New Research Shows: Catholics Want to Evangelize But Don’t Know How to Start
Catholic Intentional Discipleship in the U.S.
A Vinea Research and DeSales Media Report
Do Catholics care about evangelization anymore? Research suggests engaged Catholics do! Here’s what you need to know about it to better serve the Catholics in your parish, community, or apostolate group who want to evangelize but are feeling ill-equipped.
About the Study
In 2021, DeSales Media commissioned Vinea Research to learn more about Catholics in the United States who are dedicated to following Jesus. The study was designed to identify unmet needs of those who are intentional about their faith.
Partnering with more than 20 organizations, we surveyed 3,137 devout Catholics to gain insights for the study. Organizations included Hallow, Ascension, OSV, Franciscan University, SENT, Catholify, Damascus, Catholic Leadership Institute, and Aleteia. The largest sampling came from Ascension Press, OSV, and the Archdiocese of Denver. While this is not a perfect representation of devout Catholics in the US, we think it is a very good start as the first study of its kind with a very large sample size. We hope that it will spark more efforts to understand devout Catholics.
The study asked questions around faith life, technology use, spiritual direction, evangelization, and community involvement.
Learn more about the study and download the full report.
Findings on Evangelization from DeSales Study
Let’s look at what engaged Catholics are reporting about their desire to share the faith, their evangelization skills, and their interest in developing those skills.
3 Key Findings:
“Catholics in this sample are comfortable sharing their faith, but there is significant room for improvement.”
The report found that: “These Catholics know they should share the faith and are largely comfortable doing so. But most feel lacking in some skills.”
Respondents expressed the desire to learn more skills. When asked to rate the statement “I feel like I am lacking certain faith-sharing skills and hope to get better at sharing my faith with others,” 47% selected “Very or Moderately True of what I believe.”
“There is a great need for education and resources to help with evangelization, particularly in the areas of confidence, knowing how to engage in discussion, and how to do so in today’s culture.”
Responses were somewhat varied regarding barriers to evangelization: “Situational appropriateness is most often cited as a barrier to evangelization. However, many also lack knowing how to start, confidence, and experience.”
Part of the barrier regarding confidence could entail psychological hurdles that could be addressed by learning to take a leap of faith, remembering that it is not we, but the Holy Spirit who ultimately moves hearts.
“Hold your eyes on God and leave the doing to Him. That is all the doing you have to worry about.” - St. Jane Frances de Chantal
“There is a great deal of interest in further developing evangelization skills”
The report found that: “76% [of respondents] are moderately or extremely interested in developing evangelization skills.” This presents a clear opportunity to equip devout Catholics to share the faith even more effectively than they already do.
An effective ministry or program in this area should strive to present solutions for lack of confidence and other feelings of insecurity around evangelization.
Takeaway: How to Equip Devout Catholics to Evangelize
Based on the findings of this report, what steps can be taken to meet the needs of engaged Catholics in this area?
Equipping devout Catholics requires addressing two areas: Easiest is making basic evangelization tools and resources known and easily accessible on a Smartphone, tablet, or laptop, whether that’s an app, YouTube videos, mobile-friendly website, etc. The other, which seems to be underserved, is finding ways to overcome the psychological hurdles to evangelization, including how to evangelize in various situations.
1. Make Evangelization Tools Available
2. Overcome Psychological Hurdles
Lack of confidence, experience, and knowing how to start.
This could be addressed in a variety of ways. Role-playing is one. For example, facilitate a conversation in your young adult group where one person speaks from a specific non-Catholic viewpoint and the other speaks from a Catholic perspective. Have the group provide constructive feedback after the discussion.
Another option is to model evangelization through the use of instructional videos or cartoons. Although more expensive, this can be more effective if it is done in a fun, engaging way.
Finally, in addressing lack of confidence, remind your group to “let go and let God,” as Scripture and Church teaching call us to do. Additionally, and most importantly, devote time to pray for discernment on how best to overcome this psychological hurdle in your apostolate or ministry. Asking the Holy Spirit for guidance can make all the difference.
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, on your own intelligence do not rely; In all your ways be mindful of him, and he will make straight your paths.” - Proverbs 3:5-6
Situational appropriateness
Devout Catholics list situational appropriateness as a barrier to evangelization. This suggests an uncertainty about when it is appropriate to bring up the faith, in what context, and with what approach. This could be addressed by discussing ways to evangelize in any situation, both with actions and words.
Another key point to cover is to identify the reasons why Catholics feel insecure about evangelizing. These may include fear of what other people may think, uncertainty about what to say, and difficulty ‘letting go and letting God’ or ‘putting out into the deep’—in other words, trusting in the Holy Spirit to guide the conversation.
Encourage your group to pray to the Holy Spirit for the courage, clarity, and strength they need to share the Truth. There are many prayers from the saints that ask for guidance, such as this one from St. Augustine:
"Father, I am seeking; I am hesitant and uncertain, but will you, O God, watch over each step of mine and guide me."
What’s Next
More research is needed on what kinds of programs work best for training people to evangelize. If your apostolate, parish, or ministry already has a program, consider whether it is meeting the needs that were highlighted in this report. You could conduct a survey to assess whether your program participants feel their needs are being met, and where they can identify room for improvement.
The area of psychological hurdles to evangelization (and how to overcome them) offers untapped potential for future exploration and research. This could be the subject of deep-dive qualitative research or emotional-drivers research, perhaps sponsored by the USCCB or OSV.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE REPORT
Who is Vinea Research?
Vinea Research was founded with the goal of applying proven, business-based market research methods to helping Catholic groups get the information they need to further the New Evangelization.
Vinea Research offers a full range of market research techniques to deliver critical customer insights that can help transform the way Catholic leadership, parishes, apostolates, and advocacy groups reach and motivate the people they serve.
Vinea Research is built on a team of experienced market research experts and deep knowledge and understanding of Catholicism. Our mission is to support Church leadership, apostolates, parishes, and other organizations by helping them better understand those they serve through expert market research and insights.
