Catholics advocate the recognition of different realities of life

At first, it was only meant to be a small contribution to an initiative started by Pope Francis to conduct a survey entitled "Ask the Faithful!" But then the reaction to the questionnaire (www.soscisurvey.de/synod2015/) sent out by theology students Anna and Tobias Roth (University of Münster) and Sarah Delere (Free University of Berlin) exceeded all expectations, regarding both scope and content. There were more than 12,000 replies from 42 countries on issues such as the treatment of divorced people who remarry and same-sex partnerships, celibacy and women deacons. The response provides a comprehensive and interesting insight into the spiritual life of many Catholics. The survey, or study, is entitled "Catholics' Views on the Ethics of Partnerships and Images of the Family: a Comparative Intercultural Study on the Relationship between Church Teaching, Daily Practice and Socializational Parameters". "The study can be classified as the largest of its kind," say the three students, "because of the very large number of people who took part in it and its intercultural research design at the interface between Social Sciences and Theology." It is "highly relevant", they add, in particular for dialogue within the Church, because it especially addressed practising Catholics who play an active role in the Church. The replies - with around 8,000 coming from Germany alone - are not only varied: in many cases they are also surprising. A Christian upbringing for children, getting married in church, and attending church services, for example, are often more popular among the faithful than might be assumed in these secular times.