400,000 Catholics in America Missing
400,000 Catholics in America are missing. The National Council of Churches' 2009 edition of the Yearbook of American & Canadian Churches records a slight but startling decline in membership of the America's largest Christian communions. Membership in the Roman Catholic Church declined 0.59 percent. A loss of 398,000 members since the appearance of the 2008 Yearbook. Southern Baptists lost nearly 40,000 members.
Its long been noted among Southern Baptists that Baptist conversions and baptisms have been in decline for several years. Among American Catholics baptisms and conversions have been steady at about 1 million infant baptisms and over 100,000 adult baptisms and conversions for the past decade.
NCC states that they faithfully report those numbers provided to them. On this we have no dispute. There is no reason to assume that the NCC has ever been less than truthful regarding their statistics.
So, where did 400,000 Catholics go?
An article in The Georgia Bulletin, the newspaper of the Catholic the Archdiocese of Atlanta, may shed some light. They report:
The number of Catholics in North Georgia continues to climb. Catholics are growing faster than the overall population in the Peach State as the official count of Catholics in the archdiocese climbs to 750,000, up from 650,000.
Hmmm... There are 100,000 more Catholics in Northern Georgia alone. Well, that's in line with most of America. The U.S. Census Bureau has repeatedly announced the increase in the Hispanic population, which is disproportionally Catholic, in all regions of the United States for many years.
Our own Southern state has also seen an inflow of Hispanic Catholics with many new Catholic churches being built or expanded.
Reading on in The Georgia Bulletin, we found this:
Hispanic people only make up some 18 percent of registered parishioners in the archdiocese. That shows there are many more Hispanics, who are likely Catholic, but who either do not attend a church or attend but are not registered.
Hispanics make up 49% of Catholics in North Georgia, but only 18% of registrations. Houston, we may have found our missing Catholics. If older registered Catholics in the America are dying, but younger Hispanic Catholics are not registering, then there likely is a significant drop in the Catholic population, at least on paper.
So, while Southern Baptists are busy with their new iniative to grow their organization, Catholics seem in need of finding some pencils and getting their Hispanic members registered.
Related Posts:
Evangelism Explosion Among Catholics
Orthodox Church in America Increasing
Search Maps for Denominational Names
Source: NCC's 2009 Yearbook of American & Canadian Churches
reports decline in Catholic, Southern Baptist membership
Its long been noted among Southern Baptists that Baptist conversions and baptisms have been in decline for several years. Among American Catholics baptisms and conversions have been steady at about 1 million infant baptisms and over 100,000 adult baptisms and conversions for the past decade.
NCC states that they faithfully report those numbers provided to them. On this we have no dispute. There is no reason to assume that the NCC has ever been less than truthful regarding their statistics.
So, where did 400,000 Catholics go?
An article in The Georgia Bulletin, the newspaper of the Catholic the Archdiocese of Atlanta, may shed some light. They report:
The number of Catholics in North Georgia continues to climb. Catholics are growing faster than the overall population in the Peach State as the official count of Catholics in the archdiocese climbs to 750,000, up from 650,000.
Hmmm... There are 100,000 more Catholics in Northern Georgia alone. Well, that's in line with most of America. The U.S. Census Bureau has repeatedly announced the increase in the Hispanic population, which is disproportionally Catholic, in all regions of the United States for many years.
Our own Southern state has also seen an inflow of Hispanic Catholics with many new Catholic churches being built or expanded.
Reading on in The Georgia Bulletin, we found this:
Hispanic people only make up some 18 percent of registered parishioners in the archdiocese. That shows there are many more Hispanics, who are likely Catholic, but who either do not attend a church or attend but are not registered.
Hispanics make up 49% of Catholics in North Georgia, but only 18% of registrations. Houston, we may have found our missing Catholics. If older registered Catholics in the America are dying, but younger Hispanic Catholics are not registering, then there likely is a significant drop in the Catholic population, at least on paper.
So, while Southern Baptists are busy with their new iniative to grow their organization, Catholics seem in need of finding some pencils and getting their Hispanic members registered.
Related Posts:
Evangelism Explosion Among Catholics
Orthodox Church in America Increasing
Search Maps for Denominational Names
Source: NCC's 2009 Yearbook of American & Canadian Churches
reports decline in Catholic, Southern Baptist membership
Labels: Demographics, Maps, Statistics
6 Comments:
On top of your page you have a scripture memorization gadget. My favourite passage is from Deuteronomy:
21:18 If a man have a stubborn and rebellious son, which will not obey the voice of his father, or the voice of his mother, and that, when they have chastened him, will not hearken unto them:
21:19 Then shall his father and his mother lay hold on him, and bring him out unto the elders of his city, and unto the gate of his place;
21:20 And they shall say unto the elders of his city, This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton, and a drunkard.
21:21 And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die: so shalt thou put evil away from among you; and all Israel shall hear, and fear.
The numbers approach though is not revealing in itself. Think of the 100+ congressman who are Catholic and are dangerous to the lives of pre borns. Latin America and Mexico and Africa have many who we call Catholic but who are really syncretist and combine it with folkloric aspects and in Brazil with spiritism. Among whites, we combine it with driving too fast in residential areas....so who is the real syncretist...lol.
Yasou, Takis!
Thank you dor visiting and commenting. We find it a bit less than honest to post the above comment and not mention that it is from a post on your "For the promotion of rigour and rationality " blog.
We suspect that the verses are your favorite as you seem to derive some delight of using the verses to provoke Jews and Christians versus because you finding the verses profound in your own life. That seems sad.
We have an abundance of Christian charity and are not easily provoked. We'll pray for you and encourage others to do the same.
