March 10, 2013
The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life
A project of the PewResearch Center
© Corbis/Kelly Redinger
ANALYSIS
Catholics in Western Europe
When Benedict XVI was elected pope in 2005, religious observance among Europeans had been in decline for decades, and he set out to stem the tide of secularization. How successful was he? Pew Research polls indicate that during his papacy, religious observance among Catholics in France, Germany, Spain and Italy remained low but fairly stable.
© NIR ELIAS/Reuters/Corbis
POLL
Views of the Catholic Church Today
U.S. Catholics see the scandal over sex abuse by clergy as the most important problem facing the church today and charitable efforts to aid the poor, feed the hungry and heal the sick as the church's most important contribution to society today.
GRAPHIC
Geography of the Conclave
The conclave to elect the next pope will begin on Tuesday, March 12. Half of the cardinal electors gathering at the Vatican are European (52%), while 17% come from Latin America. Latin America has the largest share of the world's Catholic population (39%), while 24% of Catholics live in Europe.
ANALYSIS
World’s 1.1 Billion Catholics Are Half of All Christians
ANALYSIS
Size and Distribution of Eight Major Faith Groups
POLL
"Nones" on the Rise
Eric Swanson/Corbis
POLL
Religious knowledge: what do Americans know?
RELIGION NEWS ON THE WEB
March 06, 2013
Wash. Post: College of Cardinals imposes media blackout
The Washington PostMarch 05, 2013
AP: Americans control conclave message just by talking
The Associated PressMarch 04, 2013
AP: Ark. Gov. Beebe vetoes 12-week abortion ban
The Associated PressMarch 04, 2013
Wash. Post: Virginia’s Liberty transforms into evangelical mega-university
The Washington PostMarch 04, 2013
NYT: Cardinals start to ponder subtleties of a big task
The New York Times
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