Religion in Northern Ireland

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Religion in Northern Ireland (2011)1

  Catholicism (40.8%)
  Presbyterianism (19.1%)
  Anglicanism (13.7%)
  Non-religious (10.1%)
  Not stated (6.8%)
  Methodism (3.0%)
  Other Christian (5.8%)
  Other religions (0.8%)

Christianity is the largest religion in Northern Ireland. According to a 2007 Tearfund survey, Northern Ireland is the most religious part of the UK, with 45% regularly attending church.2

In recent years the Roman Catholic Church has seen a growth in adherents while the other Christian groups have seen a decrease in adherents.

There are also small Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist and Jewish communities. There is a mosque, synagogue, gurdwara and two Hindu temples in Belfast. There is another gurdwara in Derry. Jews in Northern Ireland are small in number, about 500, down from 1,310 in 1967.

Contents

Statistics

The 2001 and 2011 Census figures for Religion (not Religion or Religion Brought Up In) are set out below.

Religion 20013 201114
Number % Number %
Roman Catholic 678,462 40.2 738,033 40.8
Presbyterian Church in Ireland 348,742 20.7 345,101 19.1
Church of Ireland 257,788 15.3 248,821 13.7
Methodist Church in Ireland 59,173 3.5 54,253 3.0
Other Christian 102,221 6.1 104,380 5.8
(Total non-Roman Catholic Christian) 767,924 45.6 752,555 41.6
(Total Christian) 1,446,386 85.8 1,490,588 82.3
Other religion 5,028 0.3 14,859 0.8
No religion 183,164 10.1
Religion not stated 122,252 6.8
(No religion and Religion not stated) 233,853 13.9 305,416 16.9
Total population 1,685,267 100.0 1,810,863 100.0

Christianity

Main article: Christianity in Ireland

Christianity is the main religion in Northern Ireland. The 2011 UK census showed 40.8% Roman Catholic, 19.1% Presbyterian Church, with the Church of Ireland having 13.7% and the Methodist Church 3.0%. Members of other Christian churches comprised 5.8%, 16.9% stated they have no religion or did not state a religion, and members of non-Christian religions were 0.8%.14

The Roman Catholic Church in Ireland is the largest single church though there is a greater number of Protestants and Anglicans overall. The Church is organised into four provinces though these are not coterminous with the modern political division of Ireland. The seat of the Archbishop of Armagh, the Primacy of Ireland, is St. Patrick's Cathedral, Armagh.

The Presbyterian Church in Ireland, closely linked to the Church of Scotland in terms of theology and history, is the second largest church and largest Protestant denomination. It is followed by the Church of Ireland (Anglican) which was the state church of Ireland until it was disestablished by the Irish Church Act 1869. In 2002, the much smaller Methodist Church in Ireland signed a covenant for greater cooperation and potential ultimate unity with the Church of Ireland.5

Smaller, but growing, Protestant denominations like the Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster, Reformed Presbyterian Church of Ireland amongst Presbyterians and the Open Brethren are located in many places. The Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland and the Assemblies of God Ireland are also organised on an all-Ireland basis, though in the case of the AOG this was the result of a recent reorganisation.6

Minor religions

Islam

Main article: Islam in Northern Ireland

While there were a small number of Muslims already living in what became Northern Ireland in 1921, the bulk of Muslims in Northern Ireland today come from families who immigrated during the late 20th century. At the time of the 2001 Census there were 1,943 living in Northern Ireland,7 though the Belfast Islamic Centre claims that as of January 2009, this number had increased to over 4,000.8 The Muslims in Northern Ireland come from over 40 countries of origin, from Western Europe all the way through to the Far East.9 This situation is reflected in comparably complex institutional arrangements.10

Judaism

Main article: History of the Jews in Northern Ireland

Bahá'í Faith

Main article: Bahá'í Faith in Northern Ireland

The Bahá'í Faith in Northern Ireland begins after a century of contact between Irishmen and the Bahá'í Faith beyond the island and on the island.111213 The members of the religion elected its first Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assembly in 1949 in Belfast.14 The Bahá'ís held an international conference in Dublin in 1982 which was described as “…one of the very few occasions when a world event for a faith community has been held in Ireland”.15 By 1993 there were a dozen assemblies in Northern Ireland.16 By 2005 Bahá'í sources claim some 300 Bahá'ís across Northern Ireland.17

Neo-paganism

Main article: Neo-paganism in Ireland

Hinduism

Main article: Hinduism in Northern Ireland

Hinduism is a relatively minor religion in Northern Ireland with only around 200 Hindu families in the region.18 There are, however, 3 Mandirs in Belfast.

