CINCINNATI — Sunday marks Easter as the Archdiocese of Cincinnati is seeing its highest number of people joining the church in more than 15 years.
Data provided by the archdiocese shows the number of people joining the church rose more than 28% from last year.
It also shows the number has more than tripled since 2021.
Jeremy Helmes, director of parish vitality for the archdiocese, said it's a sign of hope.
“We’re doing some things to study and understand 'what is this movement about?'” Helmes said.
WATCH: Helmes explains why the archdiocese is seeing more people joining the church:
Helmes said the number of people joining the church sharply declined following the COVID-19 pandemic.
The church has since surpassed its pre-pandemic numbers.
“We count every October the number of people that come to mass on Sunday, and that number was up 4.5% this year," Helmes said.
Helmes said many factors are playing a role in the growth, such as an American pope and a new archbishop in Cincinnati.
“At the end of the day, I think people are hungry to find meaning in their life, and they’re looking for something that’s beyond and bigger than themselves," Helmes said.
The church has had its share of controversy over the past few decades, such as the clergy abuse scandal that came to light in the early 2000s.
Helmes said the church has put in a lot of effort to rectify those problems. He said he believes those efforts have restored some people's trust in the church.
“Over the last 30 years, U.S. Bishops have taken real seriously the need to create safe environments and the need to find justice for the people who have been harmed," Helmes said.
Helmes said the church has plenty of resources to handle the growth. He said he's hopeful the number of people joining the church will only continue to rise.
“People are hungering for community," Helmes said. "We as a church, we’re a community of believers, and we welcome anybody that wants to come be part of it.”
