The National Religious Retirement Office (NRRO) has announced the annual Retirement Fund for Religious collection, scheduled in parishes of the Diocese of Allentown on Dec. 9-10.
In 2022, parishioners contributed $24,519.75 to the collection. From this collection, the Missionary Sisters of the Precious Blood in Shillington received a total of $49,607.49 in financial support made possible by the Retirement Fund for Religious.
The Diocese of Allentown, in conjunction with the Diocese of Harrisburg and the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, also distributes funding to local religious communities to support retirement needs.
“We are privileged to support those who have dedicated their lives to tireless service, and we are immensely grateful for the continuing generosity of U.S. Catholic donors to this vital cause,” said John Knutsen, director of NRRO.
Catholic sisters, brothers, and religious order priests – collectively known as women and men religious – have selflessly served for decades without significant financial compensation. However, due to escalating health care costs, numerous U.S. religious communities face a substantial gap between their elderly members’ needs and the financial resources available for their care. Many religious orders experience insufficient retirement savings.
NRRO reported that only 6 percent of religious communities that shared data with the office last year have sufficient retirement funding, and the financial strain they experience becomes more significant as average ages go up and healthcare costs increase.
The 2022 appeal demonstrated Catholics’ tremendous generosity by raising $27.6 million. These funds from the Retirement Fund for Religious collection provided financial assistance for retirement needs for 297 U.S. religious communities.
NRRO coordinates the annual national appeal for the Retirement Fund for Religious and distributes financial assistance to eligible religious communities to help care for their aging members.
To address the deficit in retirement funding among U.S. religious orders, the Catholic bishops of the United States initiated the Retirement Fund for Religious collection in 1988.
NRRO is sponsored by the Conference of Major Superiors of Men, the Council of Major Superiors of Women Religious, the Leadership Conference of Women Religious and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
For more information, go to www.retiredreligious.org or contact Robin Cabral, Campaign Director at 508-685-8899 or robincabral@retiredreligious.org.
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