The Holy Trinity Chapel, located on the grounds of the Finca El Campillo, a property used as a wedding venue in the town of El Escorial, was the scene of a celebration of the two men's civil marriage last Saturday.

Cristina González Navarro, who owns the property, told ACI Prensa, CNA's Spanish-language news partner, that at the event inside the chapel, "there was no priest" and that "a wedding wasn't held." Still, she refused to offer more details about what the ritual consisted of.

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The report was delivered on Oct 27 to government officials and seen by church experts as populist as it focuses only on the Catholic church and, in their opinion, "is not accurate."

"If you are a public authority, you should be worried about every victim of sexual abuse, not only those of the church," said Yago de la Cierva, a Spanish communications professor who teaches at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome, author of a book on crisis management for the church.

"What you need to do is a proper investigation regarding all kind of sexual abuse cases and then attribute this to whatever the cause was, so schools, doctors, sports trainers — something similar to what the Royal Commission did in Australia," he told OSV News.

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The details emerged from an unprecedented public investigation by Spain's ombudsman, who spoke of the "devastating impact" on victims.

Angel Gabilondo also criticised the Church for its inaction and attempts to cover up or deny the abuse.

"What has happened has been possible because of that silence," he said.

The 700-page report, which was ordered by Spain's Congress last year, reveals the result of a survey that the commission carried out on 800,000 members of the public.

It found that 0.6% of the country's adult population, roughly 39 million people, said that they had suffered sexual abuse as children by members of the clergy.

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In one instance a priest is running 40 parishes single-handedly, Fr Antoni Matabosch Soler told NCR.

Soler, a theologian helping plan Barcelona's reorganization, says some priests are now "pushed to the limit."

Parish restructuring will be the future for many Spanish dioceses, he says.

"A central church at the centre of the community in each area could have specialist parishes and churches around it, with one dedicated to young people, for example, and another to welcoming migrants," he suggests.

Despite Catholic church membership making up 61 percent of Spain's 47 million inhabitants, falling church attendance and secularisation are behind the reorganisation.

A statement on Barcelona's archdiocesan website says most Spanish dioceses are facing the same process.

The plan is for between three and six parishes to be grouped together, resulting in 48 pastoral communities.

"The intention of an eventual diocesan reorganization is better distribution of pastoral resources, to obtain maximum pastoral efficiency and adequate support for the resulting pastoral units," the website says.

"The aim is to reinforce common work and synodality among priests, laity, religious and deacons, when it is more difficult today for parishes to offer a full range of services."

News of the reorganization comes amid continuing disputes over plans by the Spanish government to make the Catholic Church relinquish what Spain says are improperly acquired assets.

More than a third of the country's 70 Catholic dioceses are currently in deficit, according to the church's latest annual activity report. At the same time, over four million people rely on the Church's charitable help.

The Barcelona diocese has been in touch with dioceses in France, Germany, Belgium and Italy, who said they were making "similar decisions," and parish restructuring will be the future for many Spanish dioceses.

Source

• National Catholic Reporter
• Image: RNZ

Spaniards have the option of allocating 0.7% of their taxes to certain causes, including the Church.

And in 2020 some 8.5 million people — about a third of all taxpayers — ticked the box for the Catholic Church. That's significantly higher than the 7.3 million that did so a year earlier.

It is also noteworthy that in comparison to the previous year, 106,000 additional contributions were made to the Church.

"With all its heart, the Church gives thanks for the trust that this implies," the bishops said.

But the situation varies from one territory to another.

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