SBF,
Yes, but the real issue is motive here. The numbers have all been down for years now. If they were like they used to be, overall increasing, do you think they'd be playing them down or stressing them?
Of course, they would be highlighting them. So then, it's not because of any good motive—like imitating the first Christians—that they've cut back on the stats. They have to or it will cause them embarrassment and a multitude of problems. You can be sure that behind closed doors with the CO, it is just like Solzhenitsyn put it.