April 2, 2010 6:30 PM

Poll: Americans Losing Faith in Pope

By
Brian Montopoli
Topics
Polling
(Credit: CBS)
CBS News Poll analysis by the CBS News Polling Unit: Sarah Dutton, Jennifer De Pinto, Fred Backus and Anthony Salvanto.

As more sexual abuse cases involving priests in both the United States and Europe have made headlines -- among them cases with connections to Pope Benedict XVI -- Americans have become less positive about the pope, according to a new CBS News poll.

While the pope's favorable rating has held roughly steady since 2006, coming in at 15 percent in the new poll, his unfavorable rating has jumped to 24 percent -- up from just four percent four years ago. (The other respondents were either undecided or said they haven't heard enough to have an opinion.)

Among Catholics, the pope's favorable rating has fallen 13 points, from 40 percent in 2006 to 27 percent today. His unfavorable rating has increased ten points to 11 percent. And the percentage of Catholics who are "undecided" about the pope has risen 21 points, to 36 percent.

More than two in three Americans, including a majority of Catholics, say the pope has done a bad job in handling charges of abuse by priests. Just 13 percent of people overall and one in five Catholics say the pope, who has been serving since April 2005, has done a good job on the issue.

Read the Complete Poll (PDF)

On Friday, the Associated Press reported that the Catholic Church waited more than ten years to defrock a pedophile priest despite an Arizona bishop's appeal to Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, who would become Pope Benedict XVI, to remove him from the priesthood.

(Credit: CBS)

New CBS News Polls:
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More on Church Abuse Cases:
Vatican Priest: Abuse Uproar Like Anti-Semitism
1963 Letter Suggests Pope Knew of Abuse
Vatican Fights to Keep Pope Out of Court
Scandal Strains Catholics' Ties to Church
Pope Opens Holy Week Amid Sex Abuse Crisis
Top Cardinal Calls for "Housecleaning"
Vatican Mounts Defense after Allegations
Vatican Strongly Defends Abuse Decision
Documents Regarding Accused Priest

This poll was conducted among a random sample of 858 adults nationwide, interviewed by telephone March 29- April 1, 2010. Phone numbers were dialed from random digit dial samples of both standard land-line and cell phones. The error due to sampling for results based on the entire sample could be plus or minus three percentage points. The error for subgroups is higher. This poll release conforms to the Standards of Disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.


Add a Comment See all 56 Comments
by laffewi April 5, 2010 11:30 PM EDT
What about the support that the Vatican gave Hitler in signing the Concordat with Pope Pius XII and also to Facist Mussolini. The Catholic Church never spoke against Hitler infact they prayed for him to be successful and remained silent when 6 million Jews were murdered.In more recent times The Catholic Church could have prevented the terrible slaughter and bloody deaths in Rawanda in a documentary according to Stephen Lewis a Canadian Official at the United Nations.When horrible attrocities and unspeakable crimes are committed the Catholic Church do what they do best,and that is keeping silent and covering it over. The more the Vatican gets squeezed more puss will keep coming out. Having a pedophile Priesthood and covering it up is only one of their many many seriously evil crimes.The Catholic Church is the furthest from what Jesus Christ believed and taught his followers, it is an absolute fraud. Compare what the Bible teaches and what the Catholic Church teaches and it's diametrically opposed to one another. Small wonder why the Catholic Church burned anyone possessing or reading the Bible.According to the encyclopedia Britanica John Wycliffe and John Hus and many others were innocent victims of the evil Catholic church. I am from an Irish Catholic family and I have nothing against Catholic people but the Church, the Vatican, are anything but Christian. Christ never went around like the Haughty Popes, he never put emphasis on material things,was humble and even washed his Disciple's Feet.Could anyone ever see any Pope doing that??? Christ was not out for a big show but directed all praise to his Father God Almighty in Heaven.
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by Pixsurguy April 5, 2010 3:29 PM EDT
Several things come to mind. First, I believe that the Pope, as the Pope, ought to make some public statement about the tragedy of child sexual abuse by members of the church and to acknowledge that the church, as an institution could have and should have done a better job of addressing the problem long ago. I do not believe that his letter with regard to Ireland is enough, though it is a good start. I do not believe it is appropriate to criticize Benedict for his action or inaction since he became Pope.
To the contrary, however, as to his outrageous failure timely to act when he was Cardinal Ratzinger. I can find no valid excuse for his failure PROMPTLY to take decisive action when he took personal charge of the various cases of abuse IN THE CONFESSIONAL brought to his attention from here in the United States. Those priests should have been removed from the priesthood immediately or at least a vigorous prosecution initiated against them under church law within the church. AND, who says that just because you are a priest that you get a pass on individual criminal liability? It seems to me that the church had an ethical and perhaps even legal duty to report the crimes to the appropriate authorities IMMEDIATELY upon learning of them. There certainly was no duty to get approval from Rome for that.
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by magnumdr April 4, 2010 6:25 PM EDT
I dont think that thats all of America is loosing faith with. How can these people, religious or not. Cover up for each others with this scumball kind of sexual acts by anyone. I would like to know if these people also preached to their congresation about sexual morrals and conduct of everybody.
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by laffewi April 4, 2010 11:00 AM EDT
God is not all forgiving to those UNREPENTANT of their sins and that have an entrenched evil disposition otherwise He would be an unjust and unloving God. There are some people whose sins God does not forgive.Wrote the Apostle Paul: "If we practice sin willfully after having received the accurate knowledge of the truth,there is no longer any sacrifice for sins left,but there is a certain fearful expectation of [condemnatory] judgement." (Hebrews 10:26,27) The words "practice sin willfully" suggest deeply ingrained badness, a truly wicked heart.

