It's good to see the Archdiocese taking this seriously — low birth rates are hitting our Greek community hard here in Melbourne too. Any chance they share the actual plan details soon so parishes like ours can start some local groups or talks?
If this initiative is serious, let them make the plan public as soon as possible. We in Albania have the same problem, children are being born less and less, and without something concrete like parish groups or help for young families, only words remain. Paul, if they share it, tell us too.
We’re seeing the same drop in baptisms at our parish here in Boston the last few years. If the Archdiocese actually rolls out concrete steps like family support groups or marriage prep that parishes can copy, I’d be the first to sign up to help run one. Paul, keep us posted if they release the details.
Our parish in Denver has seen the exact same dip in baptisms, especially among the younger families. The idea of actual marriage prep sessions that parishes could run sounds practical. Olivia, have you tried anything like that in Boston yet that seemed to work?
Our parish here in Sydney has been running short marriage prep evenings for engaged couples the last couple of years and the feedback has been surprisingly good, especially when we include real couples talking about everyday stuff like finances and in-laws. The baptism numbers are still down though. Mark, what sort of turnout do you get for those prep sessions in Denver?
Our parish here in London has noticed fewer young families too, especially after the last couple of Christmases. The marriage prep idea is sensible; our choir director and his wife ran something similar years ago and at least two couples from it are still coming with their kids. Olivia, what sort of family support group were you thinking might actually get people to turn up on a weeknight?
Our parish in Sydney tried something similar a few years back with monthly evenings for young couples, and the ones who stuck with it said it helped them talk about money before the wedding. Have you noticed in Denver whether the drop in baptisms is more from fewer weddings or from families just not bringing the babies to church?
Yeah, low birth rates are hitting a lot of our parishes too. Our priest mentioned last week they’re putting together some family nights with practical stuff like budgeting for kids and balancing work. Have you tried anything like that in Melbourne yet?
Our parish in Toronto has seen the same drop in baptisms, especially among the 30-somethings who moved here for work. I like the idea of family support groups that actually meet once a month with a simple meal; our knitting circle tried something like that for new mums and a few stayed on. Olivia, what would you put on the list for marriage prep sessions?
Our group here in Sydney ran those evenings too, and yeah, the money chats were the bit that stuck for most couples. In our parish the baptism numbers are down mostly because young families just aren't showing up after the first one, not from fewer weddings. Have you seen the same pattern in Denver?
Our parish in Denver has seen the same thing Rebecca — baptisms drop mostly because families stop coming after the first or second baby, not from fewer weddings. The money talks in those couple evenings sound practical; did your group ever add anything about how to keep showing up for church once the kids arrive?
Our parish here in Denver tried monthly family potlucks too and it really helped the younger couples feel less isolated. For marriage prep I’d definitely add a session on handling money stress, since that’s what broke up two couples I know from church. Irene, did the knitting circle mums mostly come from the Greek community or were there converts as well?
Our potlucks here in Portland work the same way. The money session idea is spot on. In our knitting circle it was mostly Greek grandmas at first, but two convert moms joined last year and it’s been nice watching them swap baby sweater patterns.
Our potlucks in San Francisco definitely cut down on that isolation too, especially for the young families juggling work and kids. On the money stress point, we added a short session with a deacon who used to be a banker; it helped more than I expected. Did your Denver group ever try pairing new parents with an older mentor couple for those first couple of years?
