KEY POINTS:
Christianity in New Zealand has continued its historic decline in the latest Census figures, reflecting what one academic calls the "huge defection" of white people from the main denominations.
Last year's Census recorded just over two million Christians. That was 55.6 per cent of those answering the religious affiliation question, down from 60.6 per cent in 2001.
But within that overall decline, there were significant variations, some churches gaining (notably the Catholics and the fundamentalists) and others losing.
Of the five largest Christian denominations, the Presbyterian-Congregational-Reformed grouping shrank most, by 7 per cent.
New Zealand's largest church, Anglican, was down 5.1 per cent to 554,925, while the number two, the Catholic Church, grew by 4.7 per cent, according to the figures released yesterday by Statistics New Zealand.
But even the Catholics' growth was less than New Zealand's 7.8 per cent population rise in the five-year period.
The Moderator of the Presbyterian Church, the Rev Pamela Tankersley, said its declining numbers had led to some congregations having a large proportion of elderly people and few younger members.
Although the church's membership had declined overall, some congregations were growing, particularly among Asians and Pacific Islanders.
"We have significant numbers of Pacific Island churches; they are often very large churches. We have a growing number of Asian congregations, particularly Korean, and they are also large congregations."
Some churches had been closed, "but not significant numbers", Mrs Tankersley said. Some new ones had been opened and new congregations had been attached to existing churches.
She declined to comment on whether the church's decision to ban homosexuals and others in extramarital relationships from church leadership roles had affected membership.
But Victoria University religious studies lecturer Associate Professor Jim Veitch said this sort of discordance with the moral views of the majority of under-45s epitomised the loss of credibility, in many areas, which underpinned the decline of the main churches.
"If she [Mrs Tankersley] is identifying Koreans and Pacific Islanders, then they are masking the huge defection of white Europeans."
This ethnic change was occurring in all the main churches.
Professor Veitch said the Catholic growth would be from immigration from countries where Catholicism flourished, such as the Philippines.
He predicted current Christian trends would continue: an overall decline, but increases in the pentecostal and fundamentalist groups.
These groups collectively stand at around 92,000 in the Census, but still account for fewer people than the 121,806 Methodists, the smallest of the large denominations.
Believe it or not
55.6 per cent said they were affiliated with a Christian religion, down from 60.6 per cent in 2001.
34.7 per cent said they had no religion, up from 29.6 per cent in 2001.
Top five religions
554,925 Anglicans, down 5.1 per cent.
508,437 Catholics, up 4.7 per cent.
400,839 Presbyterian-Congregational-Reformed, down 7 per cent.
186,234 Christians (with no denomination given), down 3.1 per cent.
121,806 Methodists, up 1 per cent.
Small, but growing
37.8 pc increase for Orthodox.
25.6 pc increase for Evangelical, born again and fundamentalist.
17.8pc increase for Pentecostal.
