352 Lux Mag
December 21, 2010
http://www.station.lu/?p=edito&a=external&id=98849
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21.12.2010 - People are fleeing the Catholic church in the Grand Duchy due to recent scandals.
Why are people losing faith?
Sexual abuse revelations from members of the church, unfullfilled aspirations, attitudes of the clergy and personal indecision have all played a part in the recent downsizing of Luxembourg's Catholic community.
The portal sokrates.lu, an initiative of the Liberté de conscience (Libco - "Freedom of conscience"), an organisation that celebrates the separation of church and state, guides members on how to leave the church if they feel they have lost faith. The website asks members to download and sign a letter available on the website fraiheet.lu and send it to Libco. It is then passed on to the archdiocese, the members' local parish and the Ministry of State. Libco has unregistered more than 2,500 members from the church since its inception, according to French daily L'essential. In total, it estimates that around 7,000 people have left the church across the country since 2009.
History of Roman Catholicism in Luxembourg
Christianity has always been incredibly popular in the Grand Duchy. Currently it is estimated that 87% of citizens are registered as Roman Catholics.
Although the state does not support or criticise any one religion, it does support financially Roman Catholic churches, among few select institutions of other religions.
According to the most recent Eurobarometer poll (2005):
44% of Luxembourgish citizens responded that "they believe there is a God"
28% answered that "they believe there is some sort of spirit or life force"
22% answered that "they do not believe there is any sort of spirit, God, or life force"
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