The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1918-05-09
Church Membership

|
or by IA per cent; the number of
ministers from 164,S30 to 191,722,
or by 1873 per cent; the number of
! Sunday School scholars from 1887,
S11 to 20,569,631, or by 34.1 per
cent; the number of Sunday Schools
from 1922 to 207,789, or by 7.S
| per cent; and the number of Sun
day School officers and teachers
from 1,746,074 to 2,049, ,293, or by
| ia per cent. These data, which
constitute few of the significant
| facts developed by the Census Bu-
reau's recent inquiry relating to re-
| ligious bodies, are contained in
statement issued by Director Sam l..
| Rogers and compiled under the su-
pervision of Mr.. William G. Hunt,
| chief statistician for population. The
| statistics presented are preliminary
| and subject to later revision, but are
substantially correct.
The total number of denomina-
| tions covered by the statistics was
201, an increase of IS over the num-
| Der reported for 1906. This in
| crease is the net result of the con-
solidation or dropping out of 16
small denominations and the addition
of 29 small denominations, the latter
comprising some which were actual
| ly in existence in 1906, but not then
brought to light and others resulting
| from consolidation of formerly inde-
pendent churches, reorganization
| within existing denominations, etc.
Of the 42,O44,374 church mem
| bers reported, 15,742.262, or 37.4
per cent, were Roman Catholics;
250,340, or siX-tenths of l per cent,
were adherentS of the Eastern Or
thodox churches, mainly Greek
church and Russian church; 359,-
99S, or nine-tenths of 1 pc rcent.,
were members of Jewish congrega-
tions, and the remainder of 25,691,-
ia, or Gil per cent, comprised the
membership of the various Protes-
tant churches, together with that of
a few bodies, such as the Latter Day
Saints, the Spiritualists and others,
not usually considered as belonging
to any of the groups named.
In comparing the figures just CIV
en-, it should be borne in mind that
the Roman Catholic and the Eastern
Orthodox churches include in their
membership all infants and the chill
dren who have been baptized, where
as the Protestant churches do not, as
a rule, receive young children as
members; and that in the case of
some of the more orthodox Jewish
organizations only the male incorpo-
rators of the institutions or those
who have bought shares or member
ships in them are treated as mem
bers. The foregoing percentages,
therefore, over-state the relative
strength of the Roman Catholic and
Eastern Orthodox churches and un-
der-state that of the Jews.
The canvass showed 9 denomina
tions which had total membership
of more than I 900, 900 each and an
Fdggr6galE OF 81 s468,I32, or 71.2 per
cent. of the entire membership re-
ported for all religious bodies. These
organizations with their membership
were as follows: Baptist, Northern,
1,227,44S; Baptist, Southern, 2,711,-
sol; Baptist, National, colored, 81
O1S,341; Disciples of Christ, 1,231,-
404; Methodist Episcopal, 3,718,-
396; Methodist Episcopal, South, g.
10S.061; Presbyterian in U. S. A,
1,613,056; Protestant Episcopal, l.
098,173; Roman Catholic, 15,742,-
262. i
The aggregate membership of the
several Baptist denominations North,
South, Colored and IA others, was
7,236,650; of the various Methodist
denominations, Methodist Episcopal,
Methodist Episcopal, South, Metho
dist Protestant. African Methodist
Episcopal, African Methodist Episco
pal Zion, Colored Methodist, Episco-
pal, and IL other Methodist denomi-
nations, of which are white and 6
are colored, 7,165,9S6; of the Pres
byterian denominations, Presbyterian |
in U. S. A., Presbyterian in U. S.,
United Presbyterian, and z others,
2,257,439; and of the 21 Lutheran
denominations, 2,463,265.
The total number of ministers re-
ported, 1912, comprised 20,287
Catholic priests, $50 priests of the
Eastern Orthodox churches, 719 Jew
ish rabbis, and 17O,359 ministers of
other churches, mainly of Protes-
tant denominations. The percentage |
of increase in number of ministers |
during the ten-year period, 16.3,was |
somewhat less than that in member
ship, 1919. The average number OF |
church members to each minister for |
all denominations in 1916 was 219. |
For the Roman Catholics, however, |
the corresponding average, 776, was |
much larger.
The canvass showed 2O7,7S9 Sun
day Schools, with 2,049,293 officers |
and teachers and 20,569,83 schol-
ars. These totals comprise 195,675 !
Sunday Schools, with 1,959,91S Off
GERS and teachers and 1881, ,675 |
scholars, conducted by church orga-
nizations, and IL, 513 undenomina-
tional and union Sunday Schools,
with S9,375 officers and teachers and
618,156 scholars. The average mum
Der of officers and teachers to each |
UNCONVENTIONAL Sunday School was |
thus almost eractly 10 and the aver
age number of scholars was small
fraction more than 100; whereas in
the case of the undenominational
and union Sunday Schools the aver
age numbe rof officers and teachers !
was little more than and the av-
erage number of scholars not quite |
so. The number of scholars in the |
Roman Catholic Sunday Schools, L.
853,245, was equal to 9.3 per cent. |
of the total for all denominational |
Sunday Schools. This proportion |
was very much smaller than the cor
responding one, 37.4 per cent. which |
Roman Catholic church membership /
represented of the total. This differ
ence is due in large part to the fact |
that the attendants at Protestant !
Sunday Schools include many adults
whereas practically all scholars in
Roman Catholic Sunday Schools are
very young children, and in many
cases the parochial school takes the !
place of the Sunday School. More
over, as already pointed out, the to-
tai membership of the Roman Catho-
IL ah1,ro i,,f fc nd