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Pope Francis’ hope for the Church to offer the Portuguese community a more cohesive opportunity through World Youth Day (WYD) is being met with some strong challenges.
Hours after he touched down in Lisbon on Wednesday, one of three huge billboards erected by activists to raise awareness of sexual abuse by clergy was removed, says the campaign group This Is Our Memorial.
WYD follows hard on the heels of a report released in February by a Portuguese commission, which said at least 4,815 minors were sexually abused by Portuguese clergy – mostly priests – over seven decades.
The commission in charge said that was just the “tip of the iceberg”.
The campaign group described the removal of the billboard as “censorship”.
Another billboard located in the municipality of Oeiras has also been taken down.
Organisers of the awareness campaign called “This is our memorial” shared images of the removal on various social media platforms.
The Church had promised a memorial would be unveiled during the week-long event but a date has not been set, with the Church saying the project was still being studied.
Another issue Francis will be aware of is a decline in Catholic engagement with the Church.
A study published in June reveals 56 percent of Portuguese aged 14 to 30 consider themselves believers (50 percent consider themselves Catholics) and 34 percent identify as practising believers, compared to 60 percent in the overall population.
“Young people identify less with the Church” says parish priest Father Paulo Fernando Filipe.
“Although they grew up in Catholic families and were baptised, they abandon religious practice as they age. I no longer see young adults in the churches I serve.
“They feel trapped, stifled by a certain conservatism,” he laments.
“We have a communication problem, struggling to encourage them to get involved.”
However, the most recent national census found that Catholicism’s decline affects Portuguese society as a whole. Fewer practise their faith, far fewer have church weddings, and ordinations are down.
Hope for the future
On the plus side, numerous Catholic volunteers have come together to welcome young participants.
Organisers hope WYD will breathe new life into the Church in Portugal.
Over the past four years, a network of young people preparing for the event has developed.
“Not all Catholics have engaged in this process,” admits Bishop José Ornelas Carvalho.
“But those who have engaged have done significant work that will revitalise evangelisation after the World Youth Day.”
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