Catholics after the scandal: a new study's major findings.

Two recent and very different books--David Gibson's The Coming Catholic Church (HarperSan-Francisco) and David Carlin's The Decline and Fall of the Catholic Church in America (Sophia)--have described the church as a ship caught in a storm. The storm threatens the survival of the ship and the well-being of the people on it. To save the ship and their own lives, the people on board must carry out certain familiar tasks, but they also must find new ways of dealing with problems they had never anticipated. With any luck, the ship will make it, although it quite likely will have to undertake some short-term repairs and later some long-term structural changes.

In an effort to contribute to the ship's survival, the University of Notre Dame formed a multidisciplinary task force in 2002. The task force launched several initiatives, one of which was a national survey of the laity's understanding of, and responses to, issues facing the church. The team asked us to design the study, which was conducted last year. We focused on four topics. First, knowing of no other national study that has done so, we asked Catholics to rate the seriousness of twelve challenges facing the church today. Second, we wanted to extend a recent line of research on interpretations of the sexual-abuse scandal and how that problem has affected the attachment of Catholics to the church. Third, given the crucial role that leaders will play in helping the church through the current storm, we devised some new questions about the laity's perceptions of bishops and views of lay leadership. Finally, following up on some of our earlier research, we explored the extent to which Catholics still think of their church as special or whether they now think of it as "just another denomination." We then hired Princeton Survey Research Associates, whose staff interviewed a random sample of 1,119 self-identified American Catholics in September and October 2003. The results--which we summarize below--provide some indication of how ready laypeople are to pursue certain courses of action and how reluctant they are to consider others as they try to find their way in the aftermath of the sexual-abuse crisis.

The Notre Dame task force was especially interested in generational differences among Catholics. Members of the task force wanted to know how older and younger generations of Catholics differ in their views. They also wanted to see if there are any differences between "post-Vatican II" Catholics, who are now in their thirties and early forties, and the emerging generation of "millennial" Catholics who are in their late teens and early twenties. To study possible differences, we identified four generations: pre-Vatican II Catholics (who were born in or before 1940 and were 63 years of age or older when we interviewed them); Vatican II Catholics (born 1941-1960, 43 to 62 years old at the time of our study); post-Vatican II Catholics (born 1961-1977, 26 to 42 years old); and millennial Catholics (born 1978-1985, 18 to 25 years old). Pre-Vatican II Catholics compose 17 percent of our sample, Vatican II Catholics 34 percent, post-Vatican II Catholics 36 percent, and millennials 13 percent.

The task force also wanted to document any differences among Catholics depending on the strength of their attachment to the church. As in previous research, Catholics who were registered in a parish were more religiously active in numerous ways than were nonregistered persons. Registered parishioners were more likely to attend Mass weekly, receive Communion, and participate in a variety of devotional activities. Therefore, status as a regular parishioner is important in its own right, but it also is an indicator of religious practice generally. Thus, we compare the attitudes and beliefs of Catholics who told us they were registered in a parish (60 percent of our sample) with those who said they were not or were not sure (40 percent).

Problems facing the church: Sexual abuse is at the top

What do Catholics see as the most serious problems facing the church today? From our reading of the Catholic press, and our discussions with the Notre Dame task force, we identified twelve issues--some that we thought Catholics of all theological stripes might see as serious, some that seemed to be of special concern to "conservative" Catholics, and others that seemed to be troublesome for "liberals." We asked respondents to rate each issue as being "a serious problem," "somewhat of a problem," or "not a problem" (see box).

Not surprisingly, the sexual-abuse scandal is seen as the main problem. Both the personal and institutional facets of the scandal are considered serious: "that some priests have sexually abused young people" (85 percent said it was serious), and "that some bishops have not done enough to stop priests from sexually abusing young people" (77 percent). Whether Catholics are in their sixties or in their twenties, and whether they are registered parishioners or not, they agree that the sexual-abuse crisis needs to be solved.

But the laity has other concerns as well. Sixty-two percent of Catholics said "the shortage of priests and sisters" is a serious problem. Generational differences were much more pronounced with respect to this question, with 78 percent of pre-Vatican II Catholics being troubled by the shortage, compared to only 42 percent of millennials. Older Catholics, who grew up with an abundance of priests and sisters, are far more concerned about the lack of vocations than younger Catholics, who have grown up in the midst of the shortage and--by necessity--are creating new ways of being Catholic that are not as dependent on priests and sisters. Parishioner/nonparishioner differences also were large, with 68 percent of registered parishioners, but only 52 percent of other Catholics, seeing the shortage of priests and sisters as a problem.

