Overview
- New church figures reported Tuesday show the Protestant ELKB recorded 12,562 baptisms in 2025 and Catholic dioceses counted 36,129 last year, both well below recent years.
- The ELKB says infant baptisms fell to 64% of its baptisms in 2024, down from more than 90% before 1990, as baptisms at ages 2 to 14 rose to 35%.
- Protestant confirmations continued to decline, dropping from 22,413 in 2015 to 15,683 in 2024, with the church noting that only about three in four baptized youths choose confirmation.
- Catholic first-communion participation stayed largely stable, with about 49,000 children receiving the sacrament in each of the past two years.
- The ELKB is trying low‑barrier contact points such as the 2025 “Segen für Babys” blessings, visibility at baby fairs, shared baptism festivals and social‑media outreach to reengage hesitant families.