The eagerly awaited World Synod begins in the Vatican on Wednesday. But can Pope Francis really modernise the Catholic Church? Confidence in his power to reform is not as high as it used to be.
Shortly before the start of the World Synod in the Vatican, only one in five people in Germany believed that Pope Francis can modernise the Catholic Church. Nine years ago, it was one in two.
No
In a poll published on Sunday by the opinion research institute Yougov for the Catholic News Agency (KNA), 19.5 percent of the 2,037 respondents answered “Yes” to the question “Do you think Pope Francis is doing more to adapt the Catholic faith to the 21st century than his predecessors?” Around 55 per cent answered “No” and just under 26 per cent “Don’t Know/ No Answer”.
The Institute has asked the same question once before – in November 2014, about a year and a half after Francis took office. At that time, 46 per cent answered “Yes”, 37 per cent “No” and 17 per cent “Don’t know / No answer”.
Trust
The trust of Catholics (with 33 per cent yes votes) in the Pope is significantly higher than that of Christians from the Protestant regional churches (19 per cent) and that of the non-believing respondents (12 per cent). Among the men surveyed, there were more yes votes (22 per cent) than among the women (17 per cent). Looking at the different age groups, the 25-34 year-olds are the most likely to trust the Pope with a push for modernisation. With increasing age, the proportion of yes votes decreases significantly.
In an almost simultaneous survey conducted in Switzerland with 1,052 participants and the same question, there were similar approval ratings: 21 per cent answered “Yes”, 44 per cent “No” and 34 per cent “Don’t Know/No Answer”.
Adapt
The surveys were conducted under the overall question: “Do you think Pope Francis is doing more to adapt the Catholic faith to the 21st century than his predecessors?” The comparison figures come from a Yougov poll on the same question carried out in Germany between November 25 and 27, 2014 in which 1,011 people aged 18 and over were interviewed.
The data used is based on current online surveys by Yougov Deutschland GmbH, in which a total of 2,037 people in Germany took part between September 22 and 25, 2023, and 1,052 people in Switzerland between September 12 and 18. The results were weighted and, according to Yougov, are representative of the German and Swiss population aged 18 and over.
*Originally reported by KNA Germany.
