Come Home: What the Catholic Church Must do to Bring Back the Faithful

By James Katende – The Catholic Church finds itself in a time of both profound crisis and immense opportunity. Around the world, numbers have declined not only in the pews but in the hearts of many who once called the Church home.

The reasons are many: scandal, disillusionment, secularism, division, silence in the face of injustice, or messages that seem distant from the daily struggles of ordinary people. But the Church does not exist merely to preserve itself—it exists to proclaim the living Christ. If the Church desires to grow again, it must rediscover its first love, not in structures, but in the burning urgency of the Gospel. It must become once again the Church that goes forth, that stands with the poor, the outcast, the young, the forgotten. It must speak not only with doctrine, but with encounter—truth lived in compassion, holiness expressed in proximity, and worship grounded in the real wounds of the world.

The Church must listen deeply. Not only to the cries of those within, but especially to those outside its doors—the wounded, the sceptical, the betrayed. It must address the real questions of our time with clarity and conviction, but also with tenderness and understanding. People seek meaning, identity, belonging, and beauty.

The Church must offer more than rules; it must offer Christ. This means forming joyful, spirit-filled communities where the sacraments are alive, where preaching stirs the soul, where youth find purpose and families find strength. It must invest in the deep formation of its priests, deacons, and lay leaders so that they may be credible, compassionate witnesses. It must embrace technology without becoming mechanical.

It must evangelise not by pressure, but by presence, by walking alongside, sharing life, and opening doors of mercy. The Church will grow when it becomes truly missionary again, bold not in power, but in love.

And so the time has come for courage and clarity. The Church must repent where it has failed and rebuild with new faith. It must never dilute its message, but it must find new language for a new generation. It must be a Church of the poor, the young, the broken, and the curious. Not an exclusive club, but a home for all.

Growth will not come through strategies alone, but through saints. It is holiness that draws, love that converts, and joy that compels. The Church must be visibly different from the world, but intimately involved in its healing. It must be unafraid to challenge comfort, and equally unafraid to offer compassion. If it does this—if it lifts high the Cross, opens wide its arms, and lives fully the mystery it proclaims—then hearts will return, vocations will rise, and the Church will be renewed not only in number, but in Spirit and in truth.

Prayer for Church Numbers to grow

O Lord of Harvest, Divine Creator of all life, we cry out to You in this time of hunger and wandering. Look upon Your Church with mercy. See the weariness in the eyes of the shepherds, the emptiness in abandoned pews, the questions in the hearts of the young. Stir again the fire of Pentecost. Let tongues speak Your truth boldly, let hearts burn with zeal, and let every community become a beacon of welcome, light, and transformation. Lord, send labourers into Your vineyard, but first send Your Spirit into the Church’s soul.

 We pray for bishops and priests, for religious and missionaries, for families and youth—make them holy, make them alive. We pray for those who have left—call them home. We pray for those who have never known You—reveal Yourself through us. Let our liturgies be radiant, our ministries be fruitful, and our witness be true. Break down every wall of pride, silence every voice of fear, and let the Gospel be preached in every language, culture, and heart. May we not seek numbers for our glory, but souls for Yours. May every parish become a sanctuary of love, every heart an altar, every day a new opportunity to draw the world into Your divine embrace. Lord of all nations, restore Your Church, and make it a home where all may find life. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.