Sunday, May 13, 2012

US: “Why I left the Catholic Church”

“Do the Christian faith and the Church have a future in Western European society?” asked Kurt Koch, President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, in a text on the future of Christianity in Europe. Talk of a deep crisis is nothing new, as witnessed by the gradual emptying of the churches at Sunday Mass - or at the very least, in the increasing average age of practicing Catholics - in parallel with the evaporation of what the Swiss cardinal calls the “great Christian convictions.”

The same thing is happening in North America, especially in the U.S., where the deadly association with the paedophilia scandal - which is far from over both judicially and in the media - has produced an exodus that has not yet been quantified. This means the number of those who declare themselves “belonging to the Catholic Church” in American dioceses is easy to calculate by counting the number of people who contribute each week. But it is much less to discern why people leave the Church. 
 
So last fall, Msgr. David O’Connell, Archbishop of Trenton, New Jersey, decided to investigate, entrusting the research project to two experts: Jesuit William J. Byron, Professor of Business and Finance at St. Joseph University in Philadelphia, and Charles Zech, Professor of Economics and Director of the Centre for Church Management Studies at Villanova University in Pennsylvania.
 
The survey results were published in America, the journal of the Jesuits, as a broad synthesis of the two studies. Nearly 300 respondents were found through newspaper ads, telephone surveys, or direct contact from parish priests. Their average age was 53, and 95% were white, 2.1% Hispanic, and 63% female.

The experts were “surprised” to encounter a number of people who had abandoned both their parish and the Catholic Church altogether. About one-quarter of them had detached from the parish, but not from the Church. One explains: “As a family we found an alternative religion. Then we realized that Catholicism was the right religion, just managed by the wrong people.” 

Some said they had turned away from the Church because of the hierarchy. The vast majority, however, gave a specific reason for leaving.
 
A young woman of twenty-three said: “I felt toyed with and unappreciated. I did not understand certain decisions.” 

Another reason given was the quality of homilies: “I tried to find other parishes in the area because I always felt that the homily was divorced from reality”, “The sermons were so empty and often talked about raising money: mostly money and economic problems.”

Often the responses referred to the paedophilia scandal. One man said he abandoned the church when his bishop refused to publish the list of priests accused of abuse on the diocese website, and, in his opinion, had not sufficiently supported complaints and procedures to address them.

Asked about any changes in the Church that could induce them to return, many responded positively to the survey itself: they felt it would allow them to express their ideas, which hopefully would be heard. The list of specific things that could induce them to return was quite broad: the acceptance of the divorced and remarried was the most common item, followed by better sermons, more transparency, more support to children, and priests that were more gentle and kind. 

 Their political motivations were ambivalent: some wanted a more conservative orientation, and some were fed up with the traditionalist flavour of homilies. Then there were those who wanted more mention of work, ethics, and environmental protection.

There were a number of positive responses expressing sensitivity and concern for priests, but about half were not at all enthusiastic about their pastors. Terms such as “detached”, “arrogant” and “insensitive” were common, reflecting the accusation of clericalism that surfaces in different parts of the diocese. 

The feedback on parish staff members was more positive.

The lack of a community atmosphere was one of the most notable aspects - some complained that church was “just a place to attend Mass, with no participation, because I was alone in a crowd of people I didn’t know.” 

“My social circle is outside the parish community. I don’t think anyone noticed that I left.” And there were those who said they had never been consulted by the parish for anything, “even though we regularly made contributions in the envelopes!”

When asked about Church positions which may have led them to leave, many responses had to do with positions on homosexuals and gay civil unions, followed by positions on divorce and remarriage, the paedophilia cases and their cover-up by the bishops, discrimination against women (and not just regarding admission to the priesthood), the obligation of celibacy, clerical privileges, and preoccupation with money (“it’s always about money,” “an insatiable demand”).

The issue of abortion also shows up frequently: though many believe it is a wrong choice, they also believe that the Church concentrates too much on it at the expense of other problems, such as social issues, poverty, war, inadequate health care, etc. 

When asked to describe any negative experiences, many of them mentioned confession, the refusal to deliver eulogies at funerals, being the godfather/godmother at baptisms, and being present at the celebration of mixed marriages, as well as emotional or physical abuse in Catholic schools, and having been the victim of sexual abuse.

What would they say to the bishop if they could meet with him? Do not condemn gays, but welcome them as children of God, recognize the equality of women, expand the Church’s position on divorce, increase sensitivity to the problems of families, particularly mothers, increase the community of faith, “update an archaic mentality to become a religion that is open to society,” “ensure that Mass does not become a source of humiliation for those who cannot take communion,” and organize courses to help priests learn to give homilies. 

Bishop O’Connell promised that he would personally respond to the 25 people who have expressed their willingness to be contacted by him.

The vast majority of respondents reported not moving on to another faith. But those who did find another faith ran the gamut from Buddhists to Jews to various Protestant denominations.

“We have much to learn,” concluded the experts. 

 Although this sample was taken from a group of “disgruntled” people, the absolutely positive tone of the responses and the constructive criticism they contained was striking. These types of responses are hardly new - they are hot topics of debate even among those who remain in the Church. 

The researchers particularly emphasized those responses that accuse the Church of responding to the questions of the faithful with pre-packaged rules: the time has come to offer the best arguments and effective explanations of Catholic doctrine, but this also requires more liturgical and pastoral creativity, a lessening of the significance of the obligatory Sunday Mass, a greater focus on the quality and image of the clergy, including paying attention to how many participate at Mass - but they speak different languages.