Page 8 - Italian-American Herald - February 2023

8 ITALIANAMERICANHERALD.COM | FEBRUARY2023 LOCAL
Nearly $100K in UNICO scholarships
Italian-American Herald
The UNICO National Foundation awarded scholarships worth nearly $100,000 in 2022, and these scholarships are again available to eligible high school and college students.
The qualifications differ for each scholarship. Applicants are encouraged to review the entire list of offerings on the UNICO website – click “scholarships” at unico.org – and download the application. Students may apply for more than one scholarship. All applications must be submitted online on or before the deadline date.
The deadline for most scholarship applications has been extended to April 18, except for the DiMattio Celli Family Study Abroad scholarship, which is taking applications until March 1. IAH
To learn more, contact unicodelawaredistrict1@gmail.com.
The scholarships:
• Major Don S. Gentile Memorial
Scholarship – $6,000
• William C. Davini Memorial
Scholarship – $6,000
ITALIAN-AMERICANHERALD
• Alphonse A. Miele Memorial Scholarship – $6,000
• Theodore Mazza Memorial Scholarship – $6,000
• Sgt. John Basilone Memorial Scholarship – $6,000
• Dr. Benjamin J. Cottone Memorial Scholarship – $5,000
• Bernard and Carolyn Torraco Memorial Nursing Scholarships – $17,500
• DiMattio Celli Family Study Abroad Scholarship – $2,500
• Ella T. Grasso Literary Scholarship – $2,000
• Ralph J. Torraco Scholarship – $5,000 • Louise Torraco Memorial Scholarship
for Science – $5,000
• Ralph J. Torraco Fine Arts Scholarship
– $5,000
• Robert J. Tarte Scholarship for
Italian Studies – $1,000
• Guglielmo Marconi Engineering
Scholarship – $1,250
• Maria and Paolo Alessio Southern
Italy Scholarship – $2,500
• Inserra Scholarships – $5,000
• Eleanor and Anthony DeFrancis
Scholarship Fund for Natural
Sciences – $5,000
• Ralph J. Torraco Scholarship for
Therapy Sciences – $5,000
• Ralph J. Torraco Scholarship for
Veterinary Studies ¬– $2,500
• Ralph J. Torraco Scholarship for
Seminarian Studies – $4,000
NEWS FROM ITALY
Church attendance on slow decline
Italian-American Herald
ROME – Italians, once thought to be among the most devoted churchgoers, seem to be slowly becoming less devoted. Every year the number of Italian believers attending religious services becomes lower and lower. In 2020, there were about 12 million citizens attending house of prayer at least once every week, around 6 million worshippers fewer a decade earlier.
The most prayerful were the citizens older than 75, whereas the lowest number of individuals attending religious services at least once a week was recorded in the age group between 18 and 24.
According to current estimates, only 25 percent of Italians attend mass at least once a month, including . The remaining 40 percent attend only on Christmas, Easter, or for weddings and funerals. Also, 35 percent wait outside at weddings and funerals.
Included among those who do attend at least once a month elderly people and kids who are preparing for the sacraments and whose preparation involves going regularly to church.
Usually they do so because somewhere there is an elderly grandma who would
be upset if the child wasn't christened, communicated, and confirmed. In addition, people, especially in the provinces, go to mass at Christmas because everyone else does, not out of faith. Finally, in Italy only about 48 percent of marriages take place in church, and the number is dropping.
When asked why they left the religion, 64 percent of the Italian respondents stated that they disagreed with their religion’s position on social issues. Another 60 percent of the interviewees were unhappy about scandals involving religious institutions, whereas 6 percent left the religion because they married someone outside the faith.
Although the dominant religion in Italy is Catholicism, Italian citizens also belong to other religious minorities. In 2018, the largest share of individuals who were not belonging to the Roman Catholic Church were Protestants, followed by Jehovah’s Witnesses, Muslims and Jews. IAH
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