By Sarah Mac Donald - 09 August, 2013
A website established in the wake of the clerical abuse scandals to enable disaffected Catholics formally leave the Church announced on Thursday that it was ceasing operations.
Since 2009, Countmeout.ie assisted 12,007 people in Ireland complete a ‘Declaration of Defection’ but the initial level of interest had not been sustained in recent years.
In a statement posted on the website, the organisers stated that they regretted “very much” having to cease operations.
It defiantly added, “We continue to receive emails regularly from people who wish to leave the Church and it is clear that there are large numbers counted as Catholic who no longer regard themselves as adherents to the faith.”
The campaign was based on a ‘Declaration of Defection’ which could be downloaded from the website and sent to local parishes.
The result was an annotation in the baptismal register confirming that the person had defected from the Church.
However, in late 2010, Countmeout.ie said it became aware of a change to canon law which effectively removed this option.
As a result, the campaign tried to find an alternative means of formally declaring a person’s defection but to no avail, according to the group.
“Numerous letters have been written to various Church leaders, both in Ireland and in the Vatican, enquiring as to how one can formally leave the Church. The Church has failed to respond to any of these requests”, the website said in Thursday.
It added that the Archdiocese of Dublin had proposed to set up a register of those who have expressed a wish to defect but warned that that would have “no consequence in canon law”, which Countmeout said rendered the register “effectively meaningless”.
“As a group, we felt it was important for people to reflect on their relationship with the church and decide whether they could remain as a member,” the statement said.
Countmeout.ie accused the Church of failing to allow people to exercise their religious freedom by ignoring “repeated requests for clarity” and to provide alternatives to defection.
By Sarah Mac Donald
