Catholics Are More Liberal Than You Might Think

The Economist: “Some 56% of those surveyed agreed that the church should support the rights of refugees and migrants, even if that conflicts with national border laws. Views on migrants varied widely across countries: Catholics in Europe, where immigration is a contentious political issue, were markedly less sympathetic than those in Africa, Asia and South America. A majority of Catholics surveyed (55%) supported the church being more welcoming to gay and transgender people. Kenya was the only country where opposition outweighed support (around a fifth of respondents globally were ambivalent on the issue). Just over half (51%) of those surveyed supported women becoming ordained deacons; and 46% were in favour of allowing priests to marry. In each case, because a large share of Catholics were undecided, opponents were in the minority.”

“Catholics from Argentina, Francis’s birthplace, were consistently among the most open to change. The late pope’s views may have had greater influence there. Many Catholics in the relatively liberal country—Argentina was the first in Latin America to legalise same-sex marriage, in 2010—are also not particularly devout. At least two-thirds of Argentinians identify as Catholic, but only around 20% of the population attends mass regularly.”