Posted on 03/01/2008 7:26:21 AM PST by Alex Murphy
WASHINGTON — In the marketplace of American faith, Catholicism is the big loser.
No other religion in the United States has lost more members to other faiths, or to no faith at all, than Catholicism, according to the new survey released by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. The survey, conducted in 2007, found that 31 percent of Americans were raised Catholic, but less than 25 per cent of them still identify as Catholic.
Roughly 10 percent of all Americans have strayed from Catholic roots, the study reported.
Despite the loss, the survey shows that Catholics still represent nearly a quarter of the American population – just as surveys conducted in the early 1970s found.
So how does a religion lose so many members and continue to break even?
“It may well be that a factor in the Catholic numbers are the repeated waves of immigration,” said John Green, senior fellow at the Pew Forum.
The study found that almost half of all immigrants coming into the U.S. are Catholics, most of them from Latin-American countries.
The wave of immigration is changing the make-up of Catholicism. Latinos represent 45 percent of all Catholics aged 18-29 years, while only accounting for 20 percent of Catholics aged 50-59.
Much of Catholicism’s loss can be chalked up to previous generations of immigrants assimilating into American culture and remaining less faithful to their ethnic identities and religions, Green said.
“That kind of assimilation is typical for any ethnic group,” said Mary Gautier, senior research associate at the Center for Applied Research and Apostolate, at Georgetown University. “And it affects all religions – not just Catholicism.”
Her research indicates the Catholic Church is positioned in a dynamic and vital place in time, Gautier said. But there are challenges to keeping the faithful in the pews. Intermarriages, dwindling numbers of priests, and insufficient church facilities are reasons why people might go elsewhere, she said.
The Rev. Allan Figueroa Deck, S.J., was not surprised by the study’s findings.
“The Church is falling behind,” said Deck, executive director of cultural diversity for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. “We don’t have enough foot soldiers.”
The Church’s teachings are not out of place with the times, Deck said, but there is a shortage of priests and lay ministers to spread the word, and effectively link parishoners to the Gospel.
“It’s our mission to evangelize and we are failing that,” said Deck, explaining that the term ‘evangelize’ includes the “conversion of the human heart and the promotion of social justice.”
The Catholic Church also struggles to reach out specifically to the needs of minority communities, such as blacks, Asians and Hispanics, said Deck, who has spent his career in the Hispanic ministry. And the assimilation of immigrants into the Church and also American culture is a tricky balance, he said.
“We have to be very careful,” Deck said. “Our role is to promote the Gospel, not any particular culture – not even American culture.”
Get ready, Alex.
I’ve often looked for the silver lining of illegal immigration and hoped that their religeous beliefs might be it. Not to be Catholic-centric, but abortion is a big no-no among the faithful. This could raise problems for the democrats.
“No other religion in the United States has lost more members to other faiths”
On the other hand, my AG Church numbers are swelling, and will have more than doubled in a year by next month at the current rate. The Catholic church in the next town?
Not so much.
They should be clear. People have left the Catholic Church as an institution. Not the faith. I am one of them.
As the largest denomination, to stay “even” Catholics would lose the largest numbers to other faiths, gain the largest numbers of new immigrants, and also gain the largest overall number of converts . . . It’s all statistics, slice them any way you want, but . . .
My prayer is that all Catholics and all Christians would read the Bible more, grow deeper and deeper relationships with Christ, evangelize the non-Christians more, and get their faithful to realize that voting for the government supporters of abortionists is sinful.
Not to put a damper on the Catholics being the biggest loser, but numbers do not mean anything but popularity. Athanasius and Isaiah are proof that just because the crowd is getting its ears tickled somewhere that it is proof of TRUTH.
God always works through a remnant, and can make Sons of God from stones.
That last should be edited to read :Athanasius and Isaiah are proof that just because the crowd is getting its ears tickled somewhere that it is [not] proof of TRUTH.
Probably should have not doubled the proof thing too, but you get the point. Now where did I put the coffee?
Coffee's available over on blue-duncan's "NT Documents" thread.
“Coffee’s available over on blue-duncan’s “NT Documents” thread.”
It’s strong and it’s bla—, .... of color.
“I like my coffee the way I like my women - crushed to a powder, mixed with boiling hot water, and poured into a cup”
We’ve all heard about people having guts or balls. But do you really know the difference between them?
In an effort to keep you informed, the definition for each is listed below...
GUTS - is arriving home late after a night out with the guys, being met by your wife with a broom, and having the guts to ask, “Are you still cleaning, or are you flying somewhere?”
BALLS - is coming home late after a night out with the guys, smelling of perfume and beer, lipstick on your collar, slapping your wife on the butt and having the balls to say, “You’re next.”
I hope this clears up any confusion on the definitions. Medically speaking, there is no difference in the outcome since both ultimately result in death.
This is an odd spin. Catholicism, being the largest Church in the US, has more members to lose.
Considering Catholic hostility to divorce and remarriage, it's little surprise that lots of people jump ship in a culture with a huge divorce rate. Anybody bragging about all the ex-Catholics in their church should also report the number of these ex-Catholics who are on their second or third marriage.
I say this not out of denial of very real problems, it's just that all factors need to be noted.
“Considering Catholic hostility to divorce and remarriage, it’s little surprise that lots of people jump ship in a culture with a huge divorce rate.”
That is undoubtedly an element, but given the more laissez faire attitude towards divorce that Orthodoxy has had since the 8th century, one would think they’d come East, but they don’t. They seem to become Protestants, at least they do around here. When I was a kid there were only 2 Protestant Churches in a town of over 40,000 people. Now the population has dropped to about 35,000 and there are fundy and evangelical congregations everywhere...filled with Latin apostates.
Our Orthodox parish has grown dramatically, but not with Latins.
No surprise. It’s difficult to be a real Catholic.
Freep-mail me to get on or off my pro-life and Catholic List:
Please ping me to note-worthy Pro-Life or Catholic threads, or other threads of interest.
If Catholicism was the “in thing”, or cool, or popular, I’d be worried.
Sure... You tell me the church that's survived 2,000 years, and I'll tell you the church that will survive 2,000 more.
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