Global data upend usual picture of Christianity trends; As post-disaster project ends, Japan considers the future; Anglican mission agency leaders recommit to collaboration; Egypt forms first ever Council of Churches
Global data upend usual picture of Christianity trends
Despite a century-long decline, religious affiliation has shown a marked resurgence globally since 1970. Both Christianity and Islam make up growing segments of the world’s population. Africa and China have witnessed the most marked religious change.
These are among the findings discussed by religious demographer Dr Todd M. Johnson in an overview of religious identity and trends in world Christianity since 1910, presented at the Ecumenical Centre, Geneva, on 13 March.
Hosted by the World Council of Churches (WCC) programme on Ecumenical Theological Education, Johnson’s lecture preceded his participation in a WCC sponsored conference about the pedagogical uses of work from research centres on global Christianity.
Johnson is associate professor of Global Christianity and director of the Center for the Study of Global Christianity (CSGC) at Gordon-Conwell Seminary, Massachusetts. He is co-author of several important resources in the emerging field of religious demography, including The World’s Religions in Figures (2013) and Atlas of Global Christianity (2009).
Resurgence of several religious traditions has caused “a new wave of interest” among scholars in a variety of fields, Johnson noted, and the CSGC work is being widely cited. The CSGC holds 1 million documents and draws on censuses, polls, interviews, and religious organizations for its data on religious affiliation and trends.
The CSGC’s data stretches from 1910 to 2010 and fully confirm the large-scale southward shift in Christianity’s centre of gravity. Yet the global character of the data also yields some striking trends.
It shows that in global numbers, religious affiliation is growing, with 12 percent claiming no affiliation in 2010, versus 20 percent in 1970. Presently Christians of all sorts comprise 33 percent of the world’s population, while Muslims comprise 22 percent (up from 12.6 in 1910).
Christians in the Global North comprised 80 percent of all Christians in 1910, but today make up less than 40 percent. The collapse of Chinese folk religion during the post 1949 period (from 22 to 6 percent of China’s population) has been matched by the recent resurgence of religion there, significantly driving global statistics.
The data also illustrate that animist and indigenous religious traditions remain vibrant but have dramatically declined among both African and Asian populations. Africa has witnessed strong growth in Christian affiliation during the last 100 years, from 9 to 47.9 percent claiming Christian affiliation.
Migration has become a large factor in religious demographics, dramatically altering the religious make-up of some nations. The CSGC’s research shows that statistics on Evangelical and Pentecostal groups are difficult to compile, since the charismatic trend goes beyond denominational affiliations.
Fastest growth over the century was seen in the category of agnostics and atheists, though both categories have been shrinking since 2000. For the first time, the rise in Christian affiliation in the Global South is outpacing its decline in the North, fuelling net growth of Christianity globally.
If present trends continued, by 2050, 36 percent of the world’s population would identify themselves as Christian, and by 2100 two-thirds of the world’s population would be either Christian or Muslim, stated Johnson in his presentation.
He argued that while the discipline of religious demography is emergent, its initial findings about the changing landscape of global religious life pose deep questions about enculturation, theological formulation, and church organization.
As post-disaster project ends, Japan considers the future
From Shinya Yawata, NSKK – Anglicans in Japan are considering the next phase of a key project set up to help the most vulnerable following the country’s triple disaster two years ago.
The Isshoni Aruko (Let Us Walk Together) project provided relief and rehabilitation for such vulnerable people as children, the elderly, disabled people and foreign migrants in the wake of the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear fallout.
At a recent decision of the project’s Steering Committee, it was decided to investigate next steps once the project concludes at the end of May, 2013. Options include the Tohoku Diocese or Province, Nippon Sei Ko Kai (Anglican Communion in Japan), extending the project, closing it, or handing it off to a non-governmental organization.
Initially the project distribute including food items and other much-needed relief goods. Soon the church was working with institutions for people with learning difficulties, helping them find new markets for their products which included cookies, and ornaments made from silkworm cocoons and promoting their business around the Church.
The Isshoni Aruko (Let Us Walk Together) project also supported foreign migrants to learn new skills and become self reliant. Some qualified as care givers, others as English teachers thanks to the help they had been given.
The project continued to provide goods and services to elderly people in temporary housing units following extensive needs assessments. Project workers and volunteers provided exercise classes for the elderly, cooking classes, sewing classes and other activities.
