The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1897-06-12
FIGURES.
The "Civitta Cattolica"
Gives Interesting Statis-
tics of the Church
in America.
ST. PETERS COLLEGE COMMENCEMENT
Names of the Graduates and Prize
~Essayisis - General
News.
ST. PETERS COLLEGE COMMENCEMENT

A writer in the .Civitta Cattolica"
| says that the only compiled religious sta
tistics of the United States, based on the
census of 1890, are brought up with the
greatest possible accuracy to 1896. There
in we read. for instance, that the value
Of the churches and the Ian on which
such religious edifices are erected, not
including converts, presbyteries, schools,
colleges, seminaries, universities and
other religious institutions connected
with the church, which are numerous and
valuable, reaches S670, 900, 600; hat is, about
SIC per head of the population. OF this
sum-, S11S, 600. 600 belong to the Catholic
Church. In a country where money is
the standard, criterion and measure of
everything, these figures speak in favor
of the sentiments of the people. If we
take also as a basis of Judgment, the
number of sects which boast of being
more or less Christian, the United States
would take precedence of all other coun-
tries in the world. The above men
toned statistics give 1a3 different
churches and others are s~pringing up.
But a key of this kind can never give
US the secret of the problem. A better
guide will be found in the number of
persons who profess Christianity. The
statistics of 1895 tell us that the communi-
cants-this is those who have reached the
requisite age, frequent the Eucharistic
~Table-are:-
Catholics, S,014, 991; Methodists, 5,452, 654;
Baptist, 4,o6S, 539; Presbyterians, LASS, 999 /;
Lutherans, 1890, 775; E-piscopalians, 626, 290;
and SO on in a descending scale down to
some churches which count no more than
100 commandments.
Comparing the figures, we find that
of those who profess a definite belief one
of every three persons is a Catholic,
while of the whole population of the re-
public, two of every three persons pro-
fess no distinct form of Christianity, and
one in every twelve may be held to be
either a positive or a negative unbeliever.
The total number of the Catholic popu-
lation is now estimated at about ten
mllllon souls; but it is probable that this
Protestants protesting a definite belief
does not exceed fifteen million. About
forty milton persons profess Christianity
without belonging to any church, and,
as they are for the most part unbaptized
they may be regarded as pagans covered
WITH a veneer of Christian civilization.
Ihose, finally; who declare themselves to
&c unpeheyerS or pagans lumber from
five to ten millions.
Considering these facts, bearing in
mind the dizzy whisl of American life,
and recollecting the wonderful progress
made from year to year among US by
the catholic Church, what conclusion is
to be drawn from the appalling religious
Indifference of the majority. and from
the extraordinary vitality so s~plendidly
manifested by the Catholic Church in the
course OF one or two generations alone?
In no part of the world. l am. certain.
does the bark of Peter sail more prosper
ously than in the United States; in no
on Sundays and feast lays than here or
the sacraments more frequented. A
thousand or more communions every
Sunday in man. churches in our large
towns is a matter of such ordinar oc-
currence that nobody thinks ANYTHING
q 1t; while after popular missions it Of.
Yen appeh that the -communions are
counted by tens of thousands.