CHURCH LOSING GROUND

Evening Star, Issue 19795, 20 February 1928, Page 8

CHURCH LOSING GROUND

DROP IN REVEHUE AMD MEMBERSHIP

The Church of England suffered serious losses in 1926 There were alarming decreases in Great Britain in the number of confirmations, bajitisms, Easter communicants, and Sunday school attendances. There was a decline of more than £1.20,000 in the total voluntary contributions. The figures are given in the Official Year Book (published by tho Church Assembly Publication Board), states the ‘ Daily Express.’ Confirmations in 1926 wewre woniy 209,565, as against 219,091 in the preceding year. Th esteady decrease that has been in progress since 1923, when the total was 233,427, has thus been continued.

The figures concerning baptisms are equally disconcerting. The number in 1925 was 477,954; last year it was 466,915, a falling off of more than 11,000. Easter communicants in 1926 totalled 2,372.610, as against 2,388,419 in 1925, a falling off of 15,809. Sunday school scholars totalled 1,861,336 in 1926, ns compared with 1.895,753 the previous year, a decrease of more than 30,000. Attendances at Bible classes show in 1926 a falling off of more than 10,000. “The will to give” is generally regarded in a religious organisation as a baroxnetex; pf its well-being or other-

wise. Statistics show that the voluntary contributions from all the dioceses of the church in 1926 were £7,110,061, as compared with £7,232,433 in the previous year. The contributions of the Churcli of England to the Metropolitan Hospital Sunday Fund last year were £26.995, more than £2,000 less than in 1 925 - . . Eighteen new chnrclies wore built or rebuilt and consecrated during 1926, this number being by far the largest in any one year since the war. Tt is pointed out in the preface of the Year Book that “ the church is very serioufly behind in the matetr of church buildings. Huge centres of population are growing up in the vicinity of eccry large town and city. “Some areas left without clergy or ministers are in danger of becoming heathen. In such places England is as non-Christian as some areas overseas, and it may presently be impossible here call England a Christian nation in the sense that was understood by our forefathers, for masses of people will be outside the ministrations of organised religion.”