Christmas and Religion in Italy

[AGDee]

I don't see why you think parents have much to do with it. They weren't mentioned anywhere in the article.

I found this article though which I found interesting. It seems to address some of the same types of issues.

When In Rome: How Cooperation Between Religion And Government In Italy Is Slowly Strangling Faith
Italy has a long Catholic tradition, and today the vast majority of Italians retain at least a nominal allegiance to the church.

But a funny thing has happened along the way: Despite centuries of cooperation between church and state, relatively few Italians today bother to follow church teachings, and the nation has many secular overtones. Although more than 95 percent of Italians say they are Catholic, only about 30 percent attend weekly services (as Catholicism requires), a figure that has plummeted since the 1950s.

A recent New York Times story explored the strange paradox of religion in Italy. By tradition, public schools post crucifixes, yet few Italians see the church as a political force, and they simply will not tolerate it meddling in their personal lives. As The Times reported, “In one recent poll, only 32 percent of Italians surveyed said it was right for religion to have an influence on the laws of the state.”

Abortion and divorce are legal and most Italians hold liberal views on social issues that clash sharply with conservative Catholic doctrine. When Rocco Buttiglione, a government minister, made critical comments about homosexuality, the outcry from the public was so great that Buttiglione was forced to withdraw his name from consideration for an important European Union post last month.

The Times reported that conservative politicians like Buttiglione and the Vatican “lament the decline of values and religion, some wondering whether Italy and Europe have lost touch with their Christian roots….”

Yet most Italians seem to retain respect for the church as an institution and regard it as a valuable cultural phenomenon. Priests and nuns are popular figures on television programs, and many view Pope John Paul II as a great moral leader. Many Italians, the story pointed out, supported the pope’s opposition to the war in Iraq and applaud his call for eradicating poverty.