Taxing Catholics and Independence of Bishops

While Germany is Europe’s wealthiest Catholic Church there are 25 million Catholics compared to the 75 million Catholics in the US. The numbers make up the difference money wise for the US church. As for the independence of the German bishops it may have to do more with the declining number of Catholics in Europe which keeps the European bishops on their toes. The American Catholic church is declining. Witness all those Indian and African priests making up for the unwillingness of American Catholics to join those ranks. The reason the Catholic bishops feel more secure is that religions are outwardly respected more in the US. As far as I am concerned that just means that there are more hypocrites in the US. Studies show that the morality of Catholics and Protestants are not in accordance with the gospel. Religion, at least in politics and in the media is still in. It will be interesting when that comes crashing down. Maybe the American bishops will become as humble as the German bishops. Perhaps wealthy Catholic Germans don’t use the church to exert power the way American Catholics due because the Church does not have the cachet that the American church has. The American Catholics are pretty fed up. It will be interesting what wealthy conservative Catholics will do when it becomes clear that they are betting on the wrong horse. The power vacuum that might ensue will hopefully be filled by the gospel.