Cradle Catholics vs Converts

[Redbaron998]

I was curious the other day, do we have any reliable data on about how many (what %) of Catholics worldwide are Cradle Catholics and what % are converts?

Thank ya

 

[lakotak]

I was curious the other day, do we have any reliable data on about how many (what %) of Catholics worldwide are Cradle Catholics and what % are converts?

Thank ya

What does it really matter since we are all one in the Body of Christ, regardless of when any of us came into the Church?

 

[JRKH]

I was curious the other day, do we have any reliable data on about how many (what %) of Catholics worldwide are Cradle Catholics and what % are converts?

Thank ya

I would say that no there is not any such “reliable data”. Compiling such data would be hugely time consuming.

Peace
James

 

[Redbaron998]

What does it really matter since we are all one in the Body of Christ, regardless of when any of us came into the Church?

It doesnt but I am trying to pull some sources toghether to refute a claim that there are very little converts to Catholicism, so I was just looking for some numbers

 

[Texas_Roofer]

Well typically an RCIA class (converts) would only run 1-2% of a parish however the RCIA is not in all parishes and often is doing sacraments for catholics. So even compounding over time it would seem hard to imagine converts being over 2-3% of the church. The flip of that is “cradles” are counted when the chose not to practice.

 

[Spencerian]

As others have said, without data from Vatican sources that poll all dioceses and their parishes for such information, we can only guess–and badly, I’d say.

Here’s one statistical nugget that may give you an idea of overall growth, if not in percentage of converts to Catholics-at-birth: This article from L’Osservatore Romano from last year notes growth rates in many circles in Catholicism worldwide. To summarize it, while overall world growth within Catholicism grew very well between 1978 to 2005 (45%), the current growth rate of Catholics seems flat compared to world population growth (Catholic ratio is only 15-17%). Europe’s growth is practically nil, but Africa is explosive, tripling its number in that same time. No numbers on U.S. growth.

The article gives growth in religious life, where the numbers are not impressive.

The article derives its stats from a Vatican report, the Annuarium statisticum Ecclesiae 2004. EWTN has a rich copy of this that shows the Americas continental growth stats as well as other nations or regions, breaking out more of the data from the first article link.

 

[crazzeto]

One interesting point I saw made on Catholic.org (sorry, I don’t have the link at the moment I will try to find it) is that the CC has been growing at a pace faster than the global population rate. I’m not sure by what percent, but that says soemthing I would say.

 

[Spencerian]

One interesting point I saw made on Catholic.org (sorry, I don’t have the link at the moment I will try to find it) is that the CC has been growing at a pace faster than the global population rate. I’m not sure by what percent, but that says soemthing I would say.

The Vatican’s statistical report in my previous post says just the opposite (where I must correct myself). The CC’s growth in relation to world population is decreasing, at around 18%. While some areas are growing phenomenally, such as Africa, places such as Europe are shrinking. Quote:

Over and above the different demographic dynamics, there is obvious confirmation of the growth of Catholics on the African Continent (here Catholic faithful have increased from 7 percent to more than 13.5 percent of the number in the world), and of the conspicuous fall in the number of Catholics on the European Continent, where the percentage of Catholic faithful of the world total fell from 35 percent in 1978 to 25.4 percent in 2004.

America’s position as a Continent to which almost half the world’s faithful belong was consolidated.