Parish Registration

[dachsiemom]

I finally decided to register at the parish that is near my home. Stopped by the office and asked for a registration form and the secretary wouldn’t give me one. At first she thought I was registering so I can enroll children in the school. I said no, just for myself. Then wanted to know if I was new to the area. I explained that I was not and was a member years ago before I became a lapsed Catholic. I attend this parish every weekend and have for more than six months. I write them a check every month, She still would not give me a registration form. Instead she handed me a bulletin and said the contact number for the pastor is in the bulletin and I need to call him for an appointment. I said thank you very much but I have a bulletin at home. I had asked someone who is new to the parish about registering and she told me she went to the office and registered - no appointment needed with Father. Is this standard? Years ago when I registered at this parish I walked into the office and filled out the appropriate form - end of story.

 

[Saintlucy]

Maybe you went to the office when she was having a grumpy day. It sounds very strange to me. At our parish you can register online if you wish.

 

[IrishAm]

I’ve had to meet with pastors prior to registration a few times. Not to “check out” if I was a good enough Catholic to join but to be sure they knew who I was and could be good priests for my needs and that I had all the information about the parish I would need to be the best Catholic I can be. Parishes also – if there is a popular school or beautiful church (for weddings) – sometimes want proof you live within the boundaries or other explanation. I don’t live within the boundaries of my current parish registration, it does have a great school, and it is beautiful and historic. I had to explain convincingly that I wasn’t planning to get married and all the kids were grown and gone. Of course, a few years later, one of my girls decided she and her young man wanted to be married in my parish, and Father doesn’t let me forget it!

So, I would call Father if I were you. It may be a wonderful blessing to know him and for him to know you.

 

[entropymom]

I had a similar cold experience when I went to register in our new parish. It was really strange. Our family is not lapsed Catholics, we just moved into the state and all I wanted was our weekly envelopes. And so what if I had school aged kids? They were in Catholic school where we came from and I have every intention of enrolling them in a Catholic school here.

After finally getting the form, I filled it out and sent it in and then the envelopes came. I thought that the church wants us to register in our parish, get married in our parish and send our children to school in our local Catholic school. So why do they act like registering the family in the parish is such a big deal?? I felt like I was asking for a special favor from the priest (whom we have yet to meet outside of mass and confession).

 

[MrsHall]

Hi dachsiemom!
I agree with above poster. Just meet with the priest and get to know him. There might be a good reason why the receptionist told you to do so and at least you will find out what it is and get to know him a little. I am usually inclined to expect things to be worse than they are. In our parish you call the office and they direct you from there. We had to fill out a lot of forms (for 8 people!) but then they went through the DRE and she took them to Fr. (This was when we were in RCIA.) Try not to worry about it too much.

 

[DebChris]

I have always registered with the pastor when ever I have moved into a new parish.

 

[CB_Catholic]

Our parish has registration on the 4th Sunday of every month from 7:30 am to 2:00 pm in our Ministries building which is annexed to the church. Very easy–you can go before or after Mass and do everything right there and get all the parish information. Then you can get your family’s picture taken and it will be posted on the bulletin board the following month.
Don’t have to worry about the secretary having a bad day. Volunteers do all of this.

 

[Phemie]

Gee, we just have registration forms at the back of the church and anyone who wants to register just fills one out and drops it in the collection plate. We don’t give out envelopes unless you request them, why waste paper and money that way. Once a year we have ‘sign up Sunday’ when we ask people to volunteer for various things in the parish. The form we use for that has a front page that is all about the family (name, address, children’s age, sacramental record, etc) and we ask every family to fill it in whether or not they want to volunteer for anything.

Of course we don’t have a Catholic school so we don’t get paranoid about people’s reasons for registering; by the same token, they feel no pressure to register.

 

[dixieagle]

We’ve been members of our parish for 25 years, but all we had to do was fill out a “census form” and drop it in the collection basket, or at the parish office (we aren’t even within the parish boundaries, and DID register because of the excellent school!)

Our younger daughter and her husband just moved back into town for grad school (moved directly across the street from the church!) and they simply filled out the same type of form as we had. Their names were then in the bulletin the next week, welcoming them. (Kind of funny, as she grew up in the parish, but they were now a “new family”.)

It doesn’t seem that there should be any roadblocks to registering, though I can understand there being rules (member for a year before getting “member rates” for weddings, “in parish” tuition, etc.)

 

[Joannm]

perhaps this might help…in our parish, parishioners pay lesser tuition for the school than non-parishioners. We have people come in from outside the parish and register just to send their kids to the school. They do not support the parish otherwise or even come and worship here. Maybe this is what the OPs parish is concerned about.

 

[dachsiemom]

perhaps this might help…in our parish, parishioners pay lesser tuition for the school than non-parishioners. We have people come in from outside the parish and register just to send their kids to the school. They do not support the parish otherwise or even come and worship here. Maybe this is what the OPs parish is concerned about.

I understand the above and fully understand that it is not fair for someone to register just for the purpose of using the parish school - or for a wedding. The secretary asked if I was enrolling children in the school and I told her no. I am not planning a wedding any time soon either.

Last night I asked my friend who registered at this parish and she clarified that she was given the registration form and completed it - met with Father anyways as was enrolled in RCIA. At that time he reviewed everything with her and gave her a folder with parish information, volunteer forms, etc.

I did go back and check the bulletin and it is stated that new parishioners can register in the office on Sundays after the morning masses or by appointment. I work a lot of hours and don’t go to mass on Sunday - well rarely - but attend the Saturday vigil. Rarely do I have a day off during the week and it was an effort to stop by the office on a weekday afternoon. Needless to say, I was rather disappointed at how I was greeted.

Anyways, I have decided to let this situation go and continue doing what I have been - attending the Saturday vigil mass - and I do contribute financially. Next year this parish is merging with another parish and maybe then some sort of open enrollment will take place.