Trend reversal for church resignations: Numbers in Bavaria are going back!

Trend reversal for church resignations: Numbers in Bavaria are going back!

Freising, Deutschland - The number of church exit in Bavaria showed a surprising turn in 2024. After years of negative records, the number of withdrawals from the religious communities is now resigning. According to a survey by the German Press Agency (dpa), only 16,454 people left the church in Munich by December 10th-a decline compared to the 19.081 resigned in the previous year. This trend can also be seen in other large cities such as Nuremberg and Augsburg. In Nuremberg, 5,040 people left the church, while 2,992 withdrawals were counted in Augsburg. These numbers indicate a slightly moderated decline.

local statistics and their meaning

While the number of exit is falling, the distribution to the denominations remains unclear. A smaller number of withdrawals was recorded from the Evangelical Church with 54 percent and from the Catholic Church with 44 percent. In 2022, on the other hand, a negative record was: over 153,000 people emerged from the Catholic Church. This happened in a year, which was characterized by scandalous abuse allegations, as the German Bishops' Conference can report. In 2023, the Catholic Church in Bavaria counted over 106,000 withdrawals, which indicates a continued alienation of the people of the church, as also shows the statistics of Neuerfang.online

This development is part of a long -term trend of alienation of faith and church. According to a current survey, over 90 percent of the Catholics baptized do not participate in church life. In addition, the service visit remains at a historical low with only 4.3 percent. The problems that many Catholics lead to departure are now becoming more urgent than ever, and it remains to be seen whether the church is able to regain or hold its members.