CARA Report: Lay Ecclesial Ministers in the United States (2015)

Lay Ecclesial Ministry Summit 2015

CARA Report: Lay Ecclesial Ministers in the United States, February 2015. The CARA co-authors of this white paper are Mark M. Gray and Mary L. Gautier.

There are currently more than 39,600 lay ecclesial ministers (LEMs) in the United States. They are most commonly involved in religious education, sacramental preparation, and/or formation; liturgy and/or music ministry; or general parish administration. Eighty percent of LEMs are women and the median age is 55. Older LEMs are less likely than younger LEMs to have college degrees in ministry, religion, or theology and more likely to have begun their ministry as a volunteer within their home parish. Younger LEMs are more likely to come out of college looking for opportunities in parishes other than their own and are seeking paid positions from the outset. Younger LEMs are also more racially and ethnically diverse than older LEMs. Forty-seven percent of those currently enrolled in lay ecclesial ministry formation programs are Hispanic or Latino(a). Parishioners report high levels of satisfaction with the ministry of LEMs and about eight in ten priests agree that parish life would be aided by an increase in full-time professional lay ecclesial ministers and that the Catholic Church needs to move faster empowering laypersons in ministry. LEMs are most likely to say they began their career in ministry to be of service to the Church, in response to God’s call, and because this fit their areas of competence, interests, and or gifts. LEMs report that they heard “the call” to ministry at about age 25. Nine in ten (89 percent) consider their ministry “a vocation, not just a job.”

In this white paper, the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) utilizes and summarizes its existing data and resources to provide the most current profile possible of lay ecclesial ministers (LEMs) in the United States. The definition of lay ecclesial ministers outlined in Co-Workers in the Vineyard of the Lord (2005) states that these individuals are adequately formed and prepared lay persons, authorized by the hierarchy to serve publicly in leadership for a particular area of ministry, in close mutual collaboration with clergy. In terms of research, most often this population has been defined as those professional and trained lay persons involved in paid parish ministry for at least 20 hours a week. Although there may not always be perfect overlap between the Co-Workers definition and the social science research on LEMs, we expect and assume that most often there is. 

lem-summit-2015-cara-research-review-on-lay-ecclesial-ministry-2015.pdf