Catholics say Pope Francis doing good job but disagree…

Catholics believe Pope Francis (in photo) is doing a good job, but many disagree with Church doctrine on hot-button issues, especially contraceptives, according to a global poll out on Sunday. AP FILE PHOTO

WASHINGTON—Catholics believe Pope Francis is doing a good job, but many disagree with Church doctrine on hot-button issues, especially contraceptives, according to a global poll out on Sunday.

The survey by the US-based Spanish-language network Univision of Catholics in 12 countries found that those most likely to support Church teachings are married men and women 55 years and older who attend Mass frequently and live in rural areas.

For the rest, opinions on issues such as gay marriage, abortion, divorce and female priests vary by region, age, geographic location and income.

According to the poll, 87 percent of Catholics believe that Francis is doing a good or excellent job as his papacy reaches its first anniversary in March.

Yet 78 percent favor using contraceptives, a violation of Church teaching that sex should always be had with an openness toward procreation.

The Church teaches natural family planning, which Catholics can use to plan sex and attempt to avoid getting pregnant.

Most controversial

On other issues there are marked regional differences.

For example, 80 percent of Catholics in Africa and 76 percent in the Philippines support the ban on female priests, but only 30 percent in Europe and 36 percent in the United States are in favor.

The most controversial subject is gay marriage: Opposition to such unions is overwhelming in Africa at 99 percent, compared with 40 percent in the United States.

“On average, 5 percent more women, 18 percent more young people and 10 percent more upper class and upper middle-class members are in favor of gay marriage compared to their counterparts,” the pollsters said.

Catholics in Spain—which for centuries enforced Church doctrine through the Holy Inquisition—are among the most liberal in the world, according to the survey, along with those in France.

Catholics in Africa and the Philippines are the most conservative, while those in Argentina and Brazil are mostly liberal.

Seven questions

Overall, The Washington Post said in a separate article, the poll revealed a Church dramatically divided—between the developing world in Africa and Asia, which hews closely to doctrine, and Western countries in Europe, North America and parts of Latin America, which strongly support practices that the Church teaches are immoral.

The poll focused on countries with some of the world’s largest Catholic populations, the Post said. The countries are home to more than six of 10 Catholics globally.

The Post noted that, of the seven questions asked about hot-button issues, there appeared to be the greatest global agreement on contraception (opposing Church teachings) and gay marriage (supporting the Church’s stance).

Countries surveyed

The poll by Bendixen & Amandi International for Univision surveyed 12,036 Catholics in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Democratic Republic of Congo, France, Italy, Mexico, Philippines, Poland, Spain, Uganda and the United States.

The countries represent 61 percent of the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics, and pollsters say the survey has a 0.9-percent overall margin of error.