Half Packed Pews

The national census is held in Poland every ten years. The `census' on church attendance is conducted every year. The results of the latest count, just published, give the Polish Church much reason for satisfaction but the Church does not intend to rest on its laurels.

When Poland joined the EU in 2004, some people in Poland expected imminent secularization trends spreading into the country. After the death of Pope John Paul II over two years ago, many people thought that those whose links with the church were based solely on an emotional attitude to the Polish Pope would turn away from the church. The latest census on church attendance, conducted in November 2006, shows that such fears proved unjustified. The national average of Sunday mass attendance in some 10,000 Polish parishes is 45.8 percent, an increase of just under one percentage point on 2005. Sixteen percent of those attending Sunday mass receive Holy Communion.

According to Jonathan Luxmoore, a prominent analyst of religious scene in Poland and Central Europe, the Polish Church can be satisfied with the result.

`There may be people who are not satisfied, who might think it should be even higher in a great Catholic nation such as Poland but that would be the dream of churches all around the world, not least in Western Europe. I think the Polish Church can be pretty satisfied but of course it's important not to rest on one's laurels. The Church has built up that public support through decades of very hard, very intelligent and wise work so it would need to continue doing that wise work in future as well.'

Source: Polskie Radio