Why has Mass attendance for Catholics been declining for many years?

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demolitionman65:
Why is attendance declining?

Because we here in the West (that’s Western Civilization) are media saturated drones, as a general rule, and the media is telling us that religion is a waste of time.

Solution #1: Kill your television.

#2: Return to the sacraments
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I actually have been doing both of those. It has been over 6 months since I have had a tv in my home. I have been going to mass more (weekday masses in addition to Sunday) and doing Holy Hours too. I can not take all the credit for the no TV situation. In addition to the grace of God, once I did decide to get rid of the one TV I own (sold it for less than half its value), my budget tightened and I can not afford to buy another one even when tempted to do so (not without huge consequences to my ability to pay necessary bills).

I also got rid of my video game systems for much the same reasons (plus the Playstation 2 needed the TV I got rid of or another screen which I did not have or want to buy). There are good video games, but I mostly played the violent games and spent way too much time on them anyway.

Being TV and video game free does not mean I do not have to be careful. There are bad radio shows, music, and reading materials around for me to avoid (or that I should, I do slip and listen to or read things I know to not be good for my mind or soul once in awhile :o 😦 )
 
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Scarlet:
Hi everybody,

What reasons or combination of reasons do you think best explains why Mass attendance has been declining over the years?
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In my opinion, Catholics are trying to play Protestant.
They look to the Protestant churches to build their congregations and ignore the conservative Catholic churches that are (at least in my area) growing by leaps and bounds. If people want to be Protestant, the Protestants do it SO much better.
They are putting the accent on the “community” and making the Eucharist secondary. They ignore any devotion to Our Lady, forgo the traditional prayers for the “Dear Jesus…” type and shun anyone who wants to pratice that which they remember from childhood.

It strikes me as funny that Americans spend thousands of dollars looking up their “roots”, sending children to folk dance classes, learn languages from the “Mother Land”, but NEVER are allowed to go back to tradition in the church.

I thank God every day for my Wonderful, Holy Priest and Blessed Parish!!!
 
**Ecumenism-**If the church is now teaching after Vatican II that we are no longer the one true faith, that we should look for truths in faiths that even reject our Lord such as the Jews, Hindus and Moslems and that we all worship the same God and can all be saved-all in clear contradiction of the past teaching of 2000 years of the church (I love those Vatican II supporters who always ask-where has the V2 documents deviated from past teachings, I would say start with the first document and work your way to the 16th and all in between), 100% so for the faiths that deny our Lord as the Messiah-and of course the Novus Ordo Mass that really only inspires those that need to be on center stage and “Participate” in a way that never before was seen in the church-then why should people go to Mass?

Per Vatican II and of course Pope JPII where Ecumenism was the cornerstone of his Papacy, If a Jew or Moslem or Hindu, whom we allowed to desecrate Fatima at the direction of Pope JPII and then denied after a coverup, can all be saved, then why would a Catholic need to go to Mass. After all - as long as you are a “good person”- and the heretic or Jew “Our elder brothers” can be saved-why go to Mass.

It is a clear contradiction that is leading many down the path to Hell. Mass is nourishment for the soul-it rejevenates after receiving the Body of Christ and hearing the prayers (at least in the TLM)-and many are being denied that for reasons I can not understand-I guess to be “in tune with the Modern world”

And one more bit of advice for all that are already giving our Pope a clear pass to heaven-it is, or at least used to be a sin for any mortal on earth to even assume that a soul is in Heaven as only God can make that judgement. God and Our Lord hold those who are of the Papacy and religious life to a higher standard and to make the statement that I hear and am reading all over the web sites that JPII is on his way to heaven is sinful and blasphemous.
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Scarlet:
Hi everybody,

What reasons or combination of reasons do you think best explains why Mass attendance has been declining over the years? And what do you think can stem the decline and turn it around where we have catholics once again attending mass regularly? Do you think it’s the way the liturgy is done in some churches? The way some churches have been renovated? Some way out there things being done in the “spirit of Vatican II”? The culture of our present day? Or a combination of different reasons?

I ask because our pastor made note of declining mass attendance and said there was probably several reasons why but didn’t mention any in particular. He just said that we need to take a harder look at our faith. I wonder, is it the faith that needs a harder look or the way our faith has been presented, taught, and safeguarded that needs a harder look?

In Christ,
Scarlet
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What reasons or combination of reasons do you think best explains why Mass attendance has been declining over the years? And what do you think can stem the decline and turn it around where we have catholics once again attending mass regularly?
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**There are many factors as to the decline over **the years, but changing people back from funeral-wedding Catholicism to regular attendance is going to require inspirational leadership from the priests and bishops.

