Growth of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion): Fishing for Converts, but Are There Holes in the Net?

This paper contributes to the emerging debate and revaluation of the growth and membership of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion). Building on literature which has shown that the Church is unlikely to have nearly the membership of more than 18 million that it usually claims, this paper consid...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: McKinnon, Andrew (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Brill 2021
In: Journal of empirical theology
Year: 2021, Volume: 34, Issue: 2, Pages: 188-200
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Anglikanische Kirche der Provinz Nigeria / Church growth / Convert / Pentecostal churches
IxTheo Classification:KBN Sub-Saharan Africa
KDE Anglican Church
KDG Free church
RB Church office; congregation
Further subjects:B Pentecostalism
B Demography
B Anglican
B Church Growth
B Nigeria
B Religious Change
B Conversion
Online Access: Presumably Free Access
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Summary:This paper contributes to the emerging debate and revaluation of the growth and membership of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion). Building on literature which has shown that the Church is unlikely to have nearly the membership of more than 18 million that it usually claims, this paper considers evidence of conversion to and defection from Anglican identification in Nigeria. The analysis uses data from the Pew Research Centre Tolerance and Conflict survey (2010), the only high quality nationally representative survey that asks about religious identification in which the respondent was raised and their current identification. It examines converts to Anglican identities in Nigeria, as well as the adopted identities of those who leave Anglicanism behind them. The study finds evidence of a net loss, primarily to Pentecostalism. This lends added weight to the argument that the growth of the Church of Nigeria in the past few decades has been primarily through natural increase (surplus of births over deaths) and not from converts, which are a net loss to the church.
ISSN:1570-9256
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of empirical theology
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1163/15709256-12341421