Unter the Code of Canon Law, membership in a parish is covered in Canons 518 and 519. As a general rule, a parish is to be territorial, that is, one which includes all the Christian faithful of a certain territory. Occasionally the Church has erected personal parishes established by reason of the rite, language, or nationality of the Christian faithful of some territory. Thus, “registration,” per se, is not something that is necessary; all Catholics are automatically members of their territorial parish based on their residence address.
Can. 518 As a general rule, a parish is to be territorial, that is, it is to embrace all Christ’s faithful within a given territory. Where it is useful, however, personal parishes are to be established, determined by reason of the rote, language or nationality of Christ’s faithful in a certain territory, or on some other basis.
Can. 519 The pastor (parochus) is the proper pastor (pastor) of the parish entrusted to him, exercising the pastoral care of the community committed to him under the authority of the diocesan bishop in whose ministry of Christ he has been called to share, so that for that same community he carries out the functions of teaching, sanctifying, and governing, also with the cooperation of other presbyters or deacons and with the assistance of lay members of the Christian faithful, according to the norm of law.
In practical terms, what does this mean? Parish registration on the local level is helpful for the local parish, as it enables the pastor to communicate news and information about the parish based on contact information shared when the person or family “registers.”
Various elements of Canon Law call for specific responsibilities and authorities of each person’s “proper pastor,” and that pastor remains the one within whose parish a person lives, regardless of where they may have “registered.”
At Our Lady of Good Counsel Church, we will welcome those who may be outside our geographical boundaries with the understanding and consent of their proper pastor. The person’s proper pastor continues to have the responsibility for them as they reside within their parish territory, and may be called upon in emergencies, for sick calls, home visits, etc. Acceptance of such requests to register at OLGC are contingent upon the OLGC pastor’s judgment that the residence of the person(s) requesting membership is close enough to our parish boundaries in Moorestown to assure regular participation in our weekly Masses and parish life. Where distance precludes the regular participation in our parish liturgies and life, those requests would be denied registration, although all are welcome to attend any Masses in our church.