A woman-oriented Church
A report by the statistics Institute of the Catholic Church reinterprets the religious situation in the Country in the light of data on men and women. On the whole, the number of Catholics actively involved in pastoral ministry has increased, although a growth is also registered among those “perplexed” about a set of Catechetical tenets and teachings on the life and the family
“Despite changes on their role in society, Polish women are more devout than men”, said Fr Wojciech Sadlon, director of the Statistics Institute of the Polish Catholic Church, who conducted a survey with comparative analyses on religious practice, participation in ecclesial life and communal engagement. In the light of the findings, Sadlon maintains that the results confirm “anthropological differences between men and women”. The prelate equally maintains that “women find it easier to lead a religious life”.
Female devotion is unchanged. “Women are more open to relations, to religious experience and to a true relationship with God”, said Fr Sadlon, for whom “the comparison between more and less religious Polish dioceses”, according to numbers and to church attendance, “shows that men need an extra stimulus to go to church, while in the case of women motivation stemming from the very religious experience appears to be sufficient”.
Unlike the United States, over the past years women’s religious devotion in Poland “does not follow the same downward trend as regards men”. For the priest-researcher “this should rekindle the hope of preserving women’s fundamental role in the transmission of the faith in families” and in young generations.
Family, marriage, abortion. The figures collected by the statistical service of the Polish Church are clear: 26% of women (almost twice as many as men) say they are “deeply religious” while only 1.1% (5% of men) describe themselves as atheists.
More women than men recognize the fundamental truths of the faith in the divine nature of Jesus
(90% of women versus 81% of men), or eternal life (75% of women, 61% of men). Almost 80% of women (compared to 65% of men) correctly indicate the sacraments. Increasing numbers of women say they are in favour of the indissolubility of marriage (45% of the total, thus less than half), but slightly more than 40% of men support it. 69% of women (and 59% of men) are against abortion: a figure that equally prompts reflection. Faith is “important” for 48% of women and only for 38% of men. It is a source of security for over 34% of women (24% of men). Perhaps the greatest difference is registered in response to the question on the experience of God’s closeness, shared by 53% of women and by only 38% of men.
Overcoming stereotypes. For Alina Petrowa, member of the Council for the Pastoral Care of Women for the Polish episcopate, the statistical data compiled according to a male / female criteria for the first time in the history of the Church in Poland, “controvert certain stereotypes”. Indeed, if the number of women in the Church is higher compared to men it means that “the Church is the place where women identify themselves more easily, and consider it their own home.” For Polish women, Petrowa said, “the Church is the place for spiritual growth towards sainthood (given the high participation in religious practice and sacraments) as well as “a place for creativity and personal development”, as “it also is a place of freedom”. In fact,
many more women join prayer and formation groups compared to men, take part in charitable organizations and parish Councils.
The dignity of being a mother. Eurostat figures for Poland show that women are better educated than men (for example there are more women graduates than men). Today, however, pointed out Teresa Kapela, member of the Council for the Pastoral Care of Women, “the value of a woman is defined exclusively on the basis of her professional skills”. “Women are denied the dignity of being mothers,” Kapela denounced, criticizing the current situation whereby “in practice, motherhood has become an individual problem of every woman,” given that “only 50% of mothers enjoy a certain degree of economic security, while only 30% receive some form of State benefit”.
Increased commitments in the parish. Monika Przybysz, Professor at the Catholic University “Stefan Wyszynski” in Warsaw, interpreting the study from a more general perspective, observed that “the most important aspect of the report is the steady growth since 1998 in the number of persons actively involved in parish communities and organizations”.
Today almost 3 million lay Catholics are actively committed within ecclesial structures.
“This overturns the stereotype that increasing numbers of people leave the Church”, Przybysz said, highlighting this figure against the backdrop of the demographic crisis, coupled by the emigration of millions of Polish citizens.
