What is accompaniment capacity, exactly?
Accompaniment capacity is the ability of a parish or diocese to personally walk with people on their journey of faith—at scale and in a sustainable way. It’s not about replacing relationships with technology. It’s about giving leaders the capacity to deepen them.
It’s the difference between running programs and personally investing in people.
Between pushing out content and walking alongside someone, listening to their story.
When we talk about accompaniment capacity, we’re asking:
- Do you know where your people are on their journey?
- Do you have the time and resources to walk with them intentionally?
- Are you fostering relationships of discipleship, or simply delivering services?
Why is accompaniment capacity essential for the Church today?
At the heart of the Church’s mission is the call to personally walk with people, guiding them closer to Jesus. But most parishes and dioceses simply don’t have the capacity to do this at scale.
- In an average parish of 1,000 families, fewer than 5% of people are equipped to accompany others on their faith journey.
- And those few are often overextended—volunteering, leading ministries, and managing countless responsibilities.
The result? We default to delivering more programs, more content, and more resources, hoping something sticks. But what people are really longing for is relationship, to be seen, known, and personally accompanied.
This is the challenge accompaniment capacity addresses. It’s about building the space, insight, and support that allows the Church to walk with people in a human, intentional, and pastoral way.
Why is accompaniment capacity the key to evangelization and discipleship?
Because without it, we remain stuck in a model where we distribute information but fail to build relationships that lead people to Jesus.
Jason Jensen often says:
“Accompaniment capacity isn’t about technology replacing relationships. It’s about technology giving us the capacity to deepen relationships.”
When we increase accompaniment capacity, we bridge the gap between what parish leaders want to do—personally walk with people—and what they’re actually able to do with the limited time, energy, and insight they have.
How do we grow accompaniment capacity in our diocese or parish?
Growing accompaniment capacity isn’t just about adding a new tool. It’s about rethinking how we do ministry.
At Glass Canvas, we partner with dioceses and parishes through a proven pathway that helps you:
- Clarify your identity and mission—so your team is aligned on who you are and why you exist.
- Develop a strategy—to know who you’re walking with, how you’ll accompany them, and what you’re leading them toward.
- Build infrastructure and systems—so your leaders aren’t burned out, and your parish has the right support to foster relationships.
- Equip your people and partners—with tools, content, and experiences that support personal discipleship.
- Implement and measure impact—so you can focus on building a culture of accompaniment, not just managing programs.
And yes, Tilma is part of that solution. But it’s not the starting point. The starting point is your mission and your people.
“It’s about freeing up our leaders to focus on what they’re called to do: build relationships, listen deeply, and respond to people’s real needs.” —Jason Jensen
What happens when we increase accompaniment capacity?
Everything changes.
- More people feel seen, known, and loved.
- Your leaders have time to build real relationships.
- Discipleship becomes self-sustaining, not dependent on more programs.
- Parishes and dioceses experience renewal, not just busyness.
As Jason often says:
“If we can grow our accompaniment capacity, we move from being content distributors to true spiritual companions.”
This is how we renew the Church in today’s world—by scaling personal care, not programs.
Partnering with Glass Canvas to Grow Accompaniment Capacity
At Glass Canvas, we believe that expanding accompaniment capacity is the key to evangelization, discipleship, and cultural renewal in the Church. We walk with you to clarify your strategy, empower your leaders, and support you with the tools and insights that make it sustainable.
Accompaniment is the mission. Growing your capacity to do it is how we’ll get there—together.