Catholics believe lifestyle changes could improve
the environment;
A majority favor wider sharing of public education dollars to help
poor districts;
Are satisfied with the new Pope and the leadership of their local
churches.
SYRACUSE, New York - Where do American Catholics weigh in when
it comes to environmental concerns, selecting their children’s
schools and rating church leadership? These and other questions
were among the topics of the latest Le Moyne College/Zogby International
Contemporary Catholic Trends Poll (CCT), part of an ongoing project
that tracks the opinions of American Catholics nationwide.
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
When it comes to environmental issues, Catholics are aware of
the importance of protecting natural resources. Nearly 87% of those
polled said that protecting the environment is an important issue
with 21% placing it as “the most important issue” facing
America today. A majority of Catholics also believe they can make
a difference for the environment with 81% agreeing that making changes
in lifestyle would have an impact.
While care for the earth has been emphasized in the teachings of
John Paul II and corresponding statements were issued by the Conference
of Catholic Bishops of the United States, only 14% of respondents
were aware of such statements. Despite this limited awareness, 21%
acknowledged that in the past year they heard a sermon concerning
environmental issues.
Many Catholics translate their environmental concerns into action
with 32% considering the environmental impact of products they regularly
buy, and 77% involved in recycling. 40% of respondents reported
that in the past year they’ve taken some action on behalf
of the environment such as contacting a government official, giving
money or attending a public event. Interestingly, only 20% said
they’d actively confront a “litterbug.”
Dr. Sherilyn Smith, professor of biology at Le Moyne College believes
the results suggest that Catholics have a broad awareness of environmental
issues and recognize the importance of the environment in their
daily lives. “That such a large proportion of those surveyed
feel they can make a difference is a positive thing. It is unfortunate
that more Catholics are not aware of the Church’s support
for protection and stewardship of the earth.”
EDUCATION
Overall, Catholics are generally supportive of Catholic education.
When compared to public schools, non-Catholic private schools or
home-schooling, 37% felt that Catholic schools do the best job in
preparing students for college. One-quarter felt that each of these
school options equally prepares students, while 16% endorsed public
schools. More than one-third (37%) of Catholics believe that public
schools have the most resources while only 18% said that Catholic
schools do. Dr. Patricia Schmidt, professor of education at Le Moyne,
finds it interesting that “support of Catholic education exists
despite the opinion that public schools have more resources to offer.”
Many Catholics give their own time and effort to schools, with
44% volunteering at a local school. Of those who volunteer, 61%
give time to a public school with 29% volunteering at a Catholic
school.
When asked about the allocation of local taxes for education, 56%
of respondents said they were willing to have a portion of their
local taxes shared with other school districts in their state and
70% had no preference as to whether the reallocated funds went to
urban, rural or suburban schools. 39% of respondents said that in
the past year they had heard a sermon about educational issues.
Dr. Schmidt shares her concerns. “While a majority of those
polled are willing to share tax money with under-funded districts,
I’m concerned that respondents believe that everyone has an
equal opportunity to obtain an education that corresponds to his
or her abilities and talents. Clearly, this tells me that the majority
of Catholics may not have an in-depth understanding of poverty issues
and how they affect social and academic achievement.”
APPROVAL RATINGS FOR CHURCH LEADERS
When it comes to approval of Church leaders, American Catholics
expressed the most satisfaction with their local pastors. A large
majority of American Catholics (89%) strongly agree (67%) or somewhat
agree (21%) that the pastors of their parishes are doing a good
job leading the local church. Similarly, in the Spring 2005 survey
83% agreed that American priests were doing a good job ministering
to the U.S. Catholic Church. While not as strong as support for
local leaders, Catholics appear to be pleased with the new Pope.
Most respondents (75%) agreed (41% strongly, 34% somewhat) that
Benedict XVI is doing a good job leading the Catholic Church.
Since October 2001, CCT has tracked American Catholics’ assessment
of how well the U.S. bishops are leading the American church. In
Fall of 2001 before news of the clergy sex scandal broke the bishops
enjoyed an approval rating of 83% with 43% strongly agreeing and
40% agreeing that they were doing a good job. In the latest survey
64% of respondents strongly agree (22%) or somewhat agree (42%)
that the bishops are doing a good job. This is similar to the 65%
of the Spring 2005 survey. The lowest ranking the bishops have received
was 57% in the Fall 2004 survey.
| Responses |
Fall 2001 |
Spring 2002 |
Fall 2002 |
Spring 2003 |
Fall 2003 |
Spring 2004 |
Fall 2004 |
Spring 2005 |
Fall 2005 |
| Strongly Agree |
43% |
27% |
27% |
21% |
21% |
18% |
15% |
23% |
22% |
| Somewhat Agree |
40% |
41% |
42% |
39% |
40% |
40% |
42% |
42% |
42% |
| TOTAL |
83% |
68% |
69% |
59% |
61% |
58% |
57% |
65% |
64% |
CURRENT ISSUES
War in Iraq
Asked if they had attended any rallies or protests related to the
war since last year's presidential election, 8% said they had done
so and of these 95% said they had attended out of opposition to
the war. Asked about sermons heard at their local parish, 45% said
they had heard a message concerning the war in Iraq, and 16% had
heard sermons on other political issues.
Katrina Relief
Of American Catholics interviewed in the survey 78% said they had
donated aid to the victims of Hurricane Katrina.
Newspaper Readership
Related to current issues, 61% of those surveyed reported reading
a newspaper daily. Only 6% of U.S. Catholics said that they never
read a newspaper. According to other national surveys, about 40%
of all Americans read a newspaper every day. (See the 2002 General
Social Survey of the National Opinion Research Center)
The latest Contemporary Catholic Trends
survey was conducted between October 14 and 23, 2005. The margin
of error is +/- 2.6 percent. The MOE may be greater among subgroups
of the 1,503 respondents. |