Judas Iscariot developed such a heart. "It would have been finer for him if that man had not been born," said Jesus (Matthew 26:24,25) And concerning certain religious leaders of his day, Jesus said: "You are from your father the Devil....When he speaks the lie, he speaks according to his own disposition,because he is a liar and the father of the lie." (John 8:44) Like Satan, those men were bad to the core. They were not sorry for what they had done but became even more hardened in their wicked ways.How is it possible for a Church absolutely filled with a priesthood of gay/pedophile priests that have an entrenched pattern and history of preying on innocent children be True representatives of God and Christ??? The very evil and wickedness both Almighty God and his Son Christ Jesus positively condemns!!! God is not One to be mocked!!(Galations 6:7) Does Christ accept them? Absolutely not!!!In Fact Christ tells these wicked imposters falsely professing to follow him, "Get away from me you workers of lawlessness, I never knew you!"(Matthew 7:15-23,2 Timothy 3:5,13)The Catholic Church is rife with deceitful coverup and consent to their evil Priests preying on children transferring them to other parishes even to other continents. As Romans 1:32 Paul describes such ones "Although these know full well the righteous decree of God, that those practicing such things are deserving of death, they not only keep on doing them but also consent with those practicing them." That is precisely what has gone on throughout the history of the Catholic Church and their gross evil is being finally exposed today as the Bible prophesied would happen.(read 2 Thessalonians 2:8,9)
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by semper_ubi April 10, 2010 12:29 AM EDT
careful there .... molestation is not a sole problem of the catholic church ... cases are also present in JW and other sects. Jesus singled out Judas but he never said Peter should come along with it.
by laffewi October 6, 2010 10:53 PM EDT
What does the Apostle Peter have to do with the evil and apostate Catholic Church which has been filled with a wicked pedophile priesthood for Centuries??? The Vatican has known about this evil ever since they enforced the demon inspired doctrine of Celibacy.1Timothy 4:1-3 prophesied about this.
by semper_ubi April 4, 2010 2:44 AM EDT
The Vatican is not a judicial body nor legislative but an spiritual institution. It is rightful that molesting priests should be brought to justice ? but the question is which justice system? ? earthly justice systems only punishes the flesh ? and the Vatican knows that these acts of some priests is so grave that it deserves an eternal punishment ? and that is what the Vatican is working for ? to save the priest from eternal damnation ? by making both victims and offender to realize the importance of forgiveness ? jail terms and compensations ? that?s all peanuts in the eyes of GOD. People and media always thinks of immediate punishment ? Vatican is considering eternal punishment and how to save a priest?s soul in the process. If the victims don?t forgive the priests ? no jail term nor amount of compensation can save his soul ? ?Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us? ? from the LORD?s prayer it is very very clear; even if the priest are condemned to jail or capital punishment, it does not guarantee that he will be forgiven by his victims ? kindly look at the canonical view and not only judicial or legislative view of this issue.
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by semper_ubi April 4, 2010 2:42 AM EDT
The Vatican is not a judicial body nor legislative but an spiritual institution. It is rightful that molesting priests should be brought to justice ? but the question is which justice system? ? earthly justice systems only punishes the flesh ? and the Vatican knows that these acts of some priests is so grave that it deserves an eternal punishment ? and that is what the Vatican is working for ? to save the priest from eternal damnation ? by making both victims and offender to realize the importance of forgiveness ? jail terms and compensations ? that?s all peanuts in the eyes of GOD. People and media always thinks of immediate punishment ? Vatican is considering eternal punishment and how to save a priest?s soul in the process. If the victims don?t forgive the priests ? no jail term nor amount of compensation can save his soul ? ?Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us? ? from the LORD?s prayer it is very very clear; even if the priest are condemned to jail or capital punishment, it does not guarantee that he will be forgiven by his victims ? kindly look at the canonical view and not only judicial or legislative view of this issue.
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by laffewi April 4, 2010 1:48 AM EDT
The Catholic Church is described at 2Thessalonians 2:3-12 as lawless and the operation of Satan and it is prophesied that they would be revealed and brought to nothing in our time (2Thessalonians 1:6-9). They falsely claim to be Christ's representatives but are positively apostate.Their evil conduct and actions for Centuries and their man-made demon inspired teachings are in opposition to all of Christ's true teachings and what Christ stands for as set out in the Holy scriptures of God's word the Bible. Celibacy being just one of their Demon inspired unscriptural man made doctrines that has only contributed to so much evil and wickedness.(read 1 Timothy 4:1-3, Matthew 15:3,9) Their rotten fruitage proves they are not at all Christian but rather lawless wolves in sheep's covering looking to prey on innocent children as stated at Matthew 7:15-23 2Corinthians 11:13-15.Christ himself states to these very ones falsely professing to be his followers "Get away from me you workers of lawlessness I never knew you!"
Titus 1:16 aptly describes the Catholic Church when it states "They publicly declare they know God,but they disown him by their works,because they are detestable and disobedient and not approved for good work of any sort."Revelation chapters 17&18 prophesied that Almighty God will soon put it in the Government's hearts to turn on False Religion in our time and destroy it forever." To find True Christianity and be set free from false religion one must examine God's inspired word the Bible since it is the only source of Truth.(John 17:17 John 8:32,2Timothy 3:16,17,John 17:3,John 13:34,35 1John 3:9-12)
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by servorum April 3, 2010 6:24 PM EDT
God bless the Catholic Church and long live Pope Benedict who has guided the Church in so many ways since the Second Vatican Council.
We will continue to stand up to a world that has always been bigoted and biased against the Catholic Church, a world that has always hated Christ and his Holy Church.
The ignorance of bigots and the gates of Hell will never prevail against the One, Holy, Catholic Church.
Viva Christo Rey! Viva il Papa!
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by hateisafourletterword April 3, 2010 3:26 PM EDT
Most of the issues occurred under the prior Pope. The one everyone wants to make into a Saint. This guy is basically an Obama - care taker until the next election.
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by waynenipper April 3, 2010 2:06 PM EDT
THE EVIL THAT IS NAMED THE CATHOLIC CHURCH