Latter-day Saints

Main article: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Ireland

With membership more than doubling in the last 16 years, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Ireland has about 5,334 members in Northern Ireland. This is a higher number than the Republic of Ireland and twenty-one other European states, who have a larger population than Northern Ireland.

History

The Troubles

Main article: The Troubles

The Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into Great Britain and the Republic of Ireland. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from approximately 1968 to the signing of the Belfast Agreement in 1998. Violence nonetheless continued beyond this period and still manifests on a small-scale basis.19

The principal issues at stake in the Troubles were the constitutional status of Northern Ireland and the relationship between the mainly-Protestant Unionist and mainly-Catholic Nationalist communities in Northern Ireland. The Troubles had both political and military (or paramilitary) dimensions. Its participants included politicians and political activists on both sides, republican and loyalist paramilitary organisations, the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC), the British Army and the security forces of the Republic of Ireland.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "Census 2001: Religion: KS211NI (administrative geographies)". nisra.gov.uk. Retrieved 11 December 2012. 
  2. ^ "Tearfund Survey". 
  3. ^ "Census 2001: Religion (administrative geographies)". nisra.gov.uk. Retrieved 11 December 2012. 
  4. ^ a b "Census 2011: Key Statistics for Northern Ireland". nisra.gov.uk. Retrieved 11 December 2012. 
  5. ^ "Church of Ireland/Methodist Church Covenant". 
  6. ^ Launch of the Assemblies of God Ireland eyeoneurope.org, accessed 31 Dec 2009
  7. ^ Northern Ireland Census 2001 Key Statistics
  8. ^ Belfast Islamic Centre
  9. ^ Belfast Islamic Centre
  10. ^ Scharbrodt, Oliver, "Islam in Ireland: organising a migrant religion". 318 - 336 in Olivia Cosgrove et al. (eds), Ireland's new religious movements. Cambridge Scholars, 2011; ISBN 978-1-4438-2588-7
  11. ^ "Baha'is mark killing of founder". belfasttelegraph.co.uk. 12 July 2005. Retrieved 2010-06-02. 
  12. ^ Palin, Iain S. "The First Irish Bahá'ís". U.K. Bahá'í Heritage Site. Retrieved 2010-05-31. dead link
  13. ^ Armstrong-Ingram, R. Jackson (July 1998). "Early Irish Baha'is: Issues of Religious, Cultural, and National Identity". Research Notes in Shaykhi, Babi and Baha'i Studies 02 (04). Retrieved 2010-05-31. 
  14. ^ "History and Inspiration". CommuNIqué-Newsletter of the Bahá'í Community in Northern Ireland (Bahá'í Council for Northern Ireland) (106). 1 June 2005. Retrieved 2010-05-31. 
  15. ^ "Book Review; The Faiths of Ireland by Stephen Skuce". CommuNIqué - Newsletter of the Bahá'í Community in Northern Ireland (Bahá'í Council for Northern Ireland) (123). 1 December 2006. Retrieved 2010-05-31. 
  16. ^ Momen, Moojan. "Baha'i History of the United Kingdom". Articles for the Baha'i Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2010-05-31. 
  17. ^ "Religious Education Core Syllabus". Statements on Matters of Public Interest / Concern. Bahá'í Council for Northern Ireland. 25 November 2003. Retrieved 2010-06-03. dead link
  18. ^ Programme 1 - Indian Community bbc.c.uk, accessed 10 January 2009
  19. ^ "Draft List of Deaths Related to the Conflict. 2002-". Retrieved 2008-07-31. 

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