At the time of the disestablishment in 1889 the adherents of the Church
of Ireland numbered 693,347, which is a decrease of 112,258 since that
time. This corresponds very accurately with the general decrease of the
population of the island.
There are now 1,628 churches and chapels belonging to the Church of
Ireland, which is an average of one for every 350 people, and from my
short experience I should say that the members of the church were very
negligent in attending worship.
The Roman Catholic church is the largest, the most prosperous, the most
energetic, and has greater vitality than any other denomination, and is
involved in all the politics and secular affairs as well as the
ecclesiastical administration of the country, which is perfectly
natural, because 74 per cent of the entire population belong to that
denomination, and the number as reported--3,308,661--are divided among
1,084 parishes with 2,350 houses of worship, churches, and chapels.
The constant stream of emigration which flows from Ireland to the United
States, Canada, Australia, and other more progressive and prosperous
countries comes chiefly from the Roman Catholic church, which lost
238,646 members, or 6.7 per cent of its numbers, between the last two
official censuses of the country. The Church of Ireland lost 3.2 per
cent from a total of 13 per cent, the Presbyterians 0.4, while the
Methodists increased 11.7 per cent, the Jews increased 119 per cent, and
other religious persuasions 9.1 per cent.
But it is strange to say that the numbers of priests and monks and nuns
are increasing every year, while the number of parishioners is falling
off. In 1851, when the island had twice its present population, there
were 2,291 priests in Ireland; in 1901 there were 3,157, of whom 4 were
archbishops, 27 bishops, 392 monks, and the remainder parish priests,
including chaplains and professors in educational institutions. The
total of priests increased 307 during the last ten years. There are many
monasteries, nunneries, and other monastic and educational houses in
Ireland--93 for men and 242 for women.
The Presbyterians are third in numerical strength, wealth, and
influence, and are found mostly in the northern part of the country. The
membership represents the manufacturing, mercantile, and commercial
classes, while the Church of Ireland represents the landowners, the
government officials, the aristocracy, nobility, and the gentry. The
Presbyterians have a higher average of wealth than any other
denomination. Their contributions to benevolent purposes in 1907 were
$1,040,000, which is very large for a population of 443,494 and 106,000
communicants. There were 96,000 children on the roll of the Presbyterian
Sunday schools in 567 churches, which are distributed among 36
presbyteries and 5 synods. The minutes of the recent general assembly
show 650 clergymen of that faith.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account