General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Do you know why Catholics put money in the collection plate at Sunday mass? [View all]cartach
(511 posts)All of my education prior to university took place in Catholic schools and I attended church more or less on a regular basis until I reached my teenage years. Since that time approximately 60 years ago I've only been inside a Catholic church for weddings,funerals and other ceremonial functions,all in the same city and in a total of about half a dozen churches. One thing that has struck me through the years that no matter what kind of neighborhood,what size of church,location or size of membership, there has been a significant deterioration in the general upkeep of the buildings and facilities.Some could be considered in slum conditions and others are close to it. So where is the money going? Is it reduced attendance or because the Vatican is taking too big a share as they have always been accused of but even in face of reduced attendance? Whatever the case the conditions are not attractive even in the basic sense and might be contributing to the declining attendance. I would also point out that for many years there has been an increasing number of lay teachers taking the place of the traditional nun in Catholic schools and they are paid a significantly lower wage than teachers in public schools and as they say you only get what you pay for.