Another philosopher has expressed the same conviction by saying "man is incurably religious."
It cannot be uninteresting for anyone who has duly absorbed this idea of the general human proclivity to examine the manner in which it manifests itself among the million or so people who constitute the population of New Zealand.
This is rendered easily possible by the information supplied in the returns now to hand from the office of the Registrar-general concerning the religions of the people as ascertained by the census taken eleven months ago.
At that date the numerical strength of the more prominent religious denominations was shown to be as follows:
Episcopalian, 411,671; Presbyterian, 234,662; Roman Catholic, 140,523; Methodist, 94,827; Baptist, 20,042; and Congregational, 8756. The Salvation Army claimed 9707.
A good many people are accounted for in these figures, but notoriously in the census returns a great many persons are credited for one reason or another with belonging to this or that denomination who are frankly indifferent to religion in any shape or form.
We are not concerned, however, with that aspect of the matter here. A glance at the tabular statement which indicates the increases in the principal denominations during the preceding five years does not leave any startling mental impression.
There seems to be no phenomenal increase, that is to say, in any particular direction.
It may rather astonish some people to learn that the census inquiry as to the religious denomination of the individual has been answered in about one hundred and fifty different ways, the replies furnishing, that is to say, about that number of separate headings under the general head of religious denomination.
The statistician has evidently, however, been confronted with a rather appalling variety of professions of religious or irreligious proclivity, and has gone on safe lines in setting forth the record in its native eloquence.
As such it presents a page in which the theologian might find an excellent scope for his faculties in expounding that which is obscure to the layman, and one which affords material for reflection and even for amusement.
There are to be found in the handful of people who constitute our population, if census statistics go for aught, Dowieites, Zoroastrians, Deists and Theists, Huguenots, Covenanters, Dippers, Primitive Christians, Universalists, Unsectarians, Zwinglians, New Intentionists and Non-Intrusionists, Conditionalists and Cosmopolitans, a Groper or so, an adherent or two of Culdee and Shinto, suggestive of mysterious rites, a Sun-Worshipper, and a host of other bewildering denominationalists.
• All the workers' dwellings in the Windle settlement at Mornington, with the exception of one house, are at present occupied.
This, indeed, has been the case for some time past, and as the class of tenants is very good little money is lost by way of rent. So far no houses have been erected under the act of 1910.
The department, however, has land at Ravensbourne open for selection under this system, which provides for a 10 deposit on a house, which is built either from plans supplied by the department or from the applicant's own plans, provided they are approved.
Only workers whose income is less than 175 per annum are eligible to make applications.
The department has also sections at Windle.
- ODT, 19.3.1912.
