A recent report by the “Future of Religious Heritage” states that an estimated 600-700 churches in the Netherlands will be decommissioned by 2018.
The “Future of Religious Heritage” organization is comprised of associations, government bodies, universities and religious communities that are working together to preserve religious sites across the European continent.
According to L’Osservatore Romano, which published the statistics, the organization also estimated that 400-500 Protestant churches will also be decommissioned.
Currently, the Bishops of the Netherlands are in the Vatican on their Ad Limina visit, which is required by the heads of dioceses every 5 years. The Holy Father addressed several issues pertinent to the area, which is consider highly secularized.
