Are there no more Catholic towns?

[Melita]

Melita, I know there are Podesta's on Malta. One of them a priest was a point man for the last world youth day. I tried to get in touch with him but couldn't. My family is from Ne in Liguria originally. I wanted to get in touch with him to see if his family was from there too. There are quite a few in America but we don't all know each other. Yet from what I've read we all descend from the same places in Liguria.
Podesta is the name of an official next in power to the Mayor. He would be the learned one behind the Mayor.
tim

I went to school with a Podesta, it's quite an uncommon surname so they're all pretty much related here. I knew that it referenced some sort of official title, though wasn't aware of which one specifically.

[fitzelizabeth]

I don't have any first-hand knowledge of it, but there's a traditional Catholic community called Star of the Sea Village  in Arkansas that are served by the FSSP.  I believe Fr. Demets is their Chaplain.  Sounds interesting for families especially.

[epalinurus]

Melita, I know there are Podesta's on Malta. One of them a priest was a point man for the last world youth day. I tried to get in touch with him but couldn't. My family is from Ne in Liguria originally. I wanted to get in touch with him to see if his family was from there too. There are quite a few in America but we don't all know each other. Yet from what I've read we all descend from the same places in Liguria.
Podesta is the name of an official next in power to the Mayor. He would be the learned one behind the Mayor.
tim

John Podesta was Chief of Stafff to Bill Clinton.  Your recent family tree has a lot to answer for.

[actiofidei]

In the countryside of most of southern Europe (Italy especially) and eastern Europe (Poland, Ukraine, Slovakia, parts of Hungary, Hungarian Romania) and the Balkans there are plenty of old school Catholic villages. In most of these places it feels like the 1400s not the 21st century uh save for electricity.

This actually sounds fantastic to me. I'm just wondering how someone finds these particular cities without going out into the field and on a hunt.

[MagisterMusicae]

It all depends on what you mean by a "Catholic town" or a "Catholic city" or "Catholic neighborhood".

I would suggest that we have to define such a place less based on the percentage of Catholics and their attendance at Mass.

Instead I think you would need to look at the way the people in the town, city or neighborhood practice their Faith. That include Mass attendance and confession, but also reflects how the community is integrated, whether it is generally self-supportive and other such criteria.

St. Marys is the typical example, but in the town only slightly more than half of the people are actually Catholic. The majority of the "traditional" Catholics live outside the city limits, some quite a distance. The city has occasionally be run on Catholic principle, but that is not a fundamental element of the community or town itself. That's not to rag on St. Marys, but to point out that it is not the Catholic Mecca that people seem to want it to be. They have many of the same problems that people in a non-Catholic environment have. Some people there want to fix that, others don't.

If we define the standard more broadly, there may still be a few towns in some European nations, but generally speaking, I would argue that outside these few examples, none exist elsewhere, not because of a lack of a majority of Catholics, but a lack of the practice of true Charity and a recognition of the importance of a Catholic society beyond Mass attendance.

[Tobri]

In the countryside of most of southern Europe (Italy especially) and eastern Europe (Poland, Ukraine, Slovakia, parts of Hungary, Hungarian Romania) and the Balkans there are plenty of old school Catholic villages. In most of these places it feels like the 1400s not the 21st century uh save for electricity.

This actually sounds fantastic to me. I'm just wondering how someone finds these particular cities without going out into the field and on a hunt.

go off of the highway on your trips between cities, pretty much every village but the people are extremely poor so it is not exactly paradise

[Tim]

Epalinurus, I thank God I don't have to answer for them. I went to high school with them and ate dinner at their family's house some Sundays as I grew up.
tim

[villamaria]

Front Royal, Virginia is probably one of the most Catholic towns on the East coast. Christendom College is there, HLI, and at least one homeschooling organization. There are several religious orders located there. The parish, St. John the Baptist has a TLM every Sunday and a couple during the week. We are retiring soon and our plan is to re-locate there. I decided I just can't do without the TLM any longer.

[winoblue1]

That parish in Volvo seems pretty good...

Can you imagine - the Divine Office daily? Wow!

I hope they keep up the good work.

[James02]

Clear Creek Monastery in Oklahoma, but there isn't any work around there, and the ground is pretty poor.  But if you are retired, might be ok.  Way out in the sticks, which might be a good thing before too long.  Reasonable drive time to Tulsa, but not for commuting to work.

Also, there is a small Catholic retirement community in northern Arkansas.  Great survival potential.  Star of the Sea village.  The main town is Cherokee Village.  The local church hosts an FSSP TLM Mass, though the parish itself is NO.  They are starting a Traditional school there also.  Land and houses are real cheap too.