The Anglican and Roman Catholic presence among children in Canada’s northern territories

The Anglican and Roman Catholic Churches have always been prominent in Canada’s north, when compared with other faiths. Census data for 1991 indicate that Anglicans comprised 15% of the population in the Yukon (4,090 people, down from 4,665 in 1981), and 32% of the population of the Northwest Territiories (18,355 people, up from 15,295 in 1981). Catholics comprised 20% of the population in the Yukon (5,580 people, down 15 from 1981), and 38% of the population of the Northwest Territiories (21,917 people, up 3,587 from 1981). Data from the Statistic Canada’s National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth for 1994-95 indicates that 29% of the 21,500 children under 12 years of age are Anglican: 60% of the Inuit children are Anglican, 16% of the North American Indian children, and 8% of the non-native children. Roman Catholic children comprise 31% of the children in the north: 59% of the North American Indian Children, 24% of the non-native children, and 22% of the Inuit children. Native religions comprise under 1% of the population in both territories.

For the north as a whole the attendance picture for Anglican and Roman Catholic children looks promising. Some 56% attend services at least monthly, and 34% weekly. This attendance record is slightly higher than that for the Roman Catholic children. Attendance by children in the other, mainly Protestant faiths, is somewhat higher on a weekly basis (41%) but slightly lower for attendance at least monthly (53%).

Just over one in five Anglican children attend services less often than monthly, but at least once a year. This rate of infrequent attendance is similar in the Roman Catholic and other faiths. A few more children may be assumed to have some exposure to religion because they have at least one parent who attends church regularly, even though they, the children, do not attend at all. Adding the children with such indirect exposure to those who attend at least once a year, we find only 16% of Anglican children with no exposure to religion, compared with 19% of Roman Catholic children, and 24% of the children of other faiths.

Analysis was conducted to account for the attendance of Anglican and Roman Catholic children. Results show that attendance by Anglicans was significantly higher in a statistical sense if the child was a rural resident, and had a mother who had family and friends "who help her feel safe, secure, and happy", and who received help from religious or spiritual leaders. Attendance was lower than expected for Anglican children with mothers who smoke daily and received help from social services professionals in the preceding year. Catholic attendance was significantly higher in a statistical sense if the child was a rural resident, Inuit or Eskimo and had a mother who received help from religious or spiritual leaders. Attendance was lower than expected for Catholic children for the same two reasons as Anglican children.

Many of the Anglican and Roman Catholic children were from families who received counseling in the previous year from religious leaders, probably most often from their own priests. Some 35% of Anglican children were in such families, more than either the Roman Catholic children (26%), the children of other faiths (29%) or children with no religious affiliation (8%). Some 36% of children in the north were from families who received counseling from social service workers, about the same percentage of Anglican children. Roman Catholic children were more likely to live in such families (41%), and children of other faiths or no religious affiliation were slightly less likely (31% each). A sizeable percentage of children came from families receiving counseling from both religious leaders and social workers: 16% overall, 24% of Anglican children, 19% of Roman Catholic children and 11% of children of other faiths. The joint use of religious and secular services suggests that they are complements, like coffee and cream, not substitutes, like coffee and tea.

With such strong support for both the Anglican and Roman Catholic churches in the north, especially by the native populations, government and community leaders might be advised to exercise care so as not to damage or weaken this part of the cultural ecology, either directly or indirectly. The cultural ecology is at least as important to northern people, especially the Inuit families and children, as the physical ecology -- which seems to get much more public attention.

Frank Jones,

This article is based in part on a study completed for CCRI, and available on its web sitehttp://aix1.uottawa.ca/~fjones/