Catholic Services Appeal (CSA)

The Catholic Services Appeal is an annual assessment on parishes in the archdiocese designed to raise funds to operate archdiocesan programs. Unlike the Changing Lives Together campaign, which is raising funds for capital resources and improvements in parishes and in the archdiocese, the CSA creates operational funds for archdiocesan projects.

CSA funds are used to finance:

• Catholic education in the archdiocese. Gifts to the Catholic Services Appeal allow the archdiocesan Office for Catholic Schools to help Catholic schools provide students with academic training while continuing the teaching mission of Jesus Christ. The office, which is part of the Department of Evangelization, Catechesis and Schools, provides resources for teachers and principals, parents and students, and alumni.
• Pro-life activities. Gifts to the Catholic Services Appeal help fund many pro-life initiatives, including Project Rachel, a post-abortion healing ministry, and the annual Life Is A Gift Conference, an annual opportunity to discuss current pro-life issues.
• Vocation awareness. CSA funds allow the archdiocesan Office of Priestly Vocations to help guide men discerning a call to the diocesan priesthood through discernment weekends at Sacred Heart Major Seminary. These firsthand, up close and stress-free looks at seminary life are offered for men of all ages.
• Missionary activity. A number of national collections are included in the Catholic Services Appeal each year, such as the Black and Indian Missions Collection. Since 1884, the Black and Indian Missions Collection has provided grants to dioceses to support and strengthen evangelization programs among predominantly African American, American Indian, Eskimo and Aleut communities of faith in the United States. Other national collections benefiting from gifts to the Catholic Services Appeal include those for the Catholic University of America, the Church in Latin America, Catholic Home Missions, the Holy Land and the Catholic Communication Campaign.
• Archdiocesan Programs. CSA funds support valuable ministries, programs and services coordinated by the archdiocesan departments of Parish Life and Services; Communications; Evangelization, Catechesis and Schools; and Development and Stewardship. The Office of Priestly Vocations, the Metropolitan Tribunal, and Sacred Heart Major Seminary benefit from gifts to the Catholic Services Appeal as well.