Leaving

Many of the disciples of Jesus who were listening said, “This saying is hard; who can accept it?” Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this, he said to them, “Does this shock you? What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? It is the Spirit that gives life, while the flesh is of no avail. The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and life. But there are some of you who do not believe.”

Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe and the one who would betray him. And he said, “For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by my Father.” As a result of this, many of his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer walked with him.

Jesus then said to the Twelve, “Do you also want to leave?” Simon Peter answered him, “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.” (John 6:60-69)

From Carlye Murphy of Pew Research Center (September 2015): 

Some older American Catholics might remember a time when people thought of the Catholic Church like a family: hard to ignore and even harder to leave. But a new Pew Research Center survey of U.S. Catholics shows that at least some of these perceptions may no longer be entirely true.

Indeed, about half (52%) of all U.S. adults who were raised Catholic have left the church at some point in their lives. A significant minority of them returned, but most (four-in-ten of all those raised Catholic) have not.

Roughly two-thirds of those who have not returned (28% of all those raised Catholic) are now ex-Catholics. These are people raised in the church who no longer consider themselves Catholic in any way. We classified the remaining 13% as “cultural Catholics” – those who now have no religion or are part of another religious tradition (other than Catholicism), but nevertheless still identify as Catholic in some way.

Despite the temporary and lasting departures from the church, there still are deep reservoirs of loyalty to the institution. Nearly three-quarters (73%) of current Catholics say they have been part of the church their whole life. A similar share, seven-in-ten, also say they could never imagine leaving Catholicism, no matter what.

Even among younger generations, there is significant loyalty to the church: About half of Catholic adults (56%) under age 30 say they can’t imagine leaving the church.

There has been speculation that the popularity of Pope Francis and the atmosphere of change around his 2-year-old papacy might inspire many former Catholics to return to the church.

But when it comes to ex-Catholics, Francis has his work cut out for him. Only 8% say returning to the church is something they could imagine doing. More open to coming back are those raised in the church but who are now cultural Catholics: 43% say they can imagine returning to the Catholic Church someday.

So American Catholics – both in and out of the church – are still like a family, just one where not everyone is living under the same roof. (end)

Bishop Robert Barron also has offered his opinion covered in June 2019 by the Catholic News Service:

Although the U.S. bishops’ spring assembly in Baltimore was mostly devoted to responding to the sexual abuse crisis in the church, the bishops also considered something described as the second-most important issue currently facing U.S. church leaders: How to get religiously unaffiliated, or “nones,” particularly young people, back to the Catholic Church.

This is a top priority for our church, said Auxiliary Bishop Robert E. Barron of Los Angeles, chairman of the bishops’ Committee on Evangelization and Catechesis, who is known for his website, “Word on Fire,” and for hosting the documentary series “Catholicism”…

…“How many are leaving? The short answer is: a lot,” the bishop said, noting the sobering statistic he said many in the room probably were aware of — that 50% of Catholics 30 years old and younger have left the church.

“Half the kids that we baptized and confirmed in the last 30 years are now ex-Catholics or unaffiliated,” he said, and “one out of six millennials in the U.S. is now a former Catholic.”

Another statistic that particularly affects him is this: “For every one person joining our church today, 6.45 are leaving” and most are leaving at young ages, primarily before age 23. The median age of those who leave is 13.

“Where are they going?” he asked, and in response to his own question, he again gave a short answer: They’re “becoming nones” although some, in much smaller percentages, join other mainstream religions or evangelical churches. (end)

John said, “As a result of this, many of his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer walked with him.”  They walked away.  All of the above is sobering news that really isn’t new. 

Stemming the out-going tide won't be easy.  That which might draw the young and older back to the Church is sorely lacking, such as far better attitudes towards LGBTQ young and old.  Calling them "sinners" is sinful, self-defeating, and, frankly, antichrist, in my opinion.

Deacon David Pierce