All of us have of course read about the massive abuses within the Catholic church the last few years. This and other factors such as the increase in wealth over last 15 years and the increase and importance of education, but mainly the scandals has taken its toll on the view on religion in Ireland.
This week there was a story that the main Catholic Priest in Los Angeles had to step down because he had been hiding several hundreds of abuses done within the church by several priests. There might be several more scandals to come out in the news so I'm wondering how this has affected the Catholic faith in other countries. Why is the outcome so extreme in Ireland and maybe not so much in USA because I don't think the abuse has been larger in Ireland than in any other Catholic country but I might be wrong about this one. One could only speculate.....
Look at the mighty Irish. They used to be one of the few "very" religious countries left in Europe (Poland is now almost the only one left I would say of being "very" religious). Now look what happened to the Irish:
1. Irish Consider Religion The Least Important Part Of Their Lives
The Irish consider religion to be the least important part of their lives, according to the results of a new survey.
As IrishCentral notes, the VitalSigns study, conducted by the Community Foundation for Ireland, revealed that of 119 possible options, the people of Ireland ranked religion and spirituality the "least important aspect of their lives.
(click on link below to read more).
Irish Consider Religion The Least Important Part Of Their Lives, 2013 Survey Reveals (VIDEO)
2. Religiosity Plummets In Ireland And Declines Worldwide; Atheism On The Rise
According to the global index, only 47 percent of those surveyed in Ireland said they considered themselves religious -- a 22-point drop from the 69 percent recorded in a similar 2005 poll. Moreover, 10 percent identified themselves as atheist.
(click on link below to read more).
Religiosity Plummets In Ireland And Declines Worldwide; Atheism On The Rise
I wonder how the decline in religiosity has been in the USA because of these horrible things done to young children by many Catholic priests.
I have a "Real Irish" guy at work (he was born and lived most of his life in Ireland) that I talk to about religion and he is telling me that the decline in religiosity in the last 5-10 years in Ireland has been staggering. He didn't think it would go this quickly...to which I responded......"Great news. Ireland, welcome to the 21st century. The century of reality, critical thinking and reason....keep the good news coming"...
In the comment section of the second article I found a really intelligent quote that I will just paste below. Figure out for yourselves what it means. It is pretty obvious to me:
Picture two lemonade stands: side by side.
One has a banner that reads: Brutal Truths.
The other has a banner that reads: Comforting Lies.
Unfortunately the booth of Brutal Truths has no customers.
While at the booth of Comforting Lies the line goes on for miles.
If the Irish is looking for a new faith after being so pissed off and leaving the Catholic church may I suggest that they look into
Zeus and see what he has to offer them....
But seriously, has this had any effect among the Catholics within USA for example or other countries that could even be close to the destruction of the Catholic church in Ireland.
You don't have to be Catholic to respond.....