Canadians (41%), Including Catholics (49%), Believe Priority for New Pope Should be Modernizing the Church and Its Teachings, Ahead of Dealing with Alleged Sex Scandals and Cleaning up the Vatican

Toronto, ON - On the heels of the election of an Argentinean Cardinal as Bishop of Rome and Pope of the Roman Catholic Church, Canadians - and especially Catholics in Canada - believe that his top priority should be modernizing the Church and its teachings, according to a new Ipsos Reid poll conducted on behalf of Postmedia News and Global Television.

Four in ten (41%) Canadians overall, and 49% of Catholics, believe modernizing the Church and its teachings should be the new Pope's primary focus, well ahead of other issues including dealing with the alleged sex scandals (21% Canadians, 19% Catholics), cleaning up the alleged corruption at the Vatican (19% Canadians, 16% Catholics), brining lapsed Catholics back into the Church (5% Canadians, 6% Catholics), bringing new people into the Catholic faith (4% Canadians, 6% Catholics) or some other issue (9% Canadians, 4% Catholics).

Reports have suggested that Pope Francis is likely to stay the conservative course of previous popes. However, it appears that many of the traditional doctrines of the Church are not aligned with the beliefs of most Catholics - practicing or not. Three quarters (74%) of Canadian Catholics `agree' (39% strongly/35% somewhat) that `women should be able to be ordained as Priests' - including 55% of Catholics who attend Church on a weekly basis compared to 73% of those who go less often than once a week or 84% of Catholics who never attend Church.

On the issue of allowing priests to marry, eight in ten (81%) Catholics `agree' (47% strongly/34% somewhat) that `priests should be permitted to marry'. Two thirds (68%) of Catholics who attend Church on a weekly basis believe priests should be allowed to marry, compared to 84% of those who attend less often or not at all.

Reflecting on the sex scandal allegations, just one quarter (24%) of Canadians `agree' (5% strongly/19% somewhat) that `the Catholic Church has done enough to respond to recent allegations of sexual abuse by priests', while most (76%) `disagree' (42% strongly/34% somewhat). Catholics, specifically, feel similarly, with most (69%) believing the Church has not done enough in this area, while a minority (31%) thinks it has done enough to respond to the allegations.

Majority (55%) of Canadians `agree' (12% strongly/44% somewhat) that `The Catholic Church is a force for good in the world', although nearly half (45%) `disagreeing' (17% strongly/28% somewhat). Three in four (75%) Catholics `agree' (20% strongly/55% somewhat) that the Church is a force for good in the world, while those who go once a week or more (94%) agree with this sentiment most, ahead of Canadian Catholics who attend church less than once a week (83%) or those who never attend (57%).

Religious Demographics

• Four in ten (44%) Canadians identify as Roman Catholic, compared to one in three (33%) who identify as Protestant or some other type of Christian. 2% of Canadians identify as Muslim, while 1% identify as either Sikh, Jewish, Hindu, or some other religion. One in five (17%) identify as having no religious identity or affiliation
• One in five (17%) Canadians attend church or their place of worship once a week or more, while two in five attend either less than once a week (38%) or never attend/have never attended (44%). Canadian Catholics are on par with Canadians of other religions when it comes to weekly attendance (17% Catholic vs. 18% all other religions), but are more likely to attend less than once a week (46% vs. 32% all other religions) and less likely to never attend/have never attended (38% vs. 50% all other religions)

These are some of the findings of an Ipsos Reid poll conducted between March 11 and 13, 2013, on behalf Postmedia News and Global Television. For this survey, a sample of 1,412 Canadians (including 396 Roman Catholics) from Ipsos' Canadian online panel was interviewed online. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics to ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data (including religion) and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll is accurate to within ± 3 percentage points had all Canadians been surveyed, and ± 5.6 percentage points for the sub-sample of Roman Catholics. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error, and measurement error.

For more information on this news release, please contact:

John Wright
Senior Vice President
Ipsos Reid Public Affairs
416.324.2002
[email protected]

About Ipsos Reid

Ipsos Reid is Canada's market intelligence leader, the country's leading provider of public opinion research, and research partner for loyalty and forecasting and modelling insights. With operations in eight cities, Ipsos Reid employs more than 600 research professionals and support staff in Canada. The company has the biggest network of telephone call centres in the country, as well as the largest pre-recruited household and online panels. Ipsos Reid's marketing research and public affairs practices offer the premier suite of research vehicles in Canada, all of which provide clients with actionable and relevant information. Staffed with seasoned research consultants with extensive industry-specific backgrounds, Ipsos Reid offers syndicated information or custom solutions across key sectors of the Canadian economy, including consumer packaged goods, financial services, automotive, retail, and technology & telecommunications. Ipsos Reid is an Ipsos company, a leading global survey-based market research group.

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About Ipsos

Ipsos is an independent market research company controlled and managed by research professionals. Founded in France in 1975, Ipsos has grown into a worldwide research group with a strong presence in all key markets. In October 2011 Ipsos completed the acquisition of Synovate. The combination forms the world's third largest market research company.

With offices in 85 countries, Ipsos delivers insightful expertise across six research specializations: advertising, customer loyalty, marketing, media, public affairs research, and survey management.

Ipsos researchers assess market potential and interpret market trends. They develop and build brands. They help clients build long-term relationships with their customers. They test advertising and study audience responses to various media and they measure public opinion around the globe.

Ipsos has been listed on the Paris Stock Exchange since 1999 and generated global revenues of e1,789 billion (2.300 billion USD) in 2012.