How Christ the Light Cathedral doubled digital giving and increased overall giving by 100%

Summary

The Cathedral of Christ the Light is the mother church of the Diocese of Oakland, California. Since opening in 2008, the Cathedral has become home to a vibrant parish community, drawing both longtime residents and young professionals from across the Bay Area. The Cathedral also serves two partner parishes (St. Patrick and St. Leo the Great). With daily Masses, sacraments offered in multiple languages, and a wide range of pastoral services, the Cathedral plays a vital role in ministering to the spiritual needs of Oakland’s urban Catholic population.

After the pandemic, the parish saw an increase in younger, digitally engaged parishioners—yet they struggled to maintain consistent communication and online giving. That’s why the Cathedral implemented ParishStaq® in October 2023.

Since launching Pushpay, the Cathedral has seen:

• Monthly digital giving double within two months
• Overall giving grow by over 100%
• Easter 2024 giving jump over 200% compared to the previous year, with nearly half of contributions made online

Challenges

The pandemic dampened engagement for churches worldwide, and The Cathedral of Christ the Light was no different. They faced several interconnected obstacles:

• Outdated contact information made it difficult to stay connected with a growing congregation
• Clunky email systems left communication strained and unreliable
• A cumbersome giving platform made online donations difficult for parishioners
• Limited administrative tools left staff struggling to manage contributions effectively across three parishes

Their system simply wasn’t built for a church of their size and needs. Recognizing the need for a more immediate and intuitive way to engage their community, the Cathedral’s Rector Fr. Brandon and the church staff began searching for tools that could streamline both communication and online giving.

Solutions

After years of navigating a giving platform that couldn’t keep pace with their growing, digitally engaged parish, the Cathedral found Pushpay.

Even before launch, Cathedral staff had access to Pushpay’s onboarding team, which helped guide a smooth transition and equipped them with the tools and resources needed to introduce the new platform to their parishioners.

Key solutions that made the difference:

• Centralized multi-site management: With a small team and no offices at the partner parishes, ParishStaq allowed staff to manage all three locations from one unified platform
• Real-time giving visibility: The Pushpay dashboard provided instant access to average gift size, donor trends, and fund preferences
• Modern giving options: Mobile giving and QR codes met their digitally engaged congregation where they were

Results

Since implementing Pushpay Giving in October 2023, the Cathedral of Christ the Light has seen remarkable growth:

• 2x monthly digital giving within just two months of launch
• 100%+ increase in total giving in 2024 compared to the previous year
• 212% giving surge in March 2024, driven by Lent and Easter generosity
• Nearly 50% of contributions now come through digital channels

“Our congregation is made up of a lot of millennials,” said Mark Diamond, business manager at the Cathedral. “Using electronic deposits and e-giving is speaking their language… It’s really been a blessing.”

Fr. Brandon explained that the use of technology enhanced their community’s experience and helped them feel confident as members of the community: “It doesn’t replace what we do here in the temple. We’re here to bring them back. And because we have built up their confidence in hearing that message, once they come here to the Eucharist, boy, they’re going to receive that message in great ways that we’ve never thought, seen, or imagined.”