austraLasia #2668
Church in Japan notes falling numbers
TOKYO: 1 July 2010 - - Some information the general situation of the Church in Japan may help us understand the challenges, and also appreciate even better the Salesian presence there, especially as, with a hundred plus confreres in a relatively small population of Catholics, Salesians are active in a wide variety of ministries.
The Japanese bishops' conference notes that the number of registered Catholics in the country has fallen to under 450,000. This number shows a decrease of 0.5% over the past year, UCANews reported recently. The statistics collected by the bishops' conference show that 60% of these Catholics are women.
Regarding the clergy, 24 bishops, including both active and retired, were counted. This number includes one Salesian bishop. The priests working in the country numbered 1,481, with 887 of them originating from Japan. The seminaries counted 91 young men studying for the priesthood, with another 38 in the minor seminary. All but three of the 35 deacons serving in the country are Japanese.
The great majority of female religious, totaling 5,678, are Japanese (5,419). For the male religious, 150 of the 201 in total are Japanese. Over the past year, 6,914 people were baptized, 3,594 of them being age 8 and older.
The 798 parishes in Japan counted 111,647 Sunday Mass-goers, a number that has dropped 8% compared to 2004. Around 197,517 faithful were counted at Easter Mass, while 254,298 were at Christmas Mass.
One important aspect note mentioned in the Zenit report from which the above figures came is the real changing face of Catholicism in Japan represented by the migrant population. Immigrants now outnumber the national Catholic population. According to the Japanese Immigration Bureau more than 2 million foreign residents live in Japan, a country of 127 million people. More than half of these are Korean and Chinese. Of the rest Brazilians account for more than 300,000, followed by Filipinos at 200,000 and Peruvians with 60,000. The majority of these latter three groups, obviously, are Catholic, though not necessarily practising. The Salesian outreach to these often struggling immigrants is a particularly well-noted aspect of recent years.
_________________
AustraLasia is an email service for the Salesian Family of Asia Pacific. It also functions as an agency for ANS based in Rome. For queries please contact admin@bosconet.aust.com . Use Bosconet-wiki to be interactive. RSS feeds - just go to Bosconet, click on austraLasia 2009 in the sidebar. You will see the RSS orange icon in your browser address bar - add it from there. Or be interactive with the EAO blog Cetera Tolle. Avail yourself of the Salesian Digital Library at http://sdl.sdb.org
Church in Japan notes falling numbers
TOKYO: 1 July 2010 - - Some information the general situation of the Church in Japan may help us understand the challenges, and also appreciate even better the Salesian presence there, especially as, with a hundred plus confreres in a relatively small population of Catholics, Salesians are active in a wide variety of ministries.
The Japanese bishops' conference notes that the number of registered Catholics in the country has fallen to under 450,000. This number shows a decrease of 0.5% over the past year, UCANews reported recently. The statistics collected by the bishops' conference show that 60% of these Catholics are women.
Regarding the clergy, 24 bishops, including both active and retired, were counted. This number includes one Salesian bishop. The priests working in the country numbered 1,481, with 887 of them originating from Japan. The seminaries counted 91 young men studying for the priesthood, with another 38 in the minor seminary. All but three of the 35 deacons serving in the country are Japanese.
The great majority of female religious, totaling 5,678, are Japanese (5,419). For the male religious, 150 of the 201 in total are Japanese. Over the past year, 6,914 people were baptized, 3,594 of them being age 8 and older.
The 798 parishes in Japan counted 111,647 Sunday Mass-goers, a number that has dropped 8% compared to 2004. Around 197,517 faithful were counted at Easter Mass, while 254,298 were at Christmas Mass.
One important aspect note mentioned in the Zenit report from which the above figures came is the real changing face of Catholicism in Japan represented by the migrant population. Immigrants now outnumber the national Catholic population. According to the Japanese Immigration Bureau more than 2 million foreign residents live in Japan, a country of 127 million people. More than half of these are Korean and Chinese. Of the rest Brazilians account for more than 300,000, followed by Filipinos at 200,000 and Peruvians with 60,000. The majority of these latter three groups, obviously, are Catholic, though not necessarily practising. The Salesian outreach to these often struggling immigrants is a particularly well-noted aspect of recent years.
_________________
AustraLasia is an email service for the Salesian Family of Asia Pacific. It also functions as an agency for ANS based in Rome. For queries please contact admin@bosconet.aust.com . Use Bosconet-wiki to be interactive. RSS feeds - just go to Bosconet, click on austraLasia 2009 in the sidebar. You will see the RSS orange icon in your browser address bar - add it from there. Or be interactive with the EAO blog Cetera Tolle. Avail yourself of the Salesian Digital Library at http://sdl.sdb.org