Fourth on the list of concerns was that "young adults are not involved in the church as much as they should be," with 53 percent of Catholics saying this is a serious problem. As expected, the oldest generations and registered parishioners were most concerned about the lack of participation in the church by young Catholics.

In the middle of the list were complaints that: "parents don't teach their children the faith the way they should" (49 percent); "there are too many men with a homosexual orientation in the priesthood" (42 percent); "the church's teachings on sexual morality are out of touch with reality today" (40 percent); and "women are not involved enough in church decision making" (38 percent). Pre-Vatican II Catholics and nonparishioners were most concerned about the number of homosexual priests. Nonparishioners (51 percent) were also most likely to say the church's sexual morality is out of touch with reality. Men and women gave identical answers to the question about women's roles in the church.

At the bottom of the box are listed four issues that less than one-third of Catholics considered serious: "laypeople are not consulted enough in forming the church's moral and social teachings" (31 percent); "laypeople no longer live up to the obligations involved in practicing the Catholic faith" (30 percent); "there is poor religious education in parishes and Catholic schools" (27 percent); and "bishops and priests no longer hold Catholics accountable to church teachings" (25 percent). Although these problems are of major concern to some parents, theologians, and others in the church, the laity as a whole is not nearly as troubled by these issues as it is by several other problems. Generation and parishioner status did not have much effect on these responses.

To be sure, Catholics believe the abuse scandal must be permanently resolved. But even if that were to happen tomorrow, laypeople think, the church would still face serious threats to its future. Chief among these are the clergy shortage and limited participation by young adults--both of which previous research has shown are regarded as serious problems. The laity's other concerns are an interesting mixture of liberal and conservative views. Some of the cultural problems that are of most concern to conservative Catholics are in the middle of the list (for example, the claim that there are too many homosexual priests), while others (the quality of religious education) are in the bottom tier. Likewise, some liberal issues (that women are not adequately included in decision making) resonate with many Catholics, while others (that laypeople are not consulted often enough) trouble fewer people.

A source of shame & embarrassment

How do Catholics interpret the abuse scandal, and how does it affect them? First of all, how many have heard of the scandal? Ninety-one percent said they have. Of those, 78 percent said they were "ashamed and embarrassed for my church." Seventy-two percent said "The failure of bishops to stop the abuse is a bigger problem than the abuse itself." Two-thirds believe that "the cases that have been reported to date are only the tip of the iceberg." Clearly, laypeople feel ashamed, hold clergy accountable, and fear that the problem is deeper than it appears.

Feelings of shame and embarrassment are widely shared by both registered parishioners and other Catholics. Pre-Vatican II Catholics are slightly more likely than younger Catholics to feel ashamed by the scandal (85 percent, versus 76 percent for the millennials and 74 percent for the post-Vatican II generation). Older Catholics also are least likely to think reported cases are just the tip of the iceberg (48 percent, versus 66 percent of the millennials and 74 percent of post-Vatican II Catholics). Thus, older Catholics are the most offended, but they seem to think the worst is over. Younger Catholics are not as sure.

When we asked laypeople about the bishops' handling of the scandal, fully 62 percent said the bishops "are covering up the facts." Only 20 percent said the bishops "are being open and honest." The rest are not sure or believe the situation involves some mixture of truth and cover-up. The bishops clearly have a credibility problem, especially among young and less active Catholics, but among older parishioners also. Reestablishing their credibility is a major challenge facing the bishops.

Two other items in the study indicate how Catholics perceive the media's role in the scandal. Sixty-nine percent indicated that "the media has prolonged the scandal by reporting the same stories over and over again." Fifty-six percent responded that "the media reports have been too anti-Catholic." Catholics are more critical of the media for rehashing stories than for being biased against the Catholic Church, although both issues are of concern to a majority. Members of the pre-Vatican II generation are most likely to believe the media has prolonged the scandal and has been anti-Catholic. Registered parishioners believe this more than nonparishioners.

As has been shown in recent studies sponsored by FAD-ICA (Foundations and Donors Interested in Catholic Activities), the scandal has had little overall effect on laypeople's participation in the church. About eight out of ten Catholics report that the scandal has had no effect on their frequency of attendance at Mass, involvement in parish programs and activities, or financial contributions. Although 78 percent of American Catholics said it had "no effect" on their church attendance and 7 percent said their attendance had increased, 11 percent said it had decreased. When asked about the scandal's effect on their parish involvement, 80 percent said "no effect," 7 percent noted an increase, and 10 percent reported a decline. Eighty-one percent said their financial contributions had not changed, 6 percent reported an increase, and 12 percent reported a decrease. These findings are consistent with FADICA's data indicating that the net effect of the scandal has been only a slight reduction in religious participation and giving. The overall picture is one of stability, not decline, although there is more decline in some places, such as Boston. To our surprise, generational differences on the effects of the scandal turned out to be small, as were differences between registered parishioners and others.

