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The article presents information on the status of religious vocations of the Catholic Church. Topics include the involvement of the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) in research on religious life and vocations, a decrease in the number of religious personnel, and the generational differences between priests. The various generations of priests like the Vatican II generation, Post-Vatican II, and Millennial are also mentioned.

The article discusses the challenges facing the Catholic Church and new ecclesial communities. It states that the traditional catechetical structures like the close connection between parish, school and family has caused a decline in the number of pathways open to Catholics who wish to strengthen their religious commitment, and mentions that individuals within religious communities need to be supported in an ongoing and structured way.

The article discusses the pastoral challenges of families in the context of evangelisation as the theme of the Third Extraordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops of the Roman Catholic Church announced by Pope Francis to be held in October 2014. The assembly will focus on how the family can be supported as a means of evangelisation and catechesis. It notes the interaction between the church and culture which is best viewed as dynamic process.

The article discusses the alternate accounts of the future trajectory of many younger Catholics and the implications that these have for pastoral planning in Australia. It highlights the Spiritual Quest Paradigm (SQP) in which many younger Catholics will be satisfied in searching and may adopt a closely committed sense of Catholic identity. It notes the Modified Secularization Theory (MST) which arose from abroad sociological literature on the place of religion in contemporary culture.