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There are probably more Christians per capita in Atlantic Canada, but according to Stats Can, Roman Catholics aren't a majority in any major Canadian city. They're a minority per capita in every province (even Quebec, 45 % are RC).
I tried to find the source of the map on the Web but ultimately ended up going to a dead link. It's an interesting map, but it makes me ask, what statistics is it based upon? How old are they?
The large, sparsely populated areas don't reveal much. I think I'd prefer to see detailed demographic maps of the largest cities in Canada. Neighbourhood by neighbourhood would be pretty interesting.
I'm surprised that Calgary is 40% RC. Saint John NB is about the same percentage.
Cities outside Quebec that have above 50% RC: St. John's NF; Ottawa is close, at 48%; Sault Ste. Marie; Antigonish; Timmins; Pembroke, just shy of 50%; Alexandria-Cornwall; Hearst; Mackenzie-Fort Smith; Saint Paul AB is about 40%.
Are Quebecois really even that Catholic, though? As in, practicing Catholics, not just nominal Catholics? Christianity is being ditched pretty much everywhere in the West.
The Catholic church, however, considers anyone ever baptized Catholic to be Catholic unless they are formally excommunicated. Their actual numbers are much lower. They still count me as a Catholic, but I want nothing whatsoever to do with that religion.
Are Quebecois really even that Catholic, though? As in, practicing Catholics, not just nominal Catholics? Christianity is being ditched pretty much everywhere in the West.
The Catholic church, however, considers anyone ever baptized Catholic to be Catholic unless they are formally excommunicated. Their actual numbers are much lower. They still count me as a Catholic, but I want nothing whatsoever to do with that religion.
That's a really good question. The website I linked to, doesn't say exactly where the stats came from. An outside organization that asks people to self-identify their religion (or lack of one) would give accurate statistics. I would think that for Roman Catholic parishes themselves, though, coming up with an estimate of active members would be fairly simple. How many Communion wafers do they use in a given Sunday? That would give a fairly accurate estimate of how many active parishioners they have.
They can also make estimates based upon how many registered members they have--typically, a parishioner is registered to get a tax receipt for their donations (through the weekly mass collection, or other ways), so that can also be a fairly accurate way of estimating the number of active parishioners. People can also register with their parish so that their kids can attend Catholic school, or be baptized, confirmed, etc. Some parishes require a couple to register if they get married at the church.
The Catholic church, however, considers anyone ever baptized Catholic to be Catholic unless they are formally excommunicated.
The Catholic Church considers anybody who's been baptized as Catholic to be Catholic. Excommunication does not make somebody not a Catholic anymore, it's just the Church stating that their beliefs or practices are in error and that they need to correct them before receiving communion again.
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