The new French government has said that it would implement one of its campaign promises and make same sex marriage and gay adoption legal, starting in 2013. The prime minister told parliament that “Our society is evolving, lifestyles and mentalities are changing.”
In the news report I found an interesting little tidbit.
A recent survey by pollster IFOP said that gays in France make up 6.5 percent of the electorate, compared with practising Catholics at 4.5 percent.
I had always thought of France as still a largely Catholic country and it still nominally is but the numbers who call themselves Catholic has dropped dramatically within a decade, from 80% in the 1990s to just 51% in 2007, and of that 51% half said that they don’t believe in god, and only 10% attend church regularly.
To find that only 4.5% are practicing Catholics in 2012 and that even gays outnumber them was a real surprise.
11 comments
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psweet
July 5, 2012 at 3:04 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
An inspiring story to say the least, but what does it have to do with your title?
Mano Singham
July 5, 2012 at 3:10 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
It was a confusion between the text and the title.
baal
July 5, 2012 at 3:05 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
I’m thinking you mixed a title and a post?
Mano Singham
July 5, 2012 at 3:08 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Yes! I corrected it.
Steve
July 5, 2012 at 3:13 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
France has a strict separation of church and state. One that – unlike the US – also extends to politics. When Civil Unions were debated, one MP waved around a Bible in parliament, which was widely criticized.
melody
July 5, 2012 at 4:03 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Can you put up a Twitter and Facebook share button so I can share your blog more widely?
Mano Singham
July 5, 2012 at 4:10 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Let me find out how to do it and get back to you.
melody
July 5, 2012 at 4:34 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Thank you. I think you will get a lot more blog hits once this is done.
Mano Singham
July 5, 2012 at 5:08 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Ok, I did it. Thanks for prompting me to do this.
Paul Coyne
July 5, 2012 at 4:39 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
It should be the same in Scotland soon. We already have civil partnerships which have the same force in law as a marriage, but currently only mixed-sex couples can be married and only same-sex couples can get a civil partnership. The new law will end this arbitrary distinction and make both options available to any couple.
Incidentally, the Humanist Society of Scotland performs more marriages here than the catholic church does! Put that in your pope and smoke it!!
Winterwind
July 6, 2012 at 9:36 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Vive la France!