many years, I can choose to go to another Catholic Church, but if I want to have children baptized or have their sacraments performed in the Church it must be done at the territorial Church unless permission is granted to have it performed at said other Church I live further from?

Both of the Churches that I go to are in the same diocese in the same county. I’m not sure if that makes a difference?

From what I’ve learned it’s not so easily answered. I’ve even seen on CAF in a simlar thread that one’s territorial parish might not necessarily be the nearest one to your residence. It often/usually is but that it’s best to check with your diocese. It seems if you are registered and active at another parish though, your likelihood is increased that your children could receive their sacraments there. I also though personally know of a case where a man attended Mass at a parish regularly and was registered there but made his offertory anonymously and didn’t use envelopes. And the criteria for determining active membership in order to have his child baptized at that parish was to be registered for 6 mos and using their envelope system. The priest refused to baptize the child but the man went to another parish 5 miles down the road and the priest there performed the Baptism. The man had never attended Mass at that parish and to my knowledge hasn’t since due to it being further. I’m unsure if he’s gone back to the first one or if he’s found a 3rd for Mass. Bottom line a lot seems to depend on the diocese’s policy and the priests. I hope all works out for you.