Christian churches are “failing to connect” with the changing face of Auckland’s ethnic population, according to a study by Massey University.
The study – Changing Patterns of Auckland Religion – found that membership of all mainstream Christian denominations, except Catholicism, have fallen to a historic low in New Zealand’s largest city. In contrast, religions like Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism are on the rise.
Massey University Associate Professor, Dr. Peter Lineham, who is behind the research, said the trend showed churches were “failing to connect” with people, particularly in areas with a significant ethnic diversity.
The interesting thing about the study was how much the Catholic Church has grown, he said, adding that it is possible that membership of the Catholic Church could overtake that of the Anglican faith for the first time come the next Census.
“The Catholic Church have got exactly the same problem of ageing Pakeha (as the Anglican Church), and they’ve lost a lot of ground among Pakeha, as Pakeha become more and more non-religious, but they’ve gained enormously from the new populations flooding into Auckland – Fillipinos, Koreans, Indians, Samoans and other Pacific peoples.
“That means that the Auckland Catholic Church is quite representative of Auckland. It’s very striking.”
“One of the trends that I’m picking up in Auckland, which is a bit different from the rest of New Zealand, is that I think we’re past the phase of ‘religion’s out’, and we’re at the stage of ‘religion’s interesting, let’s explore’,” he said.
Source:
- TVNZ
- Image: Touchstone
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