This is the conclusion of a study by the Dutch Catholic weekly Katholiek Nieuwsblad, based on interviews with twenty-one priests from seven different Dutch dioceses.

There are fewer believers who regularly attend Holy Masse, and some of them – who do not have a strong bond with the community – have stopped going to church altogether.

According to a priest from the city of Utrecht, when the virus hit, the parish lost all the faithful “on the fringes of the church”, while only the most faithful parishioners remained.

In the 1970s, there was a drastic change in pastoral activity. The emphasis was no longer placed on traditional Catholic teaching about hell, the devil, sin, confession, and catechesis. The custom of giving Holy Communion [to all] has become common. Teachings related to the sanctity of marriage and human sexuality were diluted.

Source: pch24.pl