My friends were raised catholic educated in school catholic and 50% now non catholic. why are catholics . fallen away?

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What do carrots and rabbits have to do with this discussion anyways? :man_shrugging:t2:
 
Erikaspirit16 said:
Take a look at the literature on the IHM nuns in California (extinct…) and Carl Rogers, or, more recently, Mary Johnson: http://maryjohnson.co For 20 years Mary trained nuns in Rome for Mother Teresa. Then she had a lesbian affair with another nun, another sexual affair with a priest, left the order, and became something of a New Age guru. All very bizarre, but it goes to show what happens when you’re 19, join a religious order without much education or thought, and then wake up one morning…
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This is why we need spiritual direction. Being in religious life can’t be treated like a shot-gun wedding.

And even our clergy sin and make mistakes. Moses and David did, too. It happens and people need to adjust and cope accordingly.
 
One thing no one has mentioned is the nature of the Catholic Mass. Or maybe better, the preaching at the Mass. I once asked a priest why don’t you teach during a sermon in light of the fact that so many people didn’t understand the basic doctrine and teaching of the church. His answer, the Bishop instructed us to say something inspirational. Okay, but consider the teen age boy or girl who knows little about the religion having been fed sugarcoated teachings in Sunday School or CCD. After you have heard, “Jesus loves you and His message is to be kind… yadda … yadda … yadda” they (like probably most of the adults) turn it off because they have heard the same ole pious pablum over and over and over. And then I hear priests and religious say “well that’s why we have this or that presentation of Wednesday night.” People are too busy to come to something on Wednesday when they are trying to make a living and raise a family.
My vote is the Bishops need to institute more teaching, more adult, relatable understanding in the presentation of the faith. Catechesis needs to be better presented at all levels and at every instance where there is a captive audience. Especially Sunday Mass.
 
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joeybaggz said:
After you have heard, “Jesus loves you and His message is to be kind… yadda … yadda … yadda” they (like probably most of the adults) turn it off because they have heard the same ole pious pablum over and over and over
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I’m with you Joeybaggz. Once again, that’s exactly what I mean by an “emotional” approach. Love is great, but a little doctrine here and there wouldn’t hurt.

I’m pretty sure that priests take a course in the seminary about preaching. But I have to ask: is reading a dry sermon in a monotone a great idea? Toastmasters anyone?

We had a retired priest in the area who was extremely charismatic (in the sense of having people admire him!) and he offered an occasional public lecture on religion at the local college. These sessions were standing room only. You could hardly get in the door it was so packed. And what was he saying? Nothing that an educated Catholic doesn’t already know. But those things were major revelations (pun intended) to his audience. Sadly, he died quite a few years ago. We need a lot more priests like him.
 
Maybe it wasn’t the catechesis, but the protestant/evangelical communities place strong emphasis on fellowship. Maybe he felt emotional/social support…
 
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How about the carrot cake?
 
So, how are you solving the problem? There is talk about religious and priests, but no talk of how the laity should fix this problem. Many students only attend religious education in order to make their First Communion or Confirmation. In my diocese, young ladies wishing to celebrate their 15th birthday with a religious ceremony must attend religious education or Catholic school.
 
Not just television. But also radio. I suspect radio was an even BIGGER influence than television.
 
There is certainly no one reason. I’ll name a few that come to mind that I haven’t seen mentioned yet.
  1. There are places to fall away to.
    Once upon a time most people lived in communities with religious, ethnic, and families ties. Even if they did not do a good job of practicing their Faith, they still identified with and practiced the cultural aspects of their Faith. Their neighbors, friends, coworkers, fellow students, teachers, etc, were likely to be members of their parish.
    Now many people see few identifiable Catholics outside of Mass or Catholic school. Those they do meet are likely to practice no religion or something other that Catholicism.
  2. Fathers don’t practice their Faith and/or if they do their children don’t see it.
    If Dad is not observed practicing his Faith, his children are likely to fall away. If Dad sincerely practices, kids may fall away but they have a better chance of coming back.
  3. Catholic schools are more elite than they used to be.
    In many places the middle class families cannot afford Catholic school. Catholic schools are less ethnically cohesive than they once were so there may not be as many cultural practices that tend to bind people to their fellow Catholics.
  4. There is TREMENDOUS social pressure on Catholics to violate the sexual teachings of the Church. This applies to married couples, singles, and minors. The guilt people feel when they go against the Church drives many to leave even if they really don’t want to.
 
joeybaggz said:
My vote is the Bishops need to institute more teaching, more adult, relatable understanding in the presentation of the faith. Catechesis needs to be better presented at all levels and at every instance where there is a captive audience. Especially Sunday Mass.
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Few people of the younger generation sit for being lectured at. Not all priests are gifted in teaching in this arena. Maybe the priests need coaching and training on how to teach and be inspirational at the same time (?)
 
Agreed 110% ! And the teachers of Catholicism as the younger generation is growing up. If you study the NT you will notice that Jesus was one of the finest storytellers ever. He captured the imagination of his listeners by telling stories (parables) to which they could relate and understand the point he was trying to make. Maybe during the formation of priests, they could work a little more on bringing the Gospel message and the beauty of RCC belief to life in a good story rather than what you call, a lecture.
 
I think point 1 is what it was for most people I know. I will also add that the typical elderly congregations that you see can be very unrelatable to a younger Catholic. I think sometimes teens get confirmed and are filled with enthusiasm but don’t see anyone like them like them at mass.
 
When a priest (7-8 years education) falls away from his vocation the first thing that comes to my mind is whether he kept his prayer life or was taught to build a strong prayer life
 
I think we all need a strong prayer life. We can’t always guarantee a good Catholic community for ourselves and our loved ones but with strong prayer habits it’s easier to weather life.
 
Schools can only do so much. If the child is only taught the faith at school, this is not enough. Real, meaningful modeling needs to happen in families too.

It all comes down to dying to oneself and embracing Christ. It’s a hard thing to do and many choose not to.
 
I went to Catholic school 12 years. Here’s my story:
  1. After 12 years, I never knew what the word Catechism meant.
  2. I never learned how to pray the rosary.
  3. Never learned church teaching on gay marriage, a big cultural topic in this day in age. There was no clear teaching from any Catholic teacher I had.
  4. No recollection of any teacher picking up a Bible.
  5. I thought apologetics meant to say your sorry.
 
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