The force of small numbers

If the criteria remains that of numbers and distributed wafers, then Catholicism is in serious decline in Holland. The results of a survey published a few days ago by the National Bureau of Statistics of the Netherlands on the “religious involvement” of citizens, reported that only 24.4% of the population declare themselves Catholic, with a declining trend in recent years; about 5% of the faithful go to church once a week, i.e., 200 thousand people. But the vitality of Dutch Christians cannot be assessed with these criteria, as explained by card. Willem Eijk, Archbishop of Utrecht and President of the Bishops’ Conference, who spoke to Sarah Numico for Sir Europe about the commitment and the strength of a Church “of small numbers”. Your Eminence, could you describe the situation of the Catholic Church in The Netherlands? “The Catholic Church, as well as the Protestant Church, is going through a difficult phase. Mass attendance decreased and most of those who go to church are the elderly. An evident consequence is the problematic situation of many parishes that depend on voluntary contributions by the faithful (there is no State contribution here). In some dioceses many churches have been closed, in others the number is the same as 25 years ago, but the maintenance of the buildings is very expensive. That’s why it’s important to join forces. It’s a challenge for all those involved”. What is the role of Catholicism is the public and social life of the Country? “It decreased significantly in the past decades owing to strong individualism, a predominant feature in The Netherlands. The question is also whether the Church paid a high price in terms of benevolence after the scandal of sexual abuses perpetrated in the past by priests and religious. Until ten years ago the Church was considered among the trustworthiest institutions, but this is no longer the case. This also applies to protestant Churches, even though they were not blemished by this scandal. We are relentless in our commitment to compensate the victims and prevent abuses in the future, but the truth is that people have not abandoned the Church because of the scandals. Individualism and the economy are the prevailing forces in contemporary societies. Christianity is tolerated, but the general feeling is that people should confine their religious beliefs ‘behind closed doors’, as a politician recently said. This goes against the very heart of Christianity. We have a message for everyone. The challenge is being listened to in a society which, as a whole, appears to have lost interest for the Christian religion”. Does of feeling of being “prisoners” prevail among Christians? Or is there a deep-rooted commitment for evangelization and hope for reforms and new thrusts? “When it becomes evident that a church must be closed, the issue stirs emotional chords among the faithful. I made frequent appeals to fight the feeling of being imprisoned by bitterness. It’s important to preserve open hearts and minds. New possibilities are created. When a religious building shuts downs it means that people have to move to take part in the Sunday Mass. This doesn’t mean that the religious community disappears. To unite forces gives new vitality. It’s more encouraging to convene in a church with several hundreds of people, instead of having many churches with less than fifty faithful attending mass. Uniting forces also means having more time to promote new initiatives, new forms of Eucharistic celebrations, catechesis and a strong presence in the social media. This things are inspiring and instil new energy into people”. Which form of “politics” has the Dutch Church adopted to rekindle the Gospel across Dutch society? “It’s important to be explicit regarding our faith. For too much time there has been an implicit approach to evangelization and catechesis in this Country. It’s important to ‘show and say’ what the Gospel means, that Jesus is our Saviour and intends to have a role in everyone’s life. Young Catholics today make a responsible choice, they are explicit and responsible and this makes of them powerful ambassadors. Numbers are declining, but the quality of our faith is growing stronger. The result is a smaller, but stronger Church, with an evangelizing heart. IN the archdiocese of Utrecht we are witnessing a growth in the number of seminarians, which has given us the opportunity to reopen our seminary last year. Another positive aspect is the arrival of members of religious congregations from abroad. A school for volunteers that wish to teach catechisms was recently opened. The response was encouraging: 25 youths are preparing for this. In order to evangelize we need to know what we believe in and we must be able to share it. It’s a joint task for priests and lay Catholics alike”. What is the impact in the Country of the personality and the example of Pope Francis? “For a large number of faithful Pope Francis is a strong support. He encourages people along the way of the Gospel, and this is very important”.