Answering God's Call Through the Catholic Ministries Appeal

By MARK DOCKERY

The Catholic Ministries Appeal (CMA) is an annual invitation to the faithful in the Diocese of Winona-Rochester to answer God’s call by supporting ministries and services that directly impact parishes, schools, families, and other vital ministries. Serving 20 counties in Southern Minnesota, with a combined Catholic population of 114,450, the appeal provides an opportunity to experience God’s grace by living the Gospel message of faith, hope, and charity with those in need. How can you be sure your CMA donations are making a difference?

The numbers tell a powerful story of the impact of the CMA on local parish communities. In 2024, the Diocese of Winona-Rochester, through its parishes, welcomed 1,078 new Catholics through baptisms, celebrated 190 marriages, and received 139 people into Full Communion. CMA funding benefits your parishes in supporting faith formation for youth and adults, parish services, cemeteries, evangelization, and charitable outreach through Catholic Charities.

While Catholic Charities is a separate entity, it aligns closely with the diocesan mission, and the CMA provides significant financial support for its work. Catholic Charities offers vital services such as adult advocacy, family and parent services, emergency shelters, Project Rachel, parish social ministry, and more. By supporting Catholic Charities through the CMA, you help strengthen these essential services in addition to their own fundraising efforts.

The CMA plays a crucial role in supporting Catholic education. In 2024, Catholic schools throughout the diocese provided an excellent education rooted in Catholic values for nearly 4,500 students. These schools are central to the faith formation of our youth, often identifying and nurturing those who feel called to religious life. In addition to the elementary, middle, and high schools across the Diocese, the CMA supports the Newman Centers on Winona State and Mankato State campuses, ensuring that Catholic students in higher education have the resources to grow in their faith.

The CMA also provides care for our 64 active priests and 31 senior priests. A significant portion of CMA funds supports priests through continued vocational training and care for retired priests. Priests sacrifice much to serve. These men, who are assigned to parishes throughout the diocese, play an essential role in attending to the spiritual needs of parishioners, administering the sacraments, and ensuring the parish's financial health. CMA nurtures and encourages priests by providing counseling and ongoing formation opportunities so they can effectively attend to the many requests and emotional demands of parishioners. In addition, the diocese helps guide priests in areas such as faith formation, adult christian initiation, evangelization, and other ministries.

The Diocese provides these services through the generous support of over 7,000 donations to the CMA. Each parish is assigned a fair-share goal. Beyond that goal, additional funds are returned to the parishes to address local needs. For 2025, the diocesan goal for all parishes combined is $2 million.

As the Director of Stewardship and Development for the Diocese of Winona-Rochester, I am writing to highlight your crucial role in the Catholic Ministries Appeal. Your generosity directly benefits your parish and the Diocese. In my role, I work closely with parishes to help with offertory efforts, special appeals, and capital campaigns, ensuring the longterm financial vitality of our parishes.

Each year, the CMA is centered around a theme, and for 2025, the theme is Answering God’s Call. This theme is not just a slogan but a call to action inspired by Caravaggio’s painting The Calling of Saint Matthew, chosen by Bishop Barron to remind us that Christ continually calls us to follow Him, just as He called St. Matthew. One powerful way we can respond to God’s call is by being good stewards of the gifts He has entrusted to us. Stewardship is the belief that all we have comes from God, and we are responsible for using these gifts wisely and generously. Whether we volunteer our time, offer our talents, or contribute financially, we are all called to serve our neighbors in both spiritual and material ways.

Your support of the Catholic Ministries Appeal profoundly impacts the life of the Church in our community. Please consider financially supporting the 2025 CMA, which will allow us to address specific needs such as supporting evangelization efforts, strengthening local parishes, and supporting the ministries that help our neighbors in need. Together, we can answer God’s call and continue to spread His message of faith, hope, and charity throughout our Diocese of Winona-Rochester.

Mark Dockery is the director of stewardship and development for the Diocese of Winona-Rochester.