These days, too few heed the call

摘要

It might seem that these are good times for Roman Catholicism in America. Numbers are rising: there are 6om American Catholics, and, though their share of the population has slipped from 24% in !965 to 22% today, 172,000 adults joined the church last year. In politics, Catholics are seen as the most important group of swing voters. And all the talk of faith-based initiatives ought to give the church a bigger say in social policy.