Church Departures Slowed Down Slightly in 2024

The Roman Catholic Church recorded a significant decrease in departures. As the official statistics published on Wednesday show, a total of 71,531 people left in 2024, compared to 85,163 members the year before. Nevertheless, the number of Catholics has, as expected, shrunk again, from around 4.64 million in 2023 (as of December 31) to 4.56 million members. The reasons for this are not only departures but also deaths and relocations.

Thousands Admitted to the Catholic Church

A total of 5,154 people were re-admitted or newly admitted to the Catholic Church in 2024. This is an increase compared to 2023 (4,575) and the years before. There was also a noticeable increase in adult baptisms from 208 to 255. Additionally, 453 people exercised their right to revoke their departure in 2024. The number of churchgoers also increased. On the two counting Sundays, there were 366,210 and 378,797 church attendees, respectively. In 2023, there were 321,821 and 347,891.

The number of baptisms in 2024 was 36,705. This is a decrease compared to 2023, when 39,488 baptisms were recorded. There were also fewer church weddings: 7,537 couples were married in the church in 2024. In 2023, there were 8,228. The number of church funerals was 47,353 in 2024. This is a significant decrease compared to 2023 (50,900). According to "Kathpress," this may also be related to the general decline in deaths in Austria.

First Communions and Confirmations Slightly Up

There was a slight increase again in first communions, with 45,685 recorded in 2024, compared to 45,132 the year before. The same applies to confirmations: in 2024 there were 39,677 confirmations, compared to 38,122 the year before.

As expected, there was a slight decline in the number of priests. According to official church statistics, 3,269 were active in Austria in 2024, compared to 3,320 in 2023. Overall, however, the church speaks of a currently "relatively stable situation."

Church Contribution as "Backbone"

The Bishops' Conference also released the financial figures of the Catholic Church for the year 2024 on Wednesday. According to this, the church contribution forms the "backbone" of church financing in Austria. The income from the church contribution amounted to 539.4 million euros last year, accounting for nearly 71 percent of total income. This is a slight increase compared to 2023.

According to the accountability report, the ten dioceses in Austria recorded total income of around 763.8 million euros in 2024 (2023: 698.3 million). This is offset by expenses of around 784.3 million euros (2023: 732.1 million). Due to a positive financial result of nearly 22 million euros, the financial overview of the dioceses shows an overall slightly positive "result of church activities."

(APA/Red)

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