Earlier this month, Catholic Leadership Institute (CLI) was honored to host the inaugural Fr. Chuck Pfeffer Forum in Dallas, TX. This “think tank” style event brought together 30 leaders of all ages and demographics from across the country to pray, plan, and diligently work to reimagine parish life for young Catholics within our Church.
The Pfeffer Forum originated from CLI ministry participants, friends, board members, volunteer leaders, and benefactors who love our mission and wanted to roll up their sleeves and contribute to our ministry. This work is a part of CLI’s larger strategic vision to foster apostolic parish models that welcome our young Catholics under 50 years old.
The Forum Honors the Legacy of a Special Priest
The Forum honors the legacy of Fr. Chuck Pfeffer, a visionary leader, co-founder of Catholic Leadership Institute, and a true servant of the Church.
In the early days of what would eventually become CLI, Tim Flanagan, co-founder of CLI, was encouraged by a priest friend to share his vision with 12 people and gather feedback. Fr. Chuck was the 12th person Tim spoke with at that time. As a leader in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, Fr. Chuck immediately saw the potential of Tim’s vision for what Catholic Leadership Institute is today.
Fr. Chuck believed deeply in bringing leadership training to those who would carry the Church forward – especially young adults – and inspiring them to share their gifts with the Church. His partnership with Tim planted the first seeds of CLI. From there, an incredible ministry blossomed.
The Pfeffer Forum nurtured those seeds planted by Fr. Chuck and helped them to continue to grow. Fr. Chuck’s heart for faith, service, and collaboration shines through in everything that CLI does today. It’s fitting, then, that the Pfeffer Forum captures those same values. The Pfeffer Forum was an opportunity for our group to dream of new ways to engage and support the next generation in our parishes.
Research & Reimagining for Young Catholics
The Pfeffer Forum provided a timely and much-needed space for dialogue around the growing disaffiliation of young Catholics from their parish communities.
At the heart of our research efforts is the Disciple Maker Index survey, which has now captured over 750,000 responses from parishes nationwide. Over the past 18 months, we also engaged more than 340 leaders and young Catholics through in-person events and virtual symposiums. These conversations yielded both meaningful insights and actionable strategies, which we've compiled into a recently published whitepaper on Reaching, Engaging, and Inspiring the Next Generation. This resource served as the cornerstone for our time with the Pfeffer Forum participants.
What distinguishes our approach to research is our commitment to listening deeply to the voices of everyday Catholics. We believe that truly advancing the Church begins by understanding and responding to the lived experiences of those in the pews. That spirit of listening and collaboration is exactly what guided our time together at the Pfeffer Forum. As we engaged with our guests — hearing their stories, gathering their ideas — they became active contributors to some of the most important research unfolding in the Church today. We are sincerely grateful for their involvement.
What We Accomplished
The Pfeffer Forum was a two-day event of immersive conversation, witness, and prayer about young Catholics and plans for the future of the Church. Participants spent time learning about the shift the Church is currently experiencing that points to a different form of missionary discipleship than what we’ve known in recent times – one that hearkens to the days of the early apostolic Church. There were interactive activities and small group conversations that brought helpful insights to light. We also spent time focused on communications through the lens of St. Paul. (We even taught our participants how to speak the language of young people with a fun lesson on slang!).
What also makes CLI unique is the way in which we encourage and make space to think about how Jesus is working in our lives. The Pfeffer Forum was rooted in prayer experiences, adoration, and beautiful Masses celebrated by the clergy present. We were honored and blessed to have wonderful clergy join us who are so invested in the young people of our Church. We thank Bishop Lou Tylka from the Diocese of Peoria, Fr. Sean Horrigan from the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, Fr. Matt Summe from Archdiocese of Cincinnati, Abbot Peter Verhalen from the Diocese of Dallas, and Fr. Paolo Puccini from the Diocese of Austin, Texas. Their presence and perspectives were foundational to our conversations.
Our worship music was provided by the Catholic Music Initiative, which added to the reflection and sacredness of our time together. We hosted a panel of clergy and young people who shared the hopes and their challenges for young Catholics that the witness in their vocations. We even offered space to allow our participants to contemplate their own witness stories so that they will be ready to share it with others as missionary disciples.
Bishop Tylka Reflection & Challenges to Each of Us
A highlight of our time together was a reflection by Bishop Tylka who talked about the sacrifices his parents made to help him as a young person be involved in his parish, how his own call as a young person was nurtured by his parish, and the impact we can all have on welcoming young people and engaging them in his Church. He left us with an important message: “If you impact even one young person in our Church, in your parish or through your time at the Forum… that effort is so worth it.” The seeds we plant now have the power to raise strong leaders of faith for the future of our Church.
With hearts full of gratitude and anticipation, CLI looks forward to the fruit of the conversations, collaborations, and vision that emerged from the Pfeffer Forum. We truly believe that we will live Bishop Tylka’s challenge!
Gratitude & The Next Steps of the Journey
It can be hard to be the first to do something—stepping into uncharted territory, taking risks, and daring to dream a little bigger. But we’ve witnessed how incredibly important it is to pioneer and try new things, especially for the work of Catholic Leadership Institute. As we look back on the important work of our Pfeffer Forum participants, we can see that it is the beginning of something special, something that will have a lasting impact on the Church for years to come. We look forward to hosting future forums!
One of Fr. Chuck’s favorite Scripture passages was the “Road to Emmaus” from Luke’s Gospel (24:13-35). It’s a passage about journeying with Jesus. The Pfeffer Forum itself was a journey where we walked alongside each other, inspired and renewed in our mission to serve the Church and its people.
We thank all attendees of the Pfeffer Forum who were willing to step into bold conversations and challenge the status quo. We are grateful for their presence with one another and for listening and leading with love and courage. And while this event may have been the first of its kind, it’s just the beginning of a journey. We look forward to hosting future Pfeffer Forums as we continue this journey of learning and listening.
We can’t help but believe that Fr. Chuck Pfeffer, who inspired this entire endeavor, is certainly smiling with pride up in heaven!
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