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About the Parish Census: Connecting Every Catholic Home
"He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out" (John 10:3). The Church is at her best when we know one another, care for one another, and walk together in faith. To that end, every parish in the Diocese of Lafayette is participating in a comprehensive Parish Census. This effort is designed to strengthen our faith community and ensure that every household has a place in our parish family.”
~ Bishop J. Douglas Deshotel
If you have not heard from your church parish, you may fill out this form to be added to the list being sent from the Diocese later this fall: https://forms.gle/oE5fuxki6H3fRkGr6
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
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The goal of this census is to know, welcome, and serve every household more effectively. Accurate records allow the Church to better accompany families through every stage of life and ensure that every household has a place in our parish and diocesan family.
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Your updated information helps your parish and the Diocese to:
- Communicate important parish news and updates throughout the year.
- Connect families with relevant ministries and support services.
- Assist in sacramental preparation for your family members.
- Plan effectively for the future of parish communities. Your information will be handled with the utmost confidentiality and used only for Church communication purposes.
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Yes. Whether you have been a parishioner for many years or recently joined our community, we want to ensure our records are current so we can communicate with you and better support the life of our parish.
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There are three primary ways to participate:
- Check Your Email: If the parish has your email on file, you will receive a secure, personalized link from OSV Hub to update your record directly.
- If you do not receive an email:
- Use a QR Code: Parishes will provide a QR code in their bulletins and on signage that leads to a short online registration form.
- Census Weekend: You can visit the Census Tables after Mass to fill out a paper form or receive guided assistance from volunteers with the digital entry.
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You should include all family members currently residing in your home. This is also a time to update the status of family members who may need to be marked inactive (such as an adult child who has moved away) or who need to become their own "household" (an adult child who has moved out but remains in the Diocese).
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In order to maintain the integrity of parishioner data, updates to a name or a member’s status need to be made at the parish level. For each member listed in your household during the review there is a text box that asks if something has changed that person’s status in the household. i.e. – an adult child moving out of state (the parish will then mark them as inactive), an adult child married and moved out but is still within the Diocese of Lafayette (the parish will create a new record for them), a person has passed away or a divorce has occurred (the parish will make those necessary adjustments in the parishioner/household record according to your notes to the parish).
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You may leave those lines blank. These fields are not required to be filled to submit your updates. You can simply indicate which sacraments have been received, and if you do not know the date or location, the parish can still accept your form.
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It is possible that more than one parish has you registered if you have been active in various parishes over the years (e.g., children in VBS at different parishes or past donations). Choose one email to access and update your record; parish staff will eventually merge duplicate records into a single household file.
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No. Thank you for responding to the email! If you have already verified your data through the personalized link, you do not need to fill out another form. Participating via the email is actually the best way to help us avoid creating unnecessary duplicate records.
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Once the parish staff accepts or enters the preliminary information you provided on a short form, they will send a follow-up email asking you to look it over. This allows you to verify that your data was entered correctly and to review any other existing information they may have connected to your record.
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No. Only the specific church parish to which you gave money can see those transactions.
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Every parishioner matters to us regardless of technology access. You can visit the Census Tables after Mass during Census Weekend to fill out a Long Paper Form designed specifically for households without email. If you cannot attend Mass that weekend, you may call the parish office to request that a form be mailed to you.
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Please still use the link provided in that email. During the update process, you will have a specific opportunity to indicate your current primary parish, which helps the Diocese move your record correctly and prevents duplicate files.
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The email will come from {Church Parish Name} via OSV Hub, a secure platform used by the Diocese of Lafayette church parishes to manage parishioner records. While the platform is OSV Hub, the request is coming directly from your parish or the Diocese.
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Great! Your parish needs enthusiastic parishioners to help build parish life. Please contact your parish office and ask to be connected with your parish's Census Committee Chair.
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