American Catholics are becoming increasingly alarmed as once-overflowingparishes find their pews emptying, their pulpits shared with other churches,and their college-aged kids abandoning the faith in unprecedented numbers.  Why is this happening?  And what can we do about it?

American Catholics are becoming increasingly alarmed as once-overflowing parishes find their pews emptying, their pulpits shared with other churches, and their college-aged kids abandoning the faith in unprecedented numbers. Why is this happening? And what can we do about it?

American Catholics are becoming increasingly alarmed as once-overflowingparishes find their pews emptying, their pulpits shared with other churches,and their college-aged kids abandoning the faith in unprecedented numbers.&nbsp; Why is this happening?&nbsp; And what can we do about it?

Why is the American Church Shrinking?

If you’ve grown up with religion like I did, you’ve probably also felt from time to time that it just doesn’t add up.  Certain questions haunt you at two o’clock in the morning, questions that whatever group you practice your faith with tends to frown upon.  You don’t find the provincially acceptable answers at all acceptable.  But however much these questions prove to be forbidden, your mind remains unsettled.  You keep coming back to them—hesitant, worried, and sometimes even angry.  I’ve spent my life tossing away the shackles of fear and facing these forbidden questions directly.  I cannot understand why religious people should fear the truth, if the truth is supposed to set us free!  So, let it out, I say.  And I offer you here the fruits of my lifetime of labors, both in the hopes that you can profit from my struggles but also in the expectation that you might add something to inspire our other travelers still facing those anxious nights.

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If you’ve grown up with religion like I did, you’ve probably also felt from time to time that it just doesn’t add up. Certain questions haunt you at two o’clock in the morning, questions that whatever group you practice your faith with tends to frown upon. You don’t find the provincially acceptable answers at all acceptable. But however much these questions prove to be forbidden, your mind remains unsettled. You keep coming back to them—hesitant, worried, and sometimes even angry. I’ve spent my life tossing away the shackles of fear and facing these forbidden questions directly. I cannot understand why religious people should fear the truth, if the truth is supposed to set us free! So, let it out, I say. And I offer you here the fruits of my lifetime of labors, both in the hopes that you can profit from my struggles but also in the expectation that you might add something to inspire our other travelers still facing those anxious nights.

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Why is the American Church Shrinking?

Why is the American Church Shrinking?