I had seen where last year something like 80,000 people were baptised an 100,000 or so came into full communion. (I'm much fuzzier on the 2nd number) The fact that the 2nd number was larger than the first had me thinking that 80,000 were baptized and another 20,000 weren't baptized but came into full commmunion.
Now I see these diocesan stats: In some places the number for coming into full communion is smaller than the number baptized. Since every adult who is baptized enters full communion at once, I'm pretty sure that that what they mean is such-and-such a number were baptized AND came into full communion, and such-and-such more came into full communion without needing to be baptized. And now that I think of it, of course the second number should still be larger if that is so, since the Catholic church accepts as valid the baptisms of Protestants, Orthodox, Anglican and most non-denominationals (if not just about all of them). The largest group whose baptism is not accepted as valid is the Mormons, because they don't baptize in the Father, Son AND Holy Spirit.
That means we are getting some pretty impressive numbers!
With 940,000 infant baptisms, that's about 1.1 million new Catholics in a year.
Or to put it another way: If the newly baptized Catholics were counted as a separate denomination, they'd be one of the top 25 denominations in the nation, just on their own. If we counted just those baptized in three years at that pace, they'd be the 8th largest denomination, and may outnumber nondenominationalists as a whole.
Lastly, consider this:
There is one adult baptism for about every six infant baptisms. That means that if one out of six Catholics leave the Church, we'd still be gaining net converts.
Nice article. The number of those being Baptized this Holy Saturday in Hong Kong is very impressive. God bless Cardinal Zen.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/1609104/posts
BTTT and thanks!
Please notify me via FReepmail if you would like to be added to or taken off the Catholic Discussion Ping List.
Thousands to Join Catholic Church Holy Saturday
+1 RabidBartender
A little note on Bishop Sam Jacobs:
He was the Catholic big-wig at an ecumenical Holy Spirit convention I attended in St. Louis, that must've drawn about 20,000 people. (Very straight-up, by the way: the Catholics withdrew to their own separate mass each morning, where the doctrine of the Divine Presence in the Eucharist was strongly pressed each session.)
Come Sunday morning's mass, with abou 10,000 Catholics in attendance, they started to do the collection. The Bishop said, "Never mind that... these poor people have been collected from so many times this week, that their ankles must be hurting!" (... from being held upside down and being shaken down, if you don't get it.)
Needless to say the Catholics weren't invited back the next year...
I believe we're receiving 6 into the Church on Holy Saturday in our Parish.
Ah, wonderful memories of coming home.
Faith-sharing bump.
It was most joyous to read that several thousand new Catholics would join the Church on Easter vigil .....in Hong Kong.
One of their Church groups, recently asked me to send then another several hundred "Pillar of Fire..Pillar of Truth" pamphlets, that they use in evangelising at St Joseph Church, located in Central, Hong Kong.