Waterbury evening Democrat., 1892-08-15
CHURCH ORGANIZATIONS
Statistics of Denomina atoms in
the United States.
NEARLY $50 SEPARATE SECTS.

Extracts From supt. Port.r's Address at
Asbury Park--sub-Divisions of the Bap-
fist Churches-Roman Catholic In.
crease--Colored Denominations.
WASHINGTON, Aug. 15.-Supt. Robert
P. Porter, in an address at Asbury Park
yesterday, made public the preliminary
figures of the church statistics of the
eleventh census, which are both curious
and interesting.
There are shown to be in the United
States nearly $50 separate and distinct
church organizations holding different
creeds, varying greatly in practice, and
representing all possible variations OF
church polty
There are various churches that
claim to be simply brethren. There are
two Reformed churches, known as the
Reformed Church of America" and
the Reformed Church in the United
States"
Some of the denominati ions We're ne vel
numbered before, and it required the ut
most powers of persuasion to induce them
to submit to the process Sects have
been found and enumerated which claim
less than 100 communicates. Here are
seven sects which altogether number
only about 4 900 members. ;iuu yet own
church edifices worth $4,000: Shakers,
Amananites, Mennonite, Harmony, Sep,
artists, New Icarian and Altruists.
All societies observing the communal
life, whether founded on a religious OF
secular basis, are embraced in the re-
turns. Two of these societies are not re
ligious, the Icarian and the AltruiSt, but
are organized to apply IA social principle
After the seven great denominations
Congregational, Lutheran, Methodist,
Presbyterian, Roman Catholic, Bapti st
and Episcopal, have been accounted fol
the other 1874 religious associations repre-
sent less than 10 per cent. of the church
edifices and less than II per cent of the
aggregate value of church property.
Some of the subdivisions of the BaD
fist churches are peculiar. The uninitiate ed
person finds it difficult to define the diff
ference between the Seventh Day and the
Six Principle Baptists, between the Mud
head and the River Brethren, between
the Primitive and the Free Will, between
| the original Free Will and the OldTwo
| Seedin- Spirit, between the General ant
| the General Free Will. Besides these there
are also the Regular South, the Rrgulat
| North, and the Regular COlortI Bap
lists.
The Society Of Friends are divided into
| the Orthodox and Hicksite, the Wilbur
| lite and Primitive branches There are
| II or Is different branches of the Luth
| eran churches in this country.
| According to the returns of the It'll
census the number of communicates il
five principal religious denominat ions 70
which the statittics have been completct
| are rs follows:
Congregational, 512,711; Lutheran, l,
| 1919, 514; Methodist, 4, 255, 81; Presbyter
| ian n1S Sl1. Roman MT hOliC & 30 o. -
total, 10, 496, 022.
The communicates Of the Baptist anc
| Episcopal with those of other denomina
tions will bring the aggregate up to abou
| 10000, 900.
The statistics of the colorcd dcnomina
tions likewise show great progress. Thci
| denominations number IL. They have
total membership of 1913, 100, and owl
church property valued at SIS, 4O3, 900.