Newspaper survey finds staggering losses for Church in France
January 11, 2010
A survey for the French daily La Croix has found a stunning secularizing trend in France in the past generation. The number of French respondents identifying themselves as Catholic dropped form 81% in 1965 to 64% last year; weekly Mass attendance plummeted from 27% to 4.5%.
The survey data is available in a PowerPoint presentation, through a link on the French-edition site of L’Osservatore Romano. The Rorate Caeli sites summarizes the most salient points for English readers.
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Further information:
- La France se déchristianise à vive allure (L'Osservatore Romano French edition)
- The Collapse of the Church in France (Rorate Caeli)
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Posted by: -
Jan. 11, 2010 9:12 PM ET USA
This is shocking and disheartining. The decline in those identifying themselves a Catholic is probably no more than a generational effect of the children throwing off the disgraceful ignorance of their parents. Of more concern is the decline of both parents and children from an agonizing 1-in-four to essentially no one attending Mass. Without the Mass there is no Christianity. Pray, pray, pray, Christians. Pray the ancient prayer to Michael the archangel to thrust into hell the evil 'spirits'
