ABSTRACT
Every baptised German belongs in principle to some church and is taxed for its support; and to leave one’s church it is not sufficient to cease religious practice. It is necessary to notify the fact officially and obtain exemption from the Kirchensteuer. In western Germany 96 per cent of the population belong to some church— 45 per cent to Catholic church and 51 per cent to one or other of the Protestant denominations. In the chaos of 1945 they appeared to be the only institutions still unshaken, only refuge to which people could turn for material and moral support, the only voice that could speak for a shattered Germany. The truth is that German Catholic church does not seem to think that its essential vocation lies in the social domain. It regards tensions between social groups as secondary compared to the religious and moral formation of each individual, and its main effort is concentrated upon education of children and adolescents.