The Catholic Church is a blatantly hypocritical, medieval, corrupt, covetous, sanctimonious institution, complicit in revolting criminal activities involving protecting and not exposing pedophile priests, and continues to survive over the centuries through the exploitation of human frailties, fear, and the promise of eternal salvation for those whose unabashed and incredible ignorance is such as to blind them to such scandalous deceit. This Pope and so many of his ?priestly flock? are guilty as sin for either obstruction of justice and/or abuse of minors, and should be held accountable to the laws of the land. Their secrecy, lies, and hidden attempts to avoid prosecution are pathetic attempts to maintain the centuries old status quo. Enough is enough ... get on with it and arrest these vermin. Freedom should not be afforded to those who have perpetrated such evil while masquerading as pious souls.

When the ?health and wellbeing? of the Catholic Church and its administrators takes precedent over the physical and emotional health of its victims of abuse, it is clear this church is morally bankrupt. Centuries have passed with no alteration in its ?modus operanti? leading to the ruination of countless lives. The time has come for retribution.

Hopefully, Karma and/or the judicial courts will deal with those who purvey(ed) their pathetically deceitful, self-serving/self-righteous religious dogma, while simultaneously preying upon the naivet? of adults, and the innocence and trust of the most vulnerable in our society ... children.
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by queenofclubs April 3, 2010 4:32 PM EDT
I am Catholic and I don't appreciate your sweeping and judgmental statements! You would blame all 1 Billion adherents worldwide for the actions of a few people? Do you HONESTLY think that abuse only happens in the Catholic Church? What about all those public school teachers across the country who go after students? only to be re-assigned to other schools! There's abuse that happens in the medical community and those Drs. nurses and other personnel sometimes wind up finding jobs at other hospitals and care facilities! There are children who aren't safe in their own homes. In fact, a child is more likely to abused by one or both parents, or the significant other of a parent (mother's boyfriend) than they are someone from outside the home! It is you waynenipper who is being self righteous, bigoted and evil here!Your hateful comments are indicative of a deep and insidious prejudice against people of the Catholic Faith and you ought to be ashamed of yourself!
by servorum April 3, 2010 6:29 PM EDT
You are the masquerader. You are the charlatan. You are the hypocrite, and in fact you are the one who is morally bankrupt.
Look in the mirror before you throw any more of your vile comments at the Church of Christ.
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