Report: British Catholics turn away from church as stress mounts

Published: 2005-07-20

LONDON (CNS) -- Catholic families in Britain are turning their backs on going to church because of the strains of modern life, according to a new report. Drawing on the experiences of 15,000 Catholic families who responded to a "Listening 2004" consultation, the report says materialism, financial hardship and modern working practices are placing Catholic families under pressure to stay away from Mass on Sundays. The 90-page report, titled "Not Easy But Full of Meaning," said many Catholic couples were simply too tired to attend Mass on Sundays after a week spent juggling the demands of their jobs and domestic duties. Families also felt overwhelmed by a "tide of materialism" and wanted to see more support from the church in countering it, said the report, written by Auxiliary Bishop John Hine of Southwark and Elizabeth Davies, marriage and family life project officer for the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales. "All that we have heard suggests that life ... is often messy, rushed, stressful and draining," said their report. "It seems that church involvement is either becoming one choice among many or simply less of a viable option."

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