Most devout areas/parishes in the US?

[SpesInVirtute]

Hey y’all, wanted to get some (name removed by moderator)ut on where the most devout areas and parishes throughout the country are. Do you live somewhere or know of areas/parishes that are particularly devout? Poor Benedict talked about how “oasises” will spring up. Where are they? Let’s strengthen each other brothers and sisters!

 

[peter26]

You can find some figures here. Apparently, Rhode Island has the highest Catholic population in the US at 51%. Mississippi is the least at 4.7%.

 

[PolarGuy]

The figures are interesting. I don’t think there’s a way to quantify devoutness, however, although I suppose actual weekly church attendance might be a possibility, if that could be shown. Anecdotally, I’d say the campus of Franciscan University in Steubenville, OH might qualify as very heavily devout, but that’s just me talking out of my elbow.

 

[pianistclare]

Thread Most Likely To Start A Fight

It’s an odd question. Why don’t we just ask :

Where in the country are the most sinners?

As Polar Guy hinted: kind of fruitless to define a “devout parish”.
You notions of devout might be very different from someone else’s.
Only God measure that.
Peace.

 

[Eric_Prine]

Devotion would be hard to measure but my city being a small one, I’m lucky that it seems I’m 5 minutes away from a parish no matter what part of town I’m in, there are several Catholic bookstores and a Catholic radio station too.

 

[Casilda]

Hey y’all, wanted to get some (name removed by moderator)ut on where the most devout areas and parishes throughout the country are. Do you live somewhere or know of areas/parishes that are particularly devout? Poor Benedict talked about how “oasises” will spring up. Where are they? Let’s strengthen each other brothers and sisters!

I live in the deep south. My state has three big major metropolitan areas, there are oasis’ within those areas. I live in one of the dry, desert areas.

 

[AttendeDomine]

Let’s define “devout” as simply being orthodox in teaching, obedient to the Magisterium, and respectful and reverent in the Holy Mass.

Using those terms, I think the Diocese of Arlington has a tremendous reputation.

 

[marymary1975]

I agree that the point of devout is a hard one, but if we go to majority and church attendance, I live in the south shore in Massachusetts and in this area there is a Catholic majority and there is one.church in.every corner and they care all packed. For Christmas we had to decide whether going to the one that you have to arrive one jour and a half early, one.hour early or going to the small.chapel.that you have to arrive 50 minutes early. Decisions decisions.

 

[Tarpeian_Rock]

I agree that the point of devout is a hard one, but if we go to majority and church attendance, I live in the south shore in Massachusetts and in this area there is a Catholic majority and there is one.church in.every corner and they care all packed. For Christmas we had to decide whether going to the one that you have to arrive one jour and a half early, one.hour early or going to the small.chapel.that you have to arrive 50 minutes early. Decisions decisions.

I live in a different part of Massachusetts, and my experience is somewhat different. I think around here the “church on every corner” history haunts us, leading to factionalism, indifference, and taking Church for granted. And of course in all the dioceses of Massachusetts, many of those " corner churches" are now closed. However one chooses to define “being devout,” based on my travels around the country my opinion is that the greatest degree of “devotion” is found where Catholic churches are fewest and farthest apart, requiring real effort to attend, and real appreciation for the privilege of being able to attend and receive the Sacraments. My relatively small city has 4 open Catholic Churches and 3 of them are hollowed-out, with the possible exceptions of Christmas/Easter, just for the tradition of it.