More than 6,100 donors in the Archdiocese of Olomouc in the Czech Republic have contributed to priests’ salaries through an online crowdfunding platform as the Catholic Church prepares for the end of decades of financial support from the Czech state.
The platform, called Donátor, originally launched in the Diocese of Brno to finance various parish projects. After one year of operation in the Olomouc Archdiocese, it has become a key tool in the Church’s push for financial self-sufficiency, according to data published by the archbishopric.
Father Jan Berka, a parish priest in Valašské Meziříčí and member of the archdiocesan pastoral and priest councils, described the platform in an email conversation with EWTN News as “a simple and effective way” to contribute to priests’ salaries.
“I was surprised how quickly a relatively large part of people got involved,” Father Berka said. “I feel support from parishioners for my ministry and I am grateful.”
Priests who actively promoted the project attracted more donors, while those who did not ended up with fewer, he observed. Most of the priests he speaks with see it as “a good project that leads to greater co-responsibility of parishioners in the running of a parish,” Father Berka