Clearly, laypeople are disturbed by the behavior of priests who have abused children and especially by the way the bishops have handled the whole situation. Even among registered parishioners, and especially among young adults, there is considerable doubt that the bishops have been truthful about the scandal. Still, the scandal has adversely affected the participation of a small portion of Catholics. The good news is that a majority of Catholics are strongly committed to their faith--to the point that they remain loyal to the church even in the midst of what many consider to be the worst crisis in U.S. church history.

Desire for more lay involvement

In our experience, church leadership is a topic of very lively conversation whenever two or more Catholics are gathered together. The conversation usually revolves around questions about episcopal leadership and the role of the laity. How much confidence do Catholics have in their bishops? To what extent, and in what ways, do Catholics believe laypeople should occupy leadership roles in the church?

We asked our respondents if they could name their bishop. Those who said yes were then asked what the bishop's name was. Forty-one percent were able to provide a name. We cannot know if everyone actually got their bishop's name right; some probably gave the wrong name. But at least 41 percent of Catholics could name someone they thought was their bishop. Not surprisingly, the older generation and registered parishioners were most able to come up with a name. Younger Catholics and nonparishioners had the greatest difficulty in doing so.

When asked how much they know about U.S. bishops and their activities, only 7 percent of the sample said "a great deal" and 24 percent said "some." Forty-three percent said they did not know very much, and 25 percent said they know "nothing" about the bishops. Among those who know "a great deal" or "some" about the bishops, 55 percent believe "most bishops" are "humble men of great personal faith," 53 percent say most bishops are "doing the best they can under difficult circumstances," and 46 percent think most bishops are "wise and competent leaders." Only about one-quarter accuse bishops of being "more interested in protecting bishops and priests than in working together with laypeople" (26 percent) or say that most bishops are "out of touch with laypeople" (26 percent).

Which of these most knowledgeable Catholics have the most favorable views of the bishops? The answer is pre-Vatican II Catholics and registered parishioners. For example, 62 percent of pre-Vatican II Catholics (compared with only 41 percent of millennials) said bishops were doing their best and 54 percent (versus only 38 percent of millennials) considered them wise and competent leaders. On the item about bishops doing their best, 56 percent of the registered parishioners, compared with 42 percent of the nonparishioners, agreed. On the other items, the differences between parishioners and nonparishioners were small.

These findings suggest three things. First, if two-thirds of Catholics know very little about the bishops in general, and only 41 percent can name their own bishop, it is reasonable to conclude that the bishops are not an important reference point in the faith life of most Catholics. Second, among those who know the most about the bishops, there is a considerable reservoir of good will. Pre-Vatican II Catholics and registered parishioners, especially, want to affirm the humility, faith, wisdom, and competence of the bishops, although some clearly find that difficult to do these days. Third, there is less support for bishops among young adults and nonparishioners--people whose links to the church are rather tenuous. We cannot tell if these groups are marginal because they are suspicious of bishops, or if they are suspicious because they are marginal. But one thing is sure: the bishops' severest critics are people thinly tethered to the church.

What about the question of lay leadership? According to Vatican II and the Catechism of the Catholic Church (934-945), the clergy are the primary decision makers in the church, while laypeople are leaders in the world. Yet recent research suggests that laypeople now believe they also have a right to participate in decision making within the church, especially at the parish level. Our survey confirms this. A majority of Catholics (71 percent) believe that "when it comes to setting parish priorities, laypeople need to trust the pastor to make the right decision." At the same time, 83 percent believe laypeople "should have a right to participate in deciding how parish income is spent," and 73 percent say the laity "should have some say in who their parish priest will be." Laypeople do not distrust their pastors, but they want to take part in parish decisions.

What about church finances more broadly? Catholics want more information. For example, 77 percent said "the Catholic Church needs better financial reporting at all levels," and 81 percent said "church financial records should show how much money has been spent on settling lawsuits against church leaders." When we asked if "laypeople should withhold donations to the church until they have more voice in financial decisions," only 40 percent agreed with this form of protest.

