- Denominational Profile
- Distribution
- Trends
- Data Sources
Denominational Profile
History
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Mennonite Church USA |
continuedMennonite Church USA |
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split into Church of God in Christ, Mennonite (1859) |
| The Mennonite Church grew out of the 16th century Swiss Brethren and was named for Menno Simons, one of their Dutch leaders. It is the largest and oldest of the Mennonite bodies in North America. Many other U.S. Mennonite groups derive from it. Organization within the church was slow since each congregation tended to be autonomous. |
Membership Data
| Year | Clergy | Churches | Members |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925 | 524 | 364 | 36,639 |
| 1929 | 516 | 357 | 41,410 |
| 1935 | 552 | 388 | 47,253 |
| 1937 | - | 388 | 48,272 |
| 1940 | - | 495 | 51,304 |
| 1942 | - | 445 | 51,879 |
| 1944 | - | 500 | 51,813 |
| 1946 | - | - | 52,596 |
| 1947 | - | 425 | 53,338 |
| 1950 | 1,329 | 438 | 56,480 |
| 1951 | - | 557 | 58,330 |
| 1952 | 1,246 | 477 | 61,811 |
| 1953 | - | 498 | 63,016 |
| 1954 | 1,257 | 508 | 63,998 |
| 1955 | 1,515 | 440 | 70,283 |
| 1956 | 1,487 | 468 | 70,513 |
| 1957 | 1,493 | 840 | 71,186 |
| 1958 | 1,550 | 858 | 71,365 |
| 1959 | 1,635 | 853 | 72,138 |
| 1960 | 1,644 | 869 | 73,125 |
| 1961 | 1,695 | 878 | 74,321 |
| 1962 | 1,801 | 974 | 75,949 |
| 1963 | - | 911 | 77,285 |
| 1964 | 1,690 | 934 | 78,681 |
| 1965 | 1,722 | 963 | 80,087 |
| 1966 | 1,754 | 947 | 81,248 |
| 1967 | 1,853 | 990 | 83,627 |
| 1968 | 1,769 | 1,023 | 85,682 |
| 1969 | 1,895 | 1,260 | 85,343 |
| 1970 | 2,335 | 1,181 | 88,522 |
| 1971 | 2,335 | 1,041 | 88,947 |
| 1972 | 2,207 | 1,036 | 89,505 |
| 1973 | 2,446 | 1,054 | 90,967 |
| 1974 | 2,370 | 1,063 | 92,390 |
| 1975 | 2,485 | 1,059 | 94,209 |
| 1976 | 2,441 | 1,059 | 96,092 |
| 1977 | 2,578 | 1,074 | 96,609 |
| 1978 | 2,393 | 1,081 | 97,142 |
| 1979 | 2,596 | 1,107 | 98,027 |
| 1980 | 2,509 | 1,140 | 99,511 |
| 1981 | 2,523 | 1,151 | 99,651 |
| 1982 | 2,400 | 1,179 | 101,501 |
| 1983 | 2,957 | 1,201 | 110,294 |
| 1985 | 2,399 | 989 | 91,167 |
| 1987 | 2,553 | 1,007 | 92,902 |
| 1988 | 2,469 | 1,023 | 92,682 |
| 1989 | 2,545 | 1,034 | 92,517 |
| 1990 | 2,545 | 1,034 | 92,517 |
| 1992 | 2,784 | 1,056 | 99,446 |
| 1993 | 2,662 | 1,058 | 95,634 |
| 1994 | 2,468 | 1,099 | 95,591 |
| 1995 | 2,464 | 986 | 90,812 |
| 1996 | 2,817 | 1,004 | 90,959 |
| 1998 | 2,688 | 926 | 92,161 |
| 1999 | 2,967 | 935 | 92,002 |
| 2000 | - | 1,063 | 120,381 |
| 2002 | 2,585 | 959 | 111,375 |
| 2005 | 2,561 | 913 | 109,315 |
| 2006 | 1,984 | 935 | 109,174 |
| 2008 | 1,879 | - | 106,172 |
| 2009 | 2,831 | 920 | 104,684 |
Data were taken from the National Council of Churches' Historic Archive CD and recent editions of the Yearbook of American and Canadian Churches. The National Council of Churches' data collection was discontinued after the 2012 Yearbook was published, and has been resumed by the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies (ASARB). The tables and graphs will be updated when the new collection is available. See the Yearbook of Churches. Denomination descriptions provided by Dr. J. Gordon Melton, Director, Institute for the Study of American Religion (ISAR). [More information on data sources]
