Religious groups in New Zealand
Christianity has long dominated religion in New Zealand since the arrival of missionaries in the early 19th Century. Until as late as the 1970s the Anglicans, Presbyterians and Roman Catholic denominations were the most strongly established churches in the country. Before the arrival of the missionaries, the Maori people had their own spiritualism based upon connectedness through genealogy or whakapapa. During the colonisation of New Zealand, Maori were quick to adopt Christianity and to integrate it with their own beliefs, even creating their own Christian denominations in the forms of Ratana and Ringatu.
Since these times many other religions have come to play their part in New Zealand's multicultural mix through immigration and integration of cultural diversity. These are predominantly represented by the Hindu, Islam and Buddhist faiths and New Age spirituality, as well as a varied amount of Pentecostal faiths such as Elim and Assemblies of God.
Islam in New Zealand
The first major influx of Muslims to New Zealand occurred with Fiji-Indians arriving in the 1970s for work. Refugees from various war-torn countries, such as Somalia and Bosnia, have also contributed to this population, as have smaller influences from India, Turkey and Southeast Asia. The Muslim community is now represented in most large centres with mosques, and there are two Islamic schools (Al Madinah and Zayed College for Girls). There are approximately 25,000 practicing Muslims in New Zealand. The Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand www.fianz.co.nz is dedicated to promoting Islam in New Zealand and provides information and national networking for practicing Muslims.
Buddhism in New Zealand
Buddhist centres have popped up all over the country in recent years and it is a faith that is quietly accumulating numbers here. The 2006 Census showed that that there were 52,000 Buddhists in New Zealand, 15,000 of whom were Kiwi converts. The remaining 37,000 migrated mainly from Asia, to make Buddhism the third largest religious group in New Zealand. Auckland is home to the largest Buddhist temple in New Zealand and it is thriving, servicing thousands of devotees. To find the nearest Buddhist centre to you, go to www.buddhanet.net .
Hinduism in New Zealand
Hindus are also progressively expressing their cultural and religious roots with 40,000 practising Hindus in New Zealand in 2006. These are nearly all migrants from Asia who began by converting houses into temples in their communities and are slowly creating more permanent, dedicated places of worship. Hindu communities are found in most of the major centres. The Wellington Indian Association, which was established as long ago as 1925, has nationwide connections with Hindu temples www.wia.org.nz.
Christians in New Zealand
For contact with your local Christian denominational church consider surfing through the online Yellow Pages, which lists every possible variation from the Quakers to the Chinese Methodists.
Just over half of all New Zealanders consider themselves identified with a religion and one third claimed no religion at all. Interestingly, a staggering 53,000 people listed themselves as Jedi in the 2001 Census, making it the second biggest religious group in New Zealand after Christianity!