A little over two weeks ago one of the leading headlines in New Zealand which was getting a lot of press was “‘No Religion’ officially overtakes Christianity in New Zealand Census.” Following this a variety of articles and news feeds discussing the merits and reliability of the census and the numbers contained within it circulated.
Even some church leaders brought into question the validity of the census when the numbers relating to their actual church attendance compared to those stated in the census varied quite significantly. But rather than focus on the negatives maybe we as the church should be focusing on the opportunities that this process creates and start looking at ways in which we can reconnect with the people of our communities. Sharing the Life, Hope and Love of the Gospel Message in ways that impact the hearts and minds of those that we come across.
The thing is, at the end of the day the numbers matter and it should come as no surprise to us that these numbers are a tad concerning; as the number of people affiliated with Christianity has been declining more or less since Census records started and the trend has been discussed in detail for a number of years as humanism and our secular fascination increases.
In June 2018 there was an article in the New Zealand Herald ‘Losing faith: Why fewer New Zealanders are attending church‘ and it stated that “New Zealand is becoming less religious, exhibiting a sharp fall in the number of people who identify as Christian. A new report, Faith and Belief in New Zealand, says a third of New Zealanders identify with Christianity, down from 43 per cent in the 2013 Census and 49 per cent in the 2006 Census.”
A report commissioned by the Wilberforce Foundation says that “New Zealand’s ‘youth as a nation and resulting lack of religious tradition’ could be one reason for the rise of secularism. ‘Perhaps the increasing busyness of modern-day life or the emphasis on individualism and self-created identity have also had an impact.’ Older New Zealanders are more likely to identify with Christianity, and younger generations are more likely to not identify with any religion or spiritual belief.”
To find out more information about the report and faith and belief in New Zealand click here or copy and paste the following address https://faithandbeliefstudynz.org/
So when we take into account the fact that “an independent inquiry carried out in August 2019 regarding the 2018 census attracted only an 83% response rate, even lower than the 90% earlier reported. This drop, which amounted to the lowest census response rate for fifty years, has been blamed on a ‘digital-first’ policy, which excluded rural and older demographics.”
Again it should come as no surprise that the numbers don’t look great! Some say that religion (and by association the church) is dead or at least that it is dying. But is this an opportunity for the church to reconnect with our community, to re-engage with society within New Zealand.
As far as I’m concerned it’s a wonderful opportunity, but the church has re-engage in very different ways and communicate to our communities in a way that they can comprehend the importance of God in our Society.
Afterall we are told in Psalm 71:18 we need to demonstrate / share The Word & works of God with the next generation.
“God, now that I’m old and gray, don’t walk away. Give me grace to demonstrate to the next generation all your mighty miracles and your excitement, to show them your magnificent power!” Psalms 71:18 TPT
Another interesting insight comes from an article / post entitled ‘Europe must open up to new ideas about the secular state’ on The Conversation, the authors start by saying that “Religion is one of the toughest challenges facing modern secular societies in their search for identity, equality and cohesion. It’s increasingly a stronger source of identity than nationality or ethnicity for minorities and migrants while majorities appear to grow more and more religiously indifferent.”
Using India as an example of a country that has a commitment to secularism and allowing diversity in religion the authors go on to say that “in a society where religion was, and remains, an important anchor of personal identity, deeply valued by individuals and closely tied to notions of self-worth and dignity, the state had to make space for plurality of religious observances and cultural practices.”
So it is not that religion (the church) or in my case The Salvistion Army is dead, in fact it is very much the opposite – we as the church need to start the conversation, or at least be involved in the ongoing conversation that has been going on for a long time and re-engage with people in our communities, creating an inclusivity within the church that only God can truly bless as we welcome people of every creed and race, every background, ethnicity and gender. Because God calls us to be nondiscriminate.
So what does this look like in your setting – As this becomes the challenge for all of us as we open our doors to the whosoever! The Wilberforce report and the numbers in the 2018 Census represents a challenge to the Church: “If you’re not happy about numbers, what are you going to do about it?” And to quote Ulrich Zwingli, the Swiss reformer; “For God’s sake, do something brave!“
The life and times of Perry... 