According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s figures, Rhode Island has grown in population from 1,048,319 in 2000 to 1,053,209 in 2009. This represents a population growth of approximately 0.47%.
According to Episcopal Church statistics, the Diocese of Rhode Island went from Average Sunday Attendance (or ASA) of 8,174 in 1998 to 6,078 in 2008. This represents an ASA decline of about 26% over this ten year period.
In order to generate a pictorial chart of some Rhode Island diocesan statistics, please go [url=http://www.episcopalchurch.org/growth_60791_ENG_HTM.htm?menupage=50929]here[/url] and enter “Rhode Island” in the second line down under “Diocese” and then click on “View Diocese Chart” under the third line to the left.
From RI’s website it is possible to identify ten parishes that have disappeared since 1998, a 14% decline. It appears that at least one parish was simply released from the diocese. ASA per parish has declined from 118 to 110 (about 7%). A number of parishes are doing well, as was the cathedral until that VGR person came along.
I believe that Geralyn Wolf is the bishop there and she has been relatively accommodating to things such as alternate episcopal oversight of parishes that request it.
Yes, Adam, +Geralyn Wolf is an honorable bishop, certainly the most conservative woman in the HoB. I’m glad if she’s been willing to grant DEPO.
But her diocese has still lost 26% of its ASA in the last decade, while the state population has remained steady. I’m still waiting for Statmann to show up here and give us a little more data, especially about the number of churches below the crucial financial threshold of $150K.
New England used to be one of the stongholds of TEC, but it sure isn’t anymore. And unfortunately, an ebbing tide lowers all boats, whether the captains (diocesan bishops) are good or bad. Even where good bishops like Wolf are sympathetic to conservatives, many people are fleeing the sinking wreck that is TEC. And understandably so.
David Handy+
She might be the “most conservative woman in the HoB” but she ain’t conservative. Here is some data on Bp Wolf that I garnered from Louie Crew’s website:
+ Voted to NOT endorse the Kuala Lumpur Statement
– Voted to insist on women’s ministries in every diocese.
– Signed A Pastoral Statement to Lesbian and Gay Anglicans from Some Member Bishops of the Lambeth Conference
– Voted for Blessing of Same-Gender Unions to be added to Book of Occasional Services (8th resolve to D039)
– Voted to recognize and affirm fidelity in relationships outside (D039)
– Voted to consent to the consecration of Gene Robinson as Bishop of New Hampshire
She also did not sign the Anaheim statement. Other than the Kuala Lumpur vote, she has a perfect revisionist record.
Hi David: Waited too long on New Jersey and had to slip the stats into my comment on the PB’s talk at New Jersey convention. As for Rhode island: had a fairly tough time during 2002 through 2008 with Members down 15.4 percent, ASA down 19.4 percent, and Plate & Pledge (inflation adjusted) down 11.3 percent. Using these data I ranked the diocese at 69 out of 95 considered. For aging, did rather well in 2008 with 410 Infant Baptsms and 410 Burials. (Should receive the TEC zero growth award.) Diocese was well positioned in 2008 as to church size with only 16 of its 55 churches with ASA of 70 or less and none with ASA of 20 or less. As for money, the news is not as good with 34 of its 55 churches with Plate & Pledge below $150K in 2008. This means that every two “rich” churches had three “poor” churches to help. One more fact is that ACNA has no churches in Rhode Island. Statmann
Thanks Statmann!
[Comment deleted by Elf – comments encouraging, suggesting or instructing readers to leave one church or join another, however expressed are not permitted on T19]
For what it’s worth, I asked Bp Wolf at a diocesan meeting after GenCon09 — directly and publicly — why she hadn’t signed on to the Anaheim Statement. She said: “I don’t sign statements like that. I vote on resolutions and then let the vote speak for itself.”
Whether or not that’s really true, that’s how she understands and how she is representing herself. But that the gentle, astute readership of this site is not quite clear about where Bp Wolf stands (she consented to VGR’s consecration but she’s a Windsor bishop too?), might suggest that perhaps she plays a double-game. Of course, for some that would be her appeal …
Decline in Rhode Island worship attendance between 1990 and 2000 for
Catholic – down 18%
Mainline – down 6.6%
Evangelical – down 5.5 %
Old numbers, but entirely consistent with the collapse in church attendance in New England.
Source: page 21 of
http://www.theamericanchurch.org/sample/State/RhodeIslandPowerpointSample.ppt
Meanwhile, the United Methodist Church is planning on planting 650 new churches across the nation. I wish we had something like this. I think we have only planted 10 churches in this last decade.
Check out the UMC church planting website:
http://www.path1.org