There is a palpable peace you feel in a well-run parish. When administrative foundations are set in place with care and intention, the noise of the work fades and what remains is a community built on systems that actually support those who serve.
Having worked in ministry myself—both as a volunteer and an employee at the parish level—I have lived this reality from every conceivable angle. I know what it means to wear every hat, to juggle communication strategies, and to try to keep the lights on digitally while running on fumes. As a digital storyteller, I know that this work takes energy, deep brain power, and time. But more than anything, it takes people.
Too often, ministry is treated as an endless scramble. When there are no clear processes in place, what happens when a key employee faces an unexpected emergency or decides to step down from their role? Suddenly, the ministry grinds to a halt. The burden falls entirely on whoever is left behind, leading to quiet burnout and missed opportunities to reach souls.
That hidden human cost is precisely why a new online offering, The Well-Run Parish, a 3-part webinar series—pioneered by eCatholic and The Catholic University of America’s Busch School of Business Church Management Program (CMP)—is so vital. Hosted by eCatholic’s Matthew Kurtz and joined by Fr. Anthony Stoeppel, associate professor for the CMP program, the series brings together academic expertise and real-world parish insights to help Catholic communities evolve in church management and digital ministry.
As Fr. Stoeppel notes regarding the series, “There are costs to doing digital ministry the hard way that do not immediately appear. Excellence in administration,” he adds, “enhances impact in ministry. Simplifying parish management with tech done the correct way multiplies ministry impact and saves souls.”
The first webinar, The Real Cost of Doing Digital Ministry the Hard Way, tackles the realities we often try to ignore. It reminds leaders that digital ministry is far more than just managing social media feeds. It digs deep into the friction caused by disconnected systems, exploring how fragmented administrative tools create missed opportunities, and why an honest digital ministry assessment is so urgently needed.
In the second session, Mission That’s Built to Last: Why Digital Ministry Needs an Owner, it directly confronts the “ownership vacuum” in our parishes. Ask most churches who is responsible for the website, email lists, or social media, and you will often get a pause, followed by a hesitant name: “Well, mostly Karen, but it’s not really her job.” Statistics show that only 21% of Catholic organizations have a clearly defined role responsible for digital ministry. This reveals that most of them have someone doing the work without formal ownership.
The Well-Run Parish webinar series also unpacks how to structure clear org charts, establish accountability for both staff and volunteers, and handle feedback gracefully. I appreciate how strongly it underscores this fact: true ownership doesn’t require technical expertise. It requires accountability and makes it entirely achievable for any parish, regardless of its size or budget.
While the first two webinar sessions have occurred, registering today grants you access to them so you can learn everything covered so far. You will receive the recording playback and insights directly in your email, so you can discern where to focus your energy for maximum ministry fruitfulness.
The sessions all build up toward the webinar series finale on Tuesday, October 20 at 10 am CST: Metrics That Matter: Measuring Ministry or Just Counting? This final gathering will tie everything together, offering parish leaders and ministry influencers the tools to move past empty clicks and start measuring genuine spiritual vitality.
This isn’t just time spent learning. It is an investment in parish health—a chance to revitalize your community’s culture from the ground up. As Fr. Stoeppel aptly reminds attendees during the opening session, studying church management and bringing order to our administrative paths is a calling worthy of leaders striving to emulate trailblazing saints such as St. Gregory the Great, a patron and model for church management.
When we step back and look at what it means to build a parish that endures, we realize that systems and ownership aren’t just corporate buzzwords—they are acts of stewardship. They protect the integrity of our parish health, honor the volunteers and staff who give their time and talent to work, and clear the path so that true evangelization can happen unhindered.
As St. Catherine of Siena reminds us, “Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.” Now is the time to build parishes that do just that—parishes not weighed down by chaos and guesswork, but equipped, grounded, and set ablaze to bring light to a weary world.
Leaders, pastors, and members of the media can request the recordings of the first two webinars and also secure their registration for the final online series of The Well Run Parish taking place on Tuesday, October 20th at 10 am CST. The final in the series is on the topic of Metrics That Matter: Measuring Ministry or Just Counting? Visit eCatholic Church Management (https://ecatholic.com/churchmanagement) to join.
Here’s to parishes that are well lit, well run, and well owned!
