[independentmind]

You can't really think this is anything but a HUGE problem for the church, can you?

Are you a practicing Catholic, jra? If not, why do you care?

[jra]

Although I'm not Catholic myself, my wife is--we go to mass as a family every week.

However, is your point that non-Catholics shouldn't care?

Again, very misguided.

Bottom line on this issue: Quoting statistics or referencing works on this issue does not make it go away.

Both you and the writer of the article are attempting to rationalize the problem away, which is exactly what the church did.

The way to take care of a problem like this is to confront it head-on. Admit that there is a problem, and take action to correct it.