Plans by a Catholic priest
to publicly display the names and photographs of people who are
formally leaving the church are 'undesirable and not allowed in law',
church officials say.
Tilburg minister Harm Schilder said he wanted to pin the
photographs in the doorway of his parish church.
This, says Schilder,
'will allow the congregation to pray for them and perhaps convince them
to stay'.
There has been a sharp rise in the number of people
leaving the Catholic church since the pope condemned gay marriage last
month.
Prayer
Schilder says he is not
planning to 'name and shame' people leaving the church but that prayer
is the only option open to try and change things.
Church officials
from the diocese of Den Bosch say the minister is free to do what he
wants, but urge him to respect people's privacy.
The privacy
watchdog CBP has also commented on the case and said it would have been
'more decent' if Schilder had asked people first if they minded being
named in public.