Roman Catholics, Mormons, Pentecostals and a historically black denomination are the fastest-growing churches in the United States, according to the 2003 “Yearbook of American and Canadian Churches.”
The annual report of church membership figures, compiled by the National Council of Churches, found more than 159 million adherents in some 216 different denominations in 2001, the latest year for which figures are available.
The fastest-growing church, according to self-reported numbers, is the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, with 11.67 percent growth. Catholics followed with 2.49 percent growth, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons) at 1.95 percent, and the Assemblies of God, a Pentecostal denomination, at 1.92 percent.
The list of 10 largest U.S. churches gained a new member, the National Baptist Convention USA. The historically black denomination has not been included in the Yearbook since 1998 because of unreliable figures. The new church estimate of 5 million members puts the church in the No. 7 spot. Three of the 10 largest churches- and six of the top 15- are historically black churches.
Climate for growth
Roman Catholics continue to top the membership charts, with 65 million Americans. Two of the 25 largest churches are Orthodox – the Greek Orthodox Church and the Orthodox Church in America- and the rest are Protestant or Mormon.
Eileen W. Lindner, the Yearbook’s editor, said the growth of the Mormons and Pentecostals reflects that “in the American context, new faith traditions and variations on inherited traditions have found a receptive climate for growth.”
Total church giving for 2001 was reported at $31 billion for the 63 denominations that submit figures to the “Yearbook.” Several large churches, including the Mormons, do not share financial figures. That amount is up by $1.61 billion from 2000. Lindner cautioned, however, that between 1.5 million and 2 million Americans who belong to megachurches are not counted it the “Yearbook.”
Lindner said the independent Protestant churches that have more than 2,000 members are harder to count because they typically do not report figures to a national denomination.
Lindner said megachurches remain “largely invisible” in American church life and are “woefully understudied” by scholars.
(RNS)
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