FLORISSANT, Mo.—The Catholic Church is struggling in St. Louis. Two years ago, the archdiocese closed or merged dozens of parishes due to declining attendance and a scarcity of priests.
But just outside town, on a bluff overlooking the Missouri River, conservative Catholicism is flourishing. Last year, the Augustine Institute, a Catholic seminary that emphasizes a return to the rigors of scripture and tradition, paid around $20 million for a 284-acre campus that Boeing had used as a retreat and executive training center.