Church in decline? Photo: Nikko Tan
Some might draw that conclusion looking at data from the 2023 census.
Murray Smith
Reporting the results, one media headline said, “More than half the population has no religion”. It went on saying that the proportion of people with ‘no religion’ has increased from 48.2 per cent in 2018 to 51.6 per cent in 2023. So that’s 2,576,049 people who claim no adherence to religious faith.
The number of people who identified as Christian (NZ’s largest ‘faith’ grouping), supposedly dropped from 36.5 per cent in 2018 to 32.3 per cent in 2023.
During the Covid period, government implemented lockdowns, then mandatory vaccine passes for attending church services – alternatively limiting attendances to 50 people. It created considerable attrition. A roll-on effect remains evident. Former church attendees found smaller, informal gatherings to their liking, never making their way back to corporate denominational worship centres. Of course that preference wouldn’t necessarily show up in a census as a retraction of faith, but it could account for people stating they’d left an organised expression of Christian faith.
The census ‘revelations’ surprised me. From where I sit, in many contexts I see churches letting their light shine and growing – though an imperfect work in progress, the true church in its broadest sense remains bigger and more dimensional than any census could ever accurately disclose. Many of us for example, aren’t aware of numerous hui throughout the motu where faithful Māori believers worship Ihu Karaiti (Jesus Christ). Not to mention the generation of spiritually hungry young people embracing authentic Christianity for truthful answers to the hopeless vacuous secular humanism that’s rife today.
I see a significant future for the church. I understand people claiming zero interest in religion. An important distinction sets true Christianity apart – Jesus did not come to inaugurate a religion. He is God’s provision to save humanity from its lost sinful state.
Lawrence of Arabia (T.E. Lawrence), the subject of movies, biographies and innumerable articles became famous for his exploits as British military liaison supporting the Arabs during World War One. His wartime memoir ‘Seven Pillars of Wisdom’ is still in print a century after its first publication.
Lawrence formed close friendships among many of the sheiks of Arabia and after the war brought some of them to London in appreciation of their support against the Turks. Their visit included an audience with the Queen as well as appearing before the Joint House of Commons and Parliament. Lawrence asked them if there was anything they’d like to take back to their desert homes.
They earnestly desired the golden bathroom taps from their fancy hotel rooms. Believing endless running water in the desert would be invaluable, they had no comprehension that behind the taps was vast plumbing infrastructure to supply water from its source. Looking to taps as if they were the source, is empty and useless.
Similarly religious activity of itself is useless. Only in being connected relationally to the source of life, Jesus Christ Himself, will we find purpose. For this reason I don’t believe there’ll ever be a ‘post-Christian era’ because Jesus transcends time and culture. He will always unequivocally remain, ‘the way, the truth and the life.’
Golden taps. Photo: Ron Lach
