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Are Catholic schools disappearing?

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  • Description

    What's behind the drop in numbers?

  • Duration 2:25
  • Date

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With the departure of Pope Benedict next week the Catholic Church is in a period of transition.

Here in the US there's one particular trend that has many Catholics to -- Religion correspondent Lauren Green on what is happening to Catholic schools -- Parents -- think Mary star of the C school and city island New York are frustrated that their children's school clothes at the end of the school year.

One of 26 in the New York archdiocese.

Everyone just really did everything they could to -- school.

And when the decision time came we all feel pretty sure that we've met met the goal we didn't think the school's gonna close and then when it closed just.

We felt it was all all -- -- and he.

Back in the 1960s Catholic schools numbered around thirteen thousand nationally today it's less than 7000.

And since 2000 there's been a nearly 24% drop in the number of schools.

Experts say it's due to a combination of reasons changing demographics teachers' salaries and -- attendance at mass.

New York archdiocese superintendent of schools says it's not an academic issue it's a finance issue.

Current cost per child.

Is at an elementary school roughly 6200 dollars.

We artificially.

Set the tuition lower than that at around 3800 dollars to make it as affordable as possible for all children.

And then we take it upon ourselves.

To make up the difference.

With a -- -- down there are fewer people choosing to make religious themed education a priority if you're not a regular churchgoer.

Perhaps getting that kind of education for your child.

Isn't.

At the top of your list.

We think it should be it isn't but the author of evangelical catholicism and Catholic commentator George -- -- Suggest there's a more fundamental issue the church must address a spiritual call to -- evangelize the -- The dumbing down of Catholic faith.

Leads to the end of -- for raise the bar.

Keep the faith and demanding and challenging and if it's presented -- some -- and compellingly enough people will respond.

The church acknowledges it must do a better job of shepherding its rockets one reason Pope Benedict the sixteenth calls for a year of faith.

But the church -- large urban areas faces the reality of a more immediate concern which is staying solvent.

In New York Lauren Green Fox News.

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