"So, no one knows who that person is on the cross or the people standing next to Him?" I asked in surprise.
"Well," my Dutch friend replied, "they might know it's a religious figure or a man named Jesus—but only in the way you know an old fairy tale."
I had been struck by the statues, shrines, and crucifixes scattered across the city. The beauty of Holland is undeniable—whitewashed towns with tidy streets, tulips bursting in color, windmills slowly turning against the sky. Yet amid all this loveliness, one detail stood out more than the scenery itself: the silence of the churches.
Once the heartbeat of community life, grand monasteries, convents, and parish churches have been converted into apartments, shops, or cafés. Chapels where generations once stopped to pray are shuttered. Even the great cathedrals—built to echo with hymns—now stand mostly as national monuments, preserved for their history rather than their holiness.
That reality—and the conversation with my friend—hit me. It clicked: what I was seeing there could happen anywhere.
Recently Pope Leo XIV spoke to a group of priests from across the world exhorting, "If this hope is not to remain a mere slogan, formation is essential. Indeed, it is necessary that the 'house' of our life and vocational journey, whether priestly or lay, be founded on 'rock', on solid foundations with which to face the human and spiritual storms from which even the lives of Christians, priests, and missionaries are not exempt. How can we build our house on rock?" Because the decline of faith is not isolated.
We know that secularism has taken deep root, leaving millions disconnected from the life of the Church. Every day, we read headlines of suffering and confusion, reminding us how deeply the world still aches for the person of Jesus Christ. We find ourselves echoing Peter’s desperate words to Jesus: “To whom shall we go?" and how will we respond?
"Many of the programs that Catholic Leadership Institute provides bishops... enlighten us about things we wouldn't ordinarily know about, or we may not be sensitive to, and they bring it to our attention in a very instructive, non-threatening, and non-judgmental way to help us become better priests and better bishops. The programs Catholic Leadership Institute provides are timely, they are informative, they are helpful, and they are solid."
- Most Rev. Gregory John Hartmeyer, OFM Conventual,
Archbishop of Atlanta
A Time for Action
Catholic Leadership Institute (CLI) believes this moment demands more than nostalgia or the same strategy. It demands hope in action—hope rooted in the Gospel’s enduring power and the call to be apostles. As Dan Cellucci shared recently with a group of close friends and supporters:
“The Church building, the sacred space, is not what makes a parish. The parish is the people – the community of faith. As the landscape changes, the sacred spaces of our hearts are what matters most. We are called to be like the original apostles – to be of one mind and one heart. It is the hearts of people we encounter one by one every day in our work, schools, parks, and doctors' offices that we are called to transform.”
In this spirit of hope, Catholic Leadership Institute’s new strategic plan seeks to touch thousands of souls through three deliberate priorities.
Ignite the Parish, Embolden the Clergy, Forge the Future
This mission is not optional. It is urgent. Renewal will not arrive overnight, nor will it come through a single program. It will take courage, creativity, and faith-filled leadership. It will take all of us—laity, priests, and bishops alike—saying “yes” to building a Church ready to flourish in this new apostolic age.
CLI is convinced that the renewal of the Church depends on strong leadership—leaders confident, equipped, and unafraid to guide others into the life of Christ. This is why CLI is investing so deeply in the formation of priests, bishops, and lay leaders as we launch our five-year strategic plan this year.
Forge the Future
CLI will equip 50-60 bishops every year with leadership formation, transition support, and strategic consulting to guide dioceses with clarity and courage. Because pastoral leadership is first and foremost spiritual leadership, we want to ensure that those called to shepherd us are not left alone without support.
Embolden the Clergy
One of its most exciting initiatives is Eius, CLI's new service designed to strengthen between 950-1,000 priests for the long and royal road of Jesus' ministry. Unlike traditional formation models, Eius emphasizes fraternity, spiritual renewal, and practical support—meeting priests where they are and giving them the tools to live their vocation with joy and endurance.
Ignite the Parish
At the parish level, CLI continues to expand its Next Generation Parish initiative. This two-year journey helps each parish identify its unique gifts and gaps, using data and discernment to chart a path toward full flourishing. CLI believes that parish by parish, community by community, the Church will be renewed—not through broad strokes, but through deep, local transformation. At the end of these next five years, CLI will have reached 225-250 parish communities.
A Call to Hope
We have been graced with a renewed conviction: we cannot take this moment lightly. The Church in America is not immune to the decline of faith around us. But neither are we without hope.
The work of CLI reminds us that the Holy Spirit is still moving, still raising up leaders, still calling the faithful to boldness. Renewal is possible. But it requires us to embrace this moment with open eyes and open hearts.
We are called not just to preserve beautiful churches, but to fill them. To ensure that when future generations walk through their doors, they don’t just see the past—they encounter Christ alive and present. The question is not whether the Church will survive. The question is: will we embrace this moment with courage and faith, so that the Church may not only endure, but thrive?
Our President & CEO Daniel Cellucci's weekly email, the DIAL: Discerning Insights About Leadership.
CLI serves Church leaders, helping them rediscover their potential and forming them to be more intentional with those they serve.
CLI helps empower and energize Catholic leaders by providing focus and courage to engage the culture with an apostolic mindset.
