New Study Finds Majority of American Catholics Want Church To Be More ‘Inclusive,’ Abandon Catholic Teaching
A significant majority of American Catholics favor the adoption of progressive theological teachings that diverge from the core tenets of their faith, according to a recent study by the Pew Research Center, which surveyed 1,787 Catholic respondents.
When asked whether the Catholic Church should “stick to its traditional teachings, even if it means the church gets smaller” or “be more inclusive, even if it means changing some of its teachings,” over 60% of respondents favored greater ‘inclusivity,’ while 37% supported adhering to traditional, more biblical doctrines.
The survey also highlights what has long been common knowledge: that most U.S. Catholics hold views on topics like contraception, marriage, and the priesthood that are diametrically opposed to longstanding Church teachings:
84% of U.S. Catholics say the church should allow Catholics to use birth control.
83% say the church should allow couples to use in vitro fertilization (IVF) to get pregnant.
68% say the church should allow women to become deacons.
63% say the church should allow priests to get married.
59% say the church should ordain women as priests.
While significant disparities exist between the responses of Catholics who attend church at least weekly and those who do not, nevertheless, even among weekly churchgoers, a majority or near-majority continue to express views that diverge from traditional Catholic teachings:
If people do not believe the Bible, okay. But why do they call themselves Catholic, or Christian? They are deceiving themselves, but can never deceive Christ. They will hear, in person, his Matthew 7:23 message.