Tokalo.... +Timothy
Welcome, bilbannon!
We disagree and do find the numbers approach revealing.
>"Think of the 100+ congressman who are Catholic and are dangerous to the lives of pre borns"
Yeah? What of them? What has that statement to do with the sudden loss of 400,000 Catholics in the NCC statistics?
>"Latin America and Mexico and Africa have many who we call Catholic but who are really syncretist and combine it with folkloric aspects and in Brazil with spiritism."
And...
While that statement might prove an interesting thesis for a future post, the NCC stats do not include "Latin America and Mexico and Africa" so your statement isn't germaine to the discussion at hand. Its just nonsense and noise.
As with Takis above, we will pray for you too.
God bless... +Timothy
Hi Timothy (yasou!)
You say:
We find it a bit less than honest to post the above comment and not mention that it is from a post on your "For the promotion of rigour and rationality " blog.
I'm afraid this is not the case: It's not dishonest from my part to have quoted the verses from Deuteronomy elsewhere, I can't see why you think so. They're not personal opinions, they're contained in a text I found in a church a few sundays ago. I was invited at a Baptism and was bored with the silly things the priest was saying, so I opened the bible and started reading from it.
Second: I am not provoking anybody. I'm simply asking why are these harsh things written in a book that all christians (and jews, and muslims) consider as "holy". A more rational explanation is that these books were written by a bunch of folk who simply wanted to establish some laws. Isn't it a bit weird (to say the least) to claim that these texts were written by a deity or by representatives of a deity?
You say:
We have an abundance of Christian charity and are not easily provoked.
Clearly, there are lots of good people out there, but this has nothing to do with them being Christian or Shaman. In fact, if someone does charity because of religion then THAT is dishonest.
We'll pray for you and encourage others to do the same.
What do you exactly mean by praying? Speaking to a deity? Well, why do you think that this deity will listen to you, as a Christian, and not to my friend Mustafa who is Muslim? He is also praying for me (he says). So the chance that both of you are successful is zero because the deity of Christians and that of Muslims are different. In fact, they are in competition with one another.
Last but not least, I think that one has to live an ethical, honest life, a life full of compassion and sympathy towards humanity. Not a religious life.
Yasou, Takis!
>Takis: "It's not dishonest from my part to have quoted the verses from Deuteronomy elsewhere, I can't see why you think so."
Yes, at first glance it seems just an innocuous, out-of-context quote from Deuteronomy, which you may well have found in a text in a church. However, the same quote is also the thesis for a recent post on your site, which you omit mentioning.
Your original comment is not a joyous Christian sharing but a calculated distraction. That I find less than honest (dishonest would be your word of choice).
>Takis: "Second: I am not provoking anybody. I'm simply asking why are these harsh things written in a book that all christians (and jews, and muslims) consider as "holy"."
First, let's be honest. Your original post of the Deuteronomy quote WAS intened to be provcative and elicit a response. At no point did you ever ask why "these harsh things written in a book ." Your original, unedited post is above.
It is only now and on your earlier blog post that you ask about "these harsh things written in a book ."
>Takis: "Isn't it a bit weird (to say the least) to claim that these texts were written by a deity or by representatives of a deity?"
Nope, seems perfectly "rational."
>Takis: "Well, why do you think that this deity will listen to you, as a Christian, and not to my friend Mustafa who is Muslim?"
You seem to have an underlying assumption that "this deity will listen to you, as a Christian, and not to my friend Mustafa who is Muslim." This seems an erroneous assumption on your part as I believe said deity (God) hears the prayers of both myself and your friend Mustafa. God is almighty and thus fully capable of such action.
>Takis: "because the deity of Christians and that of Muslims are different."
Yeah? Since when?
To have different deities is to argue that there are at least two deities and not one. Both Christianity and Islam are monotheistic and in agreement that, at the meta-physical level, one and only one deity (God) exists. If one and only one deity (God) exists, then Christians and Muslims logically worship the same deity (God). That seems to be what is written in the sacred texts of both faiths.
>Takis: "In fact, they are in competition with one another."
Hmm... Positive assertion without proof.
I find no competition. In fact, I see Muslims as seperated brothers and sisters who have much of the truth, but also many errors. I'm of the worldwide majority of Christians that recognize Islam as a Christian heresy (heresy of the Ishmaelites) that originated in an Arabic Jewish-Christian-pagan community around 700 AD and later developed into a distinct religion.
I see the spread of Islam as a homoginization of varied beliefs into a single set of beliefs. That makes the task of bringing Islamic people into full communion with God's universal Church all the more easier. Dealing with one heresy is far easier than thousands heresies. For me, Islam is a plus, not a minus nor competition.
>Takis: "I think that one has to live an ethical, honest life, a life full of compassion and sympathy towards humanity"
Why? On what basis do you decide what is or is not ethical. What is the criteria for an "honest life"? Since when is compassion and sympathy the correct, best or proper attitude? Because you said so?
If I establish a new community, we could decide as a community that rape and theft are ethical. Thus a person raping and stealing would be leading an ethical and honest life. It could conceivably be an act of compassion and sympathy to rape and steal from you. On what basis would we be wrong? Because another group of humans has decided to live their lives differently? That would make us different, but not necessarily wrong. There is no deity, so morality and ethics are relative, are they not?
You seemingly seek to piggyback on the foundation laid down by religion (Christianity in particular), but deliberately seek to avoid acknowledging said foundation. Civil laws are arbitrary and may be changed by majority rule. Black can legally become white overnight.
God bless and we'll keep you in our prayers. Tokalo...
+Timothy
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