Catholics in the older generation are the least likely to agree with these views. For example, 84 percent of millennials said the church needs better financial reporting, compared to 67 percent of pre-Vatican II Catholics. Only 30 percent of pre-Vatican II Catholics (compared with 59 percent of millennials) felt that withholding contributions was a good idea. Registered parishioners were no different from the nonregistered, except when asked if laypeople should withhold donations until they have more voice in financial decisions. There the nonregistered agree more readily (49 percent, versus 35 percent of registered Catholics).

In short, our study provides new data that show laypeople want to trust the bishops and their parish priests, who they believe are doing good jobs, especially under trying conditions. Yet, the laity's confidence has been shaken, as indicated by the fact that only about half of laypeople see bishops in a positive light. The study also confirms other research showing that laypeople want open financial reporting, and that they believe the church would do better if the laity were at the table when church decisions are made.

Catholicism & other faiths: A boundary problem

The storm buffeting the church is not limited to internal problems. It also involves a boundary problem between Catholicism and other Christian denominations and other religions.

Both Vatican II and the Catechism state that the Catholic Church is "the one and only church of God" (Catechism, 817) and that "it is through Christ's Catholic Church alone ... that the fullness of the means of salvation can be obtained." While maintaining that the Catholic Church has a greater share of religious truth than other faiths, the council and the Catechism (819) acknowledge that "many elements of sanctification and of truth are found outside the visible confines of the Catholic Church."

Some observers fear that U.S. Catholics no longer agree with this teaching. They argue that, as Catholics have emerged from the ghetto of the pre-Vatican II church, they have succumbed to America's postmodern or relativistic culture, which portrays all faiths as essentially equal and viable pathways to the same God. In David Carlin's words, for example, Catholics now have a "denominational mentality" and believe that the Catholic Church is "just another denomination."

The Notre Dame survey points to a different interpretation. First, Catholics like being Catholic and are not very likely to leave the church for other religious groups. Eighty-one percent of Catholics said that "being Catholic is a very important part of who I am," and two-thirds said they "cannot imagine ... being anything other than Catholic." Eighty-two percent said the "Catholic Church is very important to me personally," and 71 percent said they "would never leave the Catholic Church." These are vast majorities.

A majority of Catholics also embrace teachings that are distinctively Catholic. They indicated that the following teachings are "essential" to their vision of what the Catholic faith is about: the importance of charitable efforts toward helping the poor (82 percent); belief that Jesus is really present in the Eucharist (81 percent); devotion to Mary the Mother of God (72 percent); belief that God is present in a special way in the poor (71 percent); the obligation to attend Mass once a week (55 percent); and teachings that oppose abortion (51 percent). They also agreed that in Mass the bread and wine actually become the body and blood of Christ (83 percent). Even more to the point, 63 percent said "there is something very special about being Catholic that you can't find in other religions," and 53 percent said "the Catholic religion contains a greater share of the truth than other religions do."

There are, though, elements of what some might call relativism in responses to other questions in our survey. Eighty-six percent agreed that "if you believe in God, it doesn't really matter which religion you belong to." Seventy-six percent said "individuals should seek out religious truth for themselves and not automatically conform to the doctrines of any church." Seventy-four percent said "the major world religions are equally good ways of finding ultimate truth." Fifty-two percent said that they "could be just as happy in some other church--it wouldn't have to be Catholic." The same percentage said "the Catholic religion has no more spiritual truth than other major religions."

In a purely literal sense, these findings are at odds with one another. But, in social psychological terms, they may not be. Catholics continue to believe in the distinctiveness of their church, but--as Nancy Ammerman reported in David D. Hall's Lived Religion in America--they also have a great appreciation and acceptance of other faiths. They believe in being Catholic, but do not believe the Catholic Church is the only way to find God. They think there is something special about being Catholic, but also look for common ground with people in other religions. In short, they are trying hard to be both Catholic and ecumenical in a highly pluralistic world.

Catholics of the older generation are the most likely to endorse the Catechism's view and least likely to believe that all faiths are equally true. For example, only 37 percent of the older-generation pre-Vatican II Catholics--compared with 52 to 57 percent of Catholics in other generations--said they could be just as happy in another church. While 75 to 80 percent in other generations said all major religions are equally good ways to ultimate truth, only 59 percent of pre-Vatican II Catholics gave that response. The three youngest generations agreed with each other: there were no noteworthy differences among members of the Vatican II, post-Vatican II, and millennial generations on these issues. The only consistent generational differences were between the oldest pre-Vatican generation and all the others.

