Financial statements

Almost two percent of Catholics have left the church

Klagenfurt Cathedral: a church that is full to bursting at numerous church services - yet the statistics show that Carinthians have once again left the church. In 2023, 5408 people or 1.94 percent of Carinthians left the church.

(Bild: Evelyn Hronek)

Many statistical figures remain at the same level year after year, but people are still eagerly awaiting them - especially the number of people leaving the church: 5,408 Carinthians left the Catholic Church last year; 1.94 percent of the population. 

As of January 1, 2024, 331,594 Carinthians - or 58.28 percent of the total population of Carinthia - were Roman Catholic. Compared to the previous year, this represents a decrease in Catholics of 1.94 percent. The number of people leaving the church in 2023 is on a par with the previous year: 5,408 Carinthians left the Catholic Church in 2023, compared to 5,306 in 2022.

In 2023, 339 people rejoined and transferred to the church (2022: 344). 43 people revoked their resignation in 2023 (2022: 44 revocations).

Fewer children - fewer baptisms
The numbers of church weddings (2023: 739; 2022: 774), first communions (2023: 3,126; 2022: 3,078) and confirmations (2023: 2,671; 2022: 2,765) in the Gurk diocese were also on a par with the previous year. The number of baptisms fell from 3,063 in 2022 to 2,697 in 2023, in line with the negative birth rate in Carinthia in 2023.

Financially, the diocese has a positive annual result for 2023, but a negative operating result. 

Total income of 39.7 million euros is offset by operating expenses of 43.5 million euros. Income from the actuarial reserve of the priests' pension scheme amounting to 3.3 million euros and a financial result of 1.3 million euros lead to a positive annual result of around 798,000 euros.

Despite this overall positive annual result, the focus remains on overcoming the negative development of the result from ongoing business operations amounting to 3.8 million euros. Achieving a balanced operating result is one of the objectives of the current church development process, which will set targets and measures to achieve this.

75 percent of income comes from church contributions
As the financial statements of the Diocese of Gurk show, around 75% of total income in 2023, namely 29.9 million euros, will come from church contributions, which have increased slightly compared to the previous year, namely by around 700,000 euros.

That too is church in Carinthia

336 parishes

Caritas with social and life counseling centers, homeless assistance, delogation prevention, housing placement, food distribution LEA, foreign aid, men's counseling, addiction prevention, in the Caritas stores "carlas", with employment projects

telephone counseling

ten residential care homes and ten facilities for people with disabilities

two religious hospitals: the Hospital of the Brothers of Mercy in St. Veit and the Elisabethinen Hospital in Klagenfurt

14 private Catholic schools in Carinthia with 3,487 pupils.

62 kindergartens, 21 daycare centers, six after-school care centers and four all-day schools

nine learning cafés

one socio-educational facility for children and young people

Biggest chunk in the budget: personnel - despite a shortage of priests
On the expenditure side, current personnel expenses for the 215 priests and 388 lay employees of the diocese, for priests' pensions and for the co-financing of 152 parish employees account for around 56% of the total budget at around 24.3 million euros and form the largest expenditure item.

Parishes, diocesan educational and social institutions (Caritas) as well as supra-diocesan institutions, missionary and development aid projects received grants and support for ongoing operations amounting to 3.1 million euros from the diocesan budget in 2023.