Mass Attendance: A Cause of Concern

Mass attendance in Arkansas has bounced back 51-percent since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, but there are some long-term trends that continue to be concerning for the Diocese of Little Rock. More than one in 10 people have not returned to Mass in Arkansas after the pandemic and nearly one in four have stopped attending Church compared to 2010. Find out how Bishop Anthony B. Taylor, our diocese's priests and leaders and laity reacted to the numbers and what the Church needs to do to attract those who have fallen away and those who are looking to join.

Parishes look for ways to entice faithful back to church

By Chris Price, Published: February 24, 2023

Four-month-old Ida Jane Betzner doesn’t realize it now, but her parents are laying the foundation for what will, hopefully, be lifelong membership in the Catholic Church. Her parents, Sarah and Will Betzner, made a pact to attend Mass weekly while she was still in utero, and the trio has not missed a Sunday liturgy at Christ the King Church in Little Rock since. “Mass has taken on a different meaning now because we want to expose our More...

Mass attendance growing, but lower than before pandemic

By Chris Price, Published: February 10, 2023

Mass attendance in Arkansas has bounced back since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, but there are some long-term trends that continue to be concerning for the Diocese of Little Rock. In October, 45,855 people attended weekend Masses across the state, according to figures released by the diocese. That is a 51-percent increase from October 2020 when just 30,427 attended services in the middle of the pandemic. However, the 2022 figure is an 11-percent decrease from More...