Mass Attendance in South Korea in Dramatic Decline

According to figures released by the Bishops’ Conference of Korea (April 13), attendance at Masses is badly declining.

Only a few years ago, Korea was considered a hotbed of Catholicism with a dramatic growth. But last year, 19.4 percent fewer people showed up regularly at Mass compared to 2016.

In December 2017, the Korean Catholic Church had 5.8 million Catholics, 11% of the population. The president of South Korea Timothy Moon Jae-in, 65, is a Catholic.

Among the Catholics, 18.4% (2008: 12.6%) are aged 65 or older while only 6.6% are aged 10 to 19 years.

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