Germany's Protestant and Catholic churches predicted to lose millions of members
Quote:The main reasons for declining membership in the German Catholic and Protestant churches include adults leaving the church, fewer baptisms and an aging population, researchers at the University of Freiburg said.
The study, which was commissioned by the Catholic German Bishops Conference and the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD), predicted the combined membership in the two churches will drop from about 45 million now to 34.8 million by 2035 and 22.7 million by 2060.
Members of the Catholic and Protestant churches pay up to 9% of their taxable income to the church, generating around €12 billion ($13.5 billion) in income in 2017.
The income is predicted to remain the same in 2060, but with inflation, rising maintenance costs and salary increases the two churches will need €25 billion, according to the study.
The projected budget shortfall is a wakeup call for the churches after years of low unemployment and economic growth boosted their coffers.
https://m.dw.com/en/germanys-protestant-...a-48578035