Young people also benefited from the work of NSKK, with children enjoying extra-curricula learning and short-term off-site camps particularly for those affected by the nuclear power plant disaster.
In just two years, the Project saw more than 7,000 people volunteer including parishioners of NSKK churches, students of NSKK affiliated colleges, pupils of NSKK affiliated schools, parents of school pupils, friends of parishioners, and some non-Christians. Many returned to help again and again.
NSKK and the project team would like to express their appreciation to those who contributed financially or gave relief goods and who supported or in prayer. We hope that they continue to pray for us as we look to the future.
Anglican mission agency leaders recommit to collaboration
Chief executives from ten leading Anglican Mission agencies this week recommitted to a work together “in join action and reflection within the framework of the Five Marks of Mission”.
The Partnership for World Mission Anglican Mission Agency leaders gathered for their annual residential meeting at the home of the Church Army, the Wilson Carlile Centre in Sheffield on 13 and 14 March.
They represented Church Mission Society, Us, SPCK, Intercontinental Church society, Churches Ministry Among Jewish People, Church Army, Church Pastoral Aid Society, Mothers’ Union, Mission to Seafarers and Crosslinks
Several new Chief Executives were welcomed to the meeting. Philip Mounstephen of CMS, Andrew Wright of Mission to Seafarers and Richard Bromley of Intercontinental Church Society were all attending their first meeting and reflected afterwards that all ten full-member societies represented a vast range of work concerned with mission at home and internationally.
“As a new CEO it was enormously encouraging to be part of such a gathering where we can all bring our distinctiveness and work in partnership,” said Janette O’Neill CEO of Us. She added, “We are part of the church not just alongside it and we all want to play our part in discerning God’s mission in the world.”
The meeting reflected on the Covenant of Common Mission which was signed by all ten Chief Executives and the Archbishop of Canterbury in 2003. It described a commitment to work together in joint action and reflection within the framework of the Five Marks of Mission. All of the Chief Executives reaffirmed their commitment to the 2003 Covenant of Common Mission a decade on.
Just a week before the historic enthronement of the new Archbishop of Canterbury all of the Chief Executives committed themselves to pray for and work with Archbishop Justin in his future ministry. Mark Russell, CEO of Church Army, said “As leaders of the Mission Agencies we will be praying for Archbishop Justin and we look forward to meeting him and sharing with him now and in the future and together keeping mission at the heart of the Church.”
Looking forward to the 2013 Partnership for World Mission Conference the Chief Executives agreed that a focus on mission as both local and global should form the heart of the gathering with a special focus on the changing shape of mission in Europe.
Partnership for World Mission comprises the ten full-member Mission Agencies together with 21 Associate member agencies and the Diocesan Companion Links. It provides a platform for sharing on all aspects of world mission and a link between the General Synod and the Mission Agencies.
By ACNS staff and Janice Price, Partnership for World Mission Co-ordinator
Egypt forms first ever Council of Churches
Five different churches in Egypt including the Coptic Orthodox Church, the Catholic Church, the Evangelical (Presbyterian) Church, the Greek Orthodox Church and the Anglican Church have joined together to form the Egypt Council of Churches after one year of deliberations and meetings between the churches.
The announcement was made in a press release by Bishop of the Diocese of Egypt with North Africa and the Horn of Africa, and Primate of the Province of Jerusalem and the Middle East, the Most Revd Dr. Mouneer Hanna Anis.
The Bishop said, “It is so important that this council is born at this time while Egypt is going through a very challenging circumstance politically, socially and economically. It means a lot for the churches to face these challenges together with one heart and soul.”
The launch of the council took place on 18 February and was hosted by His Holiness, Pope Tawadros II of the Coptic Orthodox Church, known as the “Mother” church of Egypt.
“The first goal of the Egypt Council of Churches is to enhance the bonds of love and the spirit of co-operation among the member churches,” explained the Primate.
Bishop Mouneer said, “There are 15 different committees that will be active in the areas of faith and unity, youth, Sunday schools, community development and women among others.”
The Primate acknowledged the importance of such collaboration among churches, “Each church in this council will enrich the others with its heritage,” and added, “It is important to affirm the principle of inter-dependence of each church.”