People get ingrained in habits, it takes a lot to shake them out.

Looking back to the 50s, and just trying to resusitate that era isn’t going to work, as so much as happened since.
 
What has changed since the 50’s? Has God changed or his message (other than the false Politically Correct retranslations of the Bible by the Vatican)?

Was the mass changed through the centuries-with all kinds of horrible occurences-The black plague, the Inquisiton, the Crusades, The Moors attacking and killing Catholics, the Reformation??? All of these things and NO CHANGE in the MASS or the teachings!!!

And you think that some Modernism or Industrial Revolution is bigger than those in past history when the church flourished and was always the cornerstone for people to rely on and go to for solace???

You and the Modernists are full of yourself, thinking you are above the CHURCH, GOD and the MASS!

Kielbasi said:
**There are many factors as to the decline over **the years, but changing people back from funeral-wedding Catholicism to regular attendance is going to require inspirational leadership from the priests and bishops.

People get ingrained in habits, it takes a lot to shake them out.

Looking back to the 50s, and just trying to resusitate that era isn’t going to work, as so much as happened since.
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many protestants who entered the Catholic Church through RCIA become more Catholic than most cradle Catholics.
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:snickers:

Yes indeed. I (a cradle Catholic) often have to scramble to keep up with my wife (a convert from Methodism).
 
What has changed since the 50’s?
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Many people have died, some have left the church, and many others have been born.

One of the principal advantages of the old latin mass is that folks were used to it, and comfortable with it. Maybe it shouldn’t have been shelved, or maybe it should have. But for better or worse, we have what we have.

Joe Pewsitter is used to the current mass that we have now. To try and go back now would alienate a lot of the folks in the pews who don’t know latin, never heard latin mass before, and just like it the way it is. Those who do remember latin mass, and left, aren’t like to come back in any great numbers. Most are now either deceased or sufficiently set in their ways not to be likely to return.

What the church needs to return more folks to the pews is inspirational leadership.
 
:mad: In my Humble Opinion, it’s because of Bad Catechisis… From a period of July 1st, 1996, until June 30th, 1998, I served as a local Grand Knight, in a Knights of Columbus Council, in The Borough & County of Queens, in NYC. @ a June, 1997, 8th Grade Graduation, I asked a few Graduates, about the Meaning of The Real Presence, in The Eucharist. Let’s just say, it was a bit futile, waiting about 2 minutes for an answer, which seemed like it wasn’t forthcoming, until, I had to do a physical demonstration of what the Priest does @ the Consecration, &, even then, the answer, was hesitant.

Being both instructive & a bit humourous, I recited the Mass Schedules, for Parishes in 3 neighbourhoods, to remind the new graduates, that, just because you graduated from a Catholic School, your Formation in Faith isn’t over & that there was plenty of opportunity, to attend Mass on Sunday.

But, in subsequent conversations, the subject of Mortal Sin, was not brought up, until the 8th Grade.

I think the LACK of Fundamentals, is what’s killing attendance @ Mass, on Sundays & Holy Days of Obligation.
 
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BulldogCath:
And one more bit of advice for all that are already giving our Pope a clear pass to heaven-it is, or at least used to be a sin for any mortal on earth to even assume that a soul is in Heaven as only God can make that judgement. God and Our Lord hold those who are of the Papacy and religious life to a higher standard and to make the statement that I hear and am reading all over the web sites that JPII is on his way to heaven is sinful and blasphemous.
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I agree with this. We have a spiritual duty to pray for the repose of the soul of our Holy Father, Pope John Paul II. We were reminded of this at Mass this morning. I hope priests everywhere also pointed this out. We are doing JP II and all our faithful departed a disservice if we do not pray for them. It is one of the spiritual works of mercy, after all.

We also have a spiritual duty to pray for the cardinals who are gathering in Rome as they choose our new Pope. This is a heavy burden and great responsibility and they need our prayers too.

BTW, welcome back, Bulldog. :tiphat:
 
Many Catholics have this impression that all religions are the same, and the only difference between Catholicism and Protestant denominations are that Protestants have better preaching and music. Why go to Mass and listen to an incoherent and trite homily and be subjected to the awful off-key voice of a cantor blaring through the speakers…when you can just stay at home and watch some televangelist and a 1000-person choir?

And missing from all this is the awareness of the Real Presence, as others have posted. That’s the difference Catholics must constantly be reminded of. And the same goes for the tradtions of the church. People must be catechized of the relevance and meaning of those tradtions in their lives. We need to be proud to profess our faith.

