NIT – Americans who call themselves Catholics seem to be doing things their own way, bucking the dogmatic teachings of their church, according to the results of a new poll which questioned them on hot-button issues.
More than 12,000 Catholics from five continents answered questions in a massive survey commissioned by Univision and conducted by Bendixen & Amandi International. Topics covered included all the issues most likely to generate lively discussion among Catholics all over the world, such as abortion, divorce, marriage for priests, use of contraceptives, and gay marriage.
Results from Catholics surveyed from the U.S. opposed official views of the Catholic church.
For example, 79% support the use of contraceptives during sex. Artificial contraception is considered intrinsically evil by the Catholic church.
Even though the Catholic church says that abortion is morally wrong in every case, 66% of U.S. respondents said it should be allowed in some cases, while only 21% said it should never be allowed.
The Catholic Church opposes gay marriage and the social acceptance of homosexuality and same-sex relationships, but 54% of U.S. respondents support gay marriage.