Omaha daily bee., 1897-06-27
RELIGIOUS STATISTICS.
Increase in the Nunbcr of Churches
and P~renchers In Tcn Ycnra.

increase IN the Nun1ber or churches
and Preachers In Ten Ycnrs.
The United States is the only country in
which an official census omits matters relat-
ing to the religious belief of the Inhabitants,
says the New York Sun. In every European
country, in Canada, South America, India
and Australia, when a census Is taken by
governmental or local authority, inquiry IL
made into the religious belief of the inhabi-
tants, and the custom is universal to ascribo
to the minor children OF a family the re-
ligious creed OF tho parents or guardians. In
the United States, however, the antipathy to
any admixture of religious with secular mat
tiers has always served as a bar against in
quirles by census officials on religious mat
ters, and the nearest approach to such in
formation has come, therefore, from statistics
OF church sittings. There is kept, too. but
not by any official authority, a record OF tho
number of ministers OF each religious de-
nomination, and a comparison of the figures
for the last few years Is interesting as show
Ing the changes which are going on in the
various denominations.
Ten years ago there were In the United
States 3S,522 Baptist churches and %, 377
Baptist clergymen. There are now As, 500
Baptist churches and 3l,572 Baptist clergy
men. Ten years ago there were in The United
States S,263 Methodist churches and 8,075
clergymen OF the Methodist creed. There are
now 1885 Methodist churches and 80, COL
Methodist clergymen, There are thirteen
subdivisions OF American Baptists and seven
teen of American Methodists. but for pur-
poses OF ordinary computation they are
spoken OF as Methodlsts and Baptists collec-
lively. Ten yeats ago there were in the
United States 6,9l0 Catholic churches and
1858 Catholic ~clergymen. There are now
u r627 Catholic churches and 1906 Catholic
clergymen. Ten years ago there were 992
Lutheran churches and 4,2l5 Lutheran
clergymen. There are now 9,493 of the
former and 5,6S5 OF the latter, the increase
being due In considerable measure to the
large and steady emigration from north Ger
many and Scandinavian countries to the
United States. Ten years ago there were re-
turned In the United States 1863 Jewish syn
agogues and 1903 rabb!s occupying pulpits in
Jewish synagOguCs. There are now returned
54S synagogues and 290 rabbis, though OBJ
yiously the latter number Is much too low,
and the disparity arises from the fact that
there are a considerable number OF rabbis
who do not appear In the church records as
such, as they also follow other pursuits. Ten
yeats ago there were in the United States
l2,437 Presbyterian churches and 1854 Pres
byterlan ministers, BY the last figures at
hand there were IA $50 Presbyterian churches
and 1916 Presbyterian c~lergymen. Ten
years ago there were 3,540 Episcopal
churches and 4,139 Episcopal clergymen In
the United States. There are now 5,979 OF
the former and 1880 OF the latter.
All religious organizations 10 the United
States have grown In membership and church
accommodation during the last ten years,
but the gain, as the figures show, has beea
somewhat u~peYenly distributed.