Estimates vary, but as much as 25 percent of the American populace is Catholic — though that number is falling. Islam is on the rise in Europe and America, if its members simply continue reproducing (which they are not doing in some countries). Europeans and Americans continue their population decline.
We see many conversions to the Faith, but also mass defections. Many Evangelical sects are making vast inroads in Latin America. Christians disappear in Muslim countries. Here at home, the attrition of Catholics from orthodoxy is astonishing. The last two popes have talked of living in a relativistic and positivist culture. Many of the legislative and judicial decisions that have rejected basic Catholic teachings came from Catholics, or with their support. The major facilitators of such decisions claim that they are “Catholic.” The bishops rarely say much in particular about this phenomenon, which cannot but confuse the public that sees the division.
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