Forgive my skepticism, but I’ve always found the whole family leaving the Church en masse thing a little suspect. I’m not saying that it’s never happened, but I’ve never met any and your explanation just sounds a little too convenient (ALL of your neighbors were devout Catholics and just up and left the Church and took their entire families with them).
Stepford Wives.
Come on. We’ve all seen this poster in action. Do any of us think they would let the truth stand in the way of a “mine’s bigger than your?”
I can understand how this would happen, especially when the children are young. Let's be honest. In today's society, it is so much more tantalizing to leave the Catholic Church for a denomination that does not frown on artificial birth control or the decision not to reproduce. And like the Protestants, we also have families that come into the Church, like this one.
I’ve observed that it usually happens that way.