Another thing is the fading notion of the church as a second home. Many nowadays just pray at home or not at all, and associate churchgoing with old people. People need to be more involved in parish ministries to help restore this connection.
 
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Kielbasi:
Joe Pewsitter is used to the current mass that we have now. To try and go back now would alienate a lot of the folks in the pews who don’t know latin, never heard latin mass before, and just like it the way it is. Those who do remember latin mass, and left, aren’t like to come back in any great numbers. Most are now either deceased or sufficiently set in their ways not to be likely to return.

What the church needs to return more folks to the pews is inspirational leadership.
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Perhaps a little Latin sprinkled in would be enough. At my parish we sing the Agnus Dei, the Gloria and sometimes more. It would please the older parishioners who remember it and the young people who hunger for it.
If you could hear the teenagers in our church sing Latin, you would be amazed. If you could hear my five year old, it would bring a tear to your eye. It does mine.
Like I said, we all are willing to look for our “roots”. Why not in the mass as well???

P.S. We have 200 Altar BOYS, four priests and eight seminarians. We must be doing something right.
 
netmil(name removed by moderator):
Perhaps a little Latin sprinkled in would be enough. At my parish we sing the Agnus Dei, the Gloria and sometimes more. It would please the older parishioners who remember it and the young people who hunger for it.
If you could hear the teenagers in our church sing Latin, you would be amazed. If you could hear my five year old, it would bring a tear to your eye. It does mine.
Like I said, we all are willing to look for our “roots”. Why not in the mass as well???

P.S. We have 200 Altar BOYS, four priests and eight seminarians. We must be doing something right.
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Wow, I want to live in your parish. Will you adopt me, mom? 👋
 
Who said declining mass attendance was a bad thing?
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Why wouldn’t it be considered a point of negativity?

That’s one of the things which is nice about Easter is that a lot more of the Catholic people make it out of their houses on Sunday a.m., and there is a lot more of the Catholic community at mass.
 
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Kielbasi:
Why wouldn’t it be considered a point of negativity?
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Quantity doesnt equal quality. If someone really stopped to think about their faith they would not have stopped going to Church. This decline is not because a huge block of well informed Catholics didnt like what they were seeing. It is because they didnt care in the first place, and caring starts at home, not in the pews.
 
This decline is not because a huge block of well informed Catholics didnt like what they were seeing. It is because they didnt care in the first place, and caring starts at home,
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Stipulating all of that as on target, so what?

The Catholics who quit attending mass in the 60s/70s are largely in decedency by this point in time, and there is a new generation of Catholics who never attended regularly because that’s what they were taught by their parents, not because of any personal objection or apathy on their part.

These Catholics ought to be encouraged to be more involved , no?
 
Well I can see why you have the sucess-you obvously were still allowed to hold onto your traditions, it appears as you seem to be an Eastern Catholic and not infiltrated by the Vatican II reforms while still allowed to stay loyal to Rome.

That is a win-win and it only goes to show that Tradition is what the laity wants, not some watered down teaching. Many of my aunts and uncles left after Vatican II and many pulled my cousins out of Catholic school in the 60’s and 70’s and they were blunt why they did and told the nuns - now dressed in slacks and no habits that it was due to Vatican II. No response back from the sisters, like they could care less. No trying to say, well why dont you try? Just-OK

And many of my cousins never went to mass growing up except to receive the sacraments. Now all grown up with families, 2 of them go to SSPX, 1 to a SSPV chapel and one some sort of Born again. And this is typical for many families.
netmil(name removed by moderator):
Let me ask the boss!
In the meantime, check out our website and consider the move…

saintcyrils.org
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In my opinion there are two ‘primary’ reasons. First of all Bishops (for the most part) have ceased to view themselves as successors to the Apostles and instead have become ‘managers’ of there diocese.

Secondly Priest no longer consider themselves as ministers operating in the person of Christ but rather see themselves as leading there parishes by incorporating a myriad of ‘ministries’.

How many times have we heard homilies on Martha and Mary which focus on the work done by Martha as being the most important part rather than the ‘one thing necessary’, which is hearing the word of God and believing as Mary did.
 
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Scarlet:
when I was serving on our RCIA team, it was reported by our director to the candidates that statistically, after people become catholic at the vigil, their participation in mass attendance declines dramatically. BTW, did you see Romano’s post and link above?

Scarlet
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I understand the contention. I just don’t see the evidence.
Can you please give the figures on which you base your contention?
Where can we get the official count of the number of Catholics in the world and U.S.?
 
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