Collection for religious retirement fund is Aug. 3-4

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The National Religious Retirement Office

SALT LAKE CITY — The annual Retirement Fund for Religious collection is scheduled in parishes throughout the Diocese of Salt Lake City on Aug. 3-4.

In 2023, parishioners contributed $53,336.14 to the collection. From this collection, the Discalced Carmelite nuns received $24,735.72 in financial support made possible by the Retirement Fund for Religious.

Mr. John Knutsen, director of the National Religious Retirement Office (NRRO) looks forward to this year’s collection, stating, “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.”

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 religious communities in the United States face a substantial gap between their elderly members’ needs and the financial resources available for their care. Many religious orders experience insufficient retirement savings.

The 2023 appeal demonstrated Catholics’ tremendous generosity by raising more than $29 million nationwide. These funds from the Retirement Fund for Religious collection provided financial assistance for retirement needs for 286 U.S. religious communities.

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. The National Religious Retirement Office coordinates the annual national appeal for the retirement fund and distributes financial assistance to eligible religious communities to help care for their aging members.

The 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 most of their lives, elder religious worked for little to no pay. There were no 401(k) plans or pensions. Religious communities are financially responsible for the support and care of all members. Income, earnings and expenses are managed separately from the parish and diocesan structures of the Catholic Church.

Only 6 percent of the religious communities providing data to the National Religious Retirement Office are adequately funded for retirement; 42 percent have 25 or fewer members. Many small communities struggle to care for elder members due to a lack of financial resources and personnel.

Religious past age 70 outnumber those younger than age 70 by nearly three to one. There are 24,005 religious past age 70 living in the U.S. In 2022, the average annual cost for their care was roughly $55,500 per person; skilled nursing care averaged $82,700 per person.

The average annual Social Security benefit for a religious is $7,679, whereas the average lay US beneficiary receives $21,902.

Since the Retirement Fund for Religious began U.S. Catholics have donated more than $975 million. Almost $842 million has been distributed to support the day-to-day care of elderly sisters, brothers and religious order priests. An additional $102.6 million has been allocated toward self-help projects initiated by religious communities, including collaborative health-care facilities.

For information about the Retirement Fund for Religious collection, visit retiredreligious.org.