Registered parishioners clearly feel a stronger Catholic identity than nonparishioners. For example, 90 percent of the registered parishioners agreed that "the Catholic Church is very important to me personally," versus 70 percent of the nonregistered. But on the questions about the validity of other faiths, differences between registered parishioners and others were small. The nonparishioners were slightly more affirming of the equal truth in other religions, but not much.

As Catholics strive to be both Catholic and respectful of other faiths, they encounter boundary issues that must be addressed. Laypeople need to better articulate how they balance being Catholic and being ecumenical. At the same time, theologians and other church leaders need to appreciate the sociological dimensions of this struggle, avoiding the temptation to simply write it off as a logical impossibility. Theologians and other church leaders need to clarify the church's view of itself, its commitment to ecumenism, and the points at which relativism is problematic.

Conclusions

Will the church survive the storm? Will the people on board be all right? Being Christians, we are full of hope, but that is not the only reason to be optimistic. Our six key findings are also encouraging.

* Laypeople are making sensible judgments about the problems facing the church. Although other spiritual and institutional problems also must be addressed (see Peter Steinfels, A People Adrift), laypeople put the highest priority on solving the sexual-abuse scandal, the decline in vocations, and the less-than-optimal participation by young adults. Restoring the bishops' credibility, increasing vocations, and reaching out to young adults would build solidarity and boost the laity's confidence that the church will not founder.

* As earlier research has suggested and these new data confirm, the laity sees the sexual-abuse scandal as a failure on the part of both priests and bishops, and believes that the media has distorted the situation somewhat. Still, for the most part, the laity has not let the scandal undermine its faith. Unfortunately for the church, those who seem to be having the hardest time with the scandal are those whose attachment to the church is most tenuous. The church needs to reassure all Catholics that the problem is being addressed openly and honestly, but it faces special challenges in gaining the confidence of marginal and inactive Catholics.

* Although most Catholics have only limited awareness of bishops' activities, a majority believe they are men of faith, who are doing a good job under difficult circumstances. Only a minority imputes cynical motives or disparages bishops' talents. Confidence in the bishops has been shaken by recent events, however, and clearly needs to be restored. Moreover, as has been shown in other studies, laypeople believe they too should be actively involved in church decisions. This belief is fueled by the self-confidence that comes with being the most talented and resourceful generation in the history of the church, and with a sense that the church would benefit from lay expertise and input.

* Contrary to some recent claims, Catholics still believe their church is special, but they also respect other faith traditions and look for common ground with them. Laypeople in general, and young adults in particular, are trying hard to be both Catholic and ecumenical in a highly pluralistic world where both religious and political leaders urge them to appreciate other religious traditions. As Catholics struggle to maintain this delicate balance, wise leaders would try to lend them a hand. One way to do that is to listen to what they have to say about the challenges they face. Another is to clarify the church's view of itself, other faiths, and the ways in which a denominational mentality is problematic for Catholics.

* As earlier studies of Catholic generations have found, the biggest difference is between the pre-Vatican II generation and all other generations. Among other churchwatchers, Colleen Carroll (The New Faithful) has argued that young Catholics are turning in a more traditional direction. We have found no evidence of such a trend in our previous studies, and the present survey indicates that youngest ("millennial") Catholics are similar to--not markedly different from--the post-Vatican II generation.

* Finally, in previous research we have shown that the beliefs and attitudes of registered parishioners are considerably more in line with official church teachings than the views of nonparishioners. To this body of research we now add the finding that registered parishioners also are most supportive of the bishops and most attached to the church even in the aftermath of the abuse crisis.

Most serious issues facing the church

Question: How much of a problem is each of these twelve items--a serious
problem, somewhat of a problem, or not a problem? (Figure indicates
percentage of those saying "a serious problem.")

That some priests have sexually abused young people.                  85
That some bishops have not done enough to stop priests from sexually
  abusing young people.                                               77
The shortage of priests and sisters.                                  62
That young adults are not as involved in the church as much as they
  should be.                                                          53
That parents don't teach their children the faith the way they
  should.                                                             49
That there are too many men with a homosexual orientation in the
  priesthood.                                                         42
That the church's teachings on sexual morality are out of touch with
  reality today.                                                      40
That women are not involved enough in church decision making.         38
That laypeople are not consulted enough in forming the church's
  moral and social teachings.                                         31
That laypeople no longer live up to the obligations involved in
  practicing the Catholic faith.                                      30
That there is poor religious education in parishes and Catholic
  schools.                                                            27
That bishops and priests no longer hold Catholics accountable to
  church teachings.                                                   25

James D. Davidson is professor of sociology at Purdue University.

Dean R. Hoge is professor of sociology at the Catholic University of America.