A new survey of global Catholics published to coincide with the recent Synod on Youth has found a majority of respondents believe church teaching on LGBT issues should be reconsidered for the well-being of young people.
The survey, released by the coalition group Equal Future 2018, found that 65% of baptised Catholics worldwide and 63% of practising Catholics believe the church “should reconsider its current teaching on LGBT issues to help support the mental health and well-being of children and young people.” Other findings included:
- 56% of baptised Catholics and 49% of practising Catholics believe current teachings on LGBT issues could cause a young person to feel that being LGBT “is a misfortune or disappointment.” Just 20% and 26% respectively disagreed with this claim.
- 51% of baptised Catholics and 49% of practising Catholics affirm the statement that such an understanding could damage a young person’s health and well-being. Again, just 25% and 26% respectively disagreed.
- These numbers all are within a close range of how the general population responds to each respective question.
The survey polled 9,606 respondents from the world’s eight largest Catholic nations, representing half of the world’s total population of baptised Catholics. These nations are Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Philippines, United States, France, Spain, and Italy. Equal Future 2018, which commissioned the study, is a coalition of LGBT, progressive religious, young people’s and other groups drawing from 60-plus countries which is concerned with the impact on young people of negative LGBT views.
Follow this link to a summary of the survey: https://equalfuture2018.com/wp-content/uploads/Executive-Summary-EF2018.pdf