Trenton, NJ, diocese gets earful from \"lapsed Catholics\"

Mar 23, 2012
by Tom Gallagher

NCR Washington correspondent Jerry Filteau covered the release of this study of "lapsed Catholics": Unusual study asks former Catholics why they left church

From the Star-Ledger (read the full story here):

As part of a survey to understand why they have stopped attending Mass, a few hundred Catholics in the Trenton Diocese were asked what issues they would raise with Bishop David O’Connell if they could speak to him for five minutes.

O’Connell would have gotten an earful.

Their reasons ranged from the personal ("the pastor who crowned himself king and looks down on all") to the political ("eliminate the extreme conservative haranguing") to the doctrinal ("don’t spend so much time on issues like homosexuality and birth control").

The findings are included in a report commissioned by the Diocese and presented Thursday at the "Lapsed Catholics" conference at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.

More details are here.

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