The Netherlands – the Archdiocese of Utrecht, which currently has 300 churches, will only have around twenty left, fifteen years from now.
Over the past years, numerous parishes within the archdiocese have merged: the 326 parishes in existence in 2007 had been reduced to 48 by 2011. By 2030, only half of this number is estimated to remain. Most of these parishes will probably only have one church building, writes Archbishop dr. W. Eijk.
The Roman Catholic church in Flanders is in a similar situation. The 1800 parishes will be reduced to some 400 within the coming years. Many churches will face definitive closure.
Read the whole article in Dutch here.
http://www.refdag.nl/mobile/kerkplein/kerknieuws/aartsbisdom_utrecht_van_300_naar_20_kerken_1_876256
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