Catholicism: Five Major Challenges That Churches Face

With each approaching day, the Catholic Church finds being placed on the incorrect side of history and community. The church has tried to resist transformation that has reduced its membership, particularly in developed countries around the world, since its inception over 2,000 years ago. And now it is embroiled in a scandal, which may be the catalyst for Pope Benedict’s resignation. Surprisingly, the church has rejected all calls for greater tolerance regarding issues directly and indirectly related to sexuality. Is it possible that the church’s aversion to sexual identity is one of the primary causes of its troubles and dwindling prestige. In this article we will highlight five major challenges that the churches are facing today,

1. Opposing Homosexuality

The church regards homosexual male-female relationships as anti-social and sinful. This viewpoint is completely unacceptable in the civilised world. As developed countries become more accepting of different sexualities, the church continues to remain adamantly opposed to same-sex marriages.

2. Opposing premarital sexual intercourse

Intimate intercourse among unmarried men and women have historically been frowned upon by the Catholic Church. The potential danger of eternal punishment for such a natural and beautiful act is harmful. Those who wish to postpone sexual relations until marriage are to be applauded. Those who wish to have intimate intercourse with loved ones prior to the marriage should not be judged. This constraint may be the most visible example of how out of step the church is.

3. Shortage of priests in the present days

Because of a priest shortfall and the Catholic Church’s slender existence on the ground, numerous assertive evangelical groups and faiths have spread across the continent. These sects profit from the general public’s relative paucity of spiritual development and understanding of the Catholic faith. And, without any of the Church’s support, people just look for the next best thing and frequently eventually join these sects, which are much more widely obtainable. Rampant corruption, joblessness, financial recession, and environmental destruction are driving many of the true believers to fall victim to the sects’ false promises of salvation.

4. Celibacy Issue

Other aspects of the celibacy issue harm the church. It is extremely odd that priests are not authorised to marry or have children, given that they are asked to give their opinions on everyday matters affecting their flocks. These are among the most important and difficult facets of life, and multitudes of unmarried men without children offer advice on them.

5. Birth control issue

At all under the contexts, Catholics are not authorised to use contraceptive pills. This is among the most retrograde and detrimental religious restrictions. The church would not permit effective and safe ways to regulate family size and population of the region. Even worse the church objects to birth control for disease prevention, including AIDS and STDs