As the Italian Church approaches its Synodal Assembly, scheduled from November 15 to 17, a recent report by CENSIS (Centro Studi Investimenti Sociali) has cast a dark shadow over the current state of faith in Italy. Commissioned by the Italian Episcopal Conference, this report reveals troubling trends within the Catholic Church, at least in Italy, which is still seen globally as the heart of Catholicism. The data highlights a profound spiritual crisis, reflecting the struggles of Pope Bergoglio's Church, especially after decades spent trying to align with contemporary social trends rather than strengthening its own identity. In Italy, the Church’s challenges are becoming increasingly evident.
According to the CENSIS study, which surveyed a sample of 1,000 Italian adults, 71.1% of the population still identifies as Catholic. However, only 15.3% consider themselves practicing, while 20.9% of those who call themselves Catholic declare they are "non-practicing." This statistic reveals a significant disconnect between Catholic identity and religious practice, mirroring a broader European trend toward what might be termed a cultural, rather than religious—and thus authentic—attachment to Catholicism.
The CENSIS report also highlights a worrisome shift in the expectations of practicing Catholics, with 60.8% asserting that the Church should adapt to new cultural sensibilities. For decades, Catholic leadership has implemented and encouraged changes aimed at making the Church more attractive to modern sensibilities, but these adjustments have not sparked genuine engagement or promising results for the future of Catholicism itself; in fact, the opposite has occurred. Those remaining in the Church today often hold beliefs and expectations reminiscent of the worst forms of secularism, suggesting that modernization efforts have led the Church to abandon its missionary identity.
For many, the Church is no longer seen as the preeminent spiritual guide but as a charitable—or more accurately, philanthropic—institution, primarily focused on the needy, marginalized, and poor people. The doctrinal role of the Church has faded from collective consciousness.
Curiously, around half of those who rarely or never attend Mass (we’re talking about 55.8% of the total sample) claim to "live their faith internally" without feeling the need to participate in liturgical celebrations. Indeed, while 66% of respondents report praying, the reasons behind these prayers reveal how disconnected such acts have become from a robust spiritual life. For example, 39.4% primarily pray during moments of intense emotion, while 33.5% pray out of fear or seek comfort during difficulties. Thus, for many, prayer has become an utilitarian and disturbingly sentimental response to life’s hardships, rather than the soul’s breath, the necessary means of preserving divine grace received through the sacraments.
The CENSIS report also observes that, for many, the Church is no longer seen as the preeminent spiritual guide, mater et magistra gentium, but as a charitable—or more accurately, philanthropic—institution, primarily focused on the needy, marginalized, and poor people. The doctrinal role of the Church has faded from collective consciousness, diminished within the Church’s own framework and at the will of its own leaders. In recent decades, bishops have favored supporting social causes over safeguarding orthodoxy, reshaping the Church, not only in the eyes of the public, into a humanitarian organization, almost an appendage of the UN.
For 45.1% of those who deliberately distance themselves from Catholicism, the Church is seen as an outdated and obsolete institution. Trapped between external secularism and internal modernism, the Church seems to have lost its unique voice, thus compromising its public image without securing the obedience of its faithful.
However, there is another statistic within the report that deserves emphasis. Among practicing Catholics, 43.9% appreciate "the beautiful rites of the past." This appreciation includes the Traditional Latin Mass.
In his interpretation of the data, CENSIS President Giuseppe De Rita recognizes this growing disconnect. He describes a “gray area” within today’s Church, attributing this ambiguity in part to rampant individualism, but also to a Church that "struggles to point to a ‘beyond.’" According to De Rita, the Church's current inability to inspire and guide people toward a higher purpose leaves it vulnerable in a world increasingly consumed by anxiety and selfishness. Emphasising collective experiences, often framed in political terms, is insufficient for those seeking profound spiritual meaning. We know well that man was created for God, and as the great Saint Augustine wrote, the human heart is restless until it rests in the one true God.
However, there is another statistic within the report that deserves emphasis. Among practicing Catholics, 43.9% appreciate "the beautiful rites of the past." This appreciation includes the Traditional Latin Mass, still unfamiliar to many (although more Catholics are aware of its existence than in the past), as well as the Novus Ordo Mass celebrated with reverence and not as a lowbrow spectacle. Moreover, Catholics express nostalgia for many traditional rites that seem almost to have disappeared from popular devotion—with the complicity of the bishops themselves—such as the Corpus Christi procession.
These statistics thus highlight a central problem: the modern Church’s inclination toward horizontal concerns and social focus has spiritually impoverished it, rendering it incapable of responding to the deeper yearnings of God’s people. This report underscores a serious shortfall in the Church’s current strategy: a failure to nourish and strengthen faith, the only true foundation of every authentic act of charity. Without faith, charity is reduced to philanthropy, but philanthropy does not give glory to God and aids others in a hypocritical way. It is merely an act of ego worship.
It is perhaps ironic, but fitting, to note that an institution as historically progressive as CENSIS has confirmed what many traditional Catholics have long sensed: the need for a reform not of structures but of the Catholic spirit.
In light of these troubling trends and the recent publication of the post-synodal document, it may be time for the Church to seriously reconsider its priorities. The imminent Italian Synodal Assembly (yet another!) should not be just an occasion to discuss new forms of social engagement or updated but inappropriate theological teachings. Rather, it could represent an opportunity for the Church to deeply reflect on its own identity and mission. Instead of endless synodal discussions that often result in embarrassing missteps, the Church would benefit from a rediscovery of its spiritual heritage. Reintroducing Catholics to the richness of traditional liturgies, doctrines, and devotions could revitalize the Italian Church (and beyond), grounding it firmly in the Truth and offering the faithful people something truly fertile. As has always been the case throughout history, two things attract people to Christ: liturgy and catechesis, but especially liturgy.
It is perhaps ironic, but fitting, to note that an institution as historically progressive as CENSIS has confirmed what many traditional Catholics have long sensed: the need for a reform not of structures but of the Catholic spirit. In times of moral and cultural upheaval, the Church has a vital role in guiding society toward what De Rita calls the “beyond”—a vision that transcends individualism and today’s poisonous social tendencies. If the Italian Church wishes to remain relevant, it will need to draw from its ancient sources of faith, offering the faithful a path that leads not only through this world, but to eternity.
Latest from RTV — TRUMP WINS BIG: What Happens Now?
