Hello Ian

I have not been on this site for such a long time. But it is with much happiness that I read this post of yours. Perhaps the decline will continue steadily until there is a lone preacher of false doctrines preaching to an empty hall.

cheers and God's blessings

Chips

Hi, Mole.

"Is he exaggerating?" Well, I believe he probably is :) There are several things to consider in reviewing this matter. First and foremost, PNG has a well ingrained culture of witchcraft and magic. Toss in the standard Revivalist nonsense about 'signs-and-wonders' and you're sure to gather a crowd. Converting them, and then keeping them? Well, those are entirely different matters!

Next, both the RCI and the RF make the same claim about having thousands of 'saints' in PNG. I wouldn't be in the least bit surprised to discover that individual adherents consider themselves to be members of both sects, especially given that the Revival Fellowship in PNG is known as 'Revival Centres of Papua New Guinea'.

Of some interest, according to the PNG National Statistics Office the largest Christian communion in the country is the Roman Catholic Church. The Catholics account for almost one third of the nation's total population; the Lutherans account for another fifth, and the SDA's a tenth. These are the largest, single organisations. Then there are the 'Pentes', which account for only another tenth of the total population, with the Assemblies of God denomination 'owning' almost 70% of 'em.

Consequently, when I hear/read wild pieces of Revivalist propaganda, such as the notable piece from 2012 wherein the Revival Fellowship claimed: "Today more than 90,000 people throughout Papua New Guinea are enjoying the benefits of paying attention to the salvation message of God and taking that step to repent, be baptised and be filled with the Holy Spirit, Acts 2:38." I tend to smile and reflect on the foibles of 'wishful-thinking'.

However, I suppose if Simon Longfield is happy enough to be claiming there are three times as many active converts in PNG as there are in Australia (whilst having only one third the population), then he should probably resign his appointment and install Sacky Gebia as Senior Pastor of the Revival Centres International! :)

Blessings,

Ian

Good evening, all.

The results of the 2016 Australian census are progressively being released. I hope to post a summary soon, listing the most up-to-date adherence figures for the Revival Centres and the Revival Fellowship.

God bless,

Ian

Hello, All.

I'll be updating the ABS information on the ongoing national demise of the Revival Centres shortly, but for now I thought I'd submit a localised teaser: in the 2016 census, only 322 people in the entire state of Victoria identified with the Revival Centres, which represents a drop of 144 followers from the 2011 figures (when they registered 466 members). This is a decline of almost 31% in five years!

To put this into perspective, according to the ABS the average size of a church congregation in Australia is a little over 100 members. The Revival Centres publicly lists 11 assemblies in Victoria; 322 divided by 11 doesn't make for much in the way of "tithes and offerings". Perhaps this is why Simon Longfield reported just the one paid staff position in the Melbourne Central assembly in his annual return to the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission this year?

Long story, short: if this trend of massive decline continues, there'll be no Revival Centres people "...meeting the Lord in the Air." Whether many would in any case ... is certainly open to challenge ;)

Blessings,

Ian

Good afternoon, All.

Membership within the Revival Centres continued to significantly decline in the five years between the 2011 and 2016 censuses. In 2011 2,226 Australians identified as members of this sect. By 2016, this had reduced to 1,491 adherents, which represents a decline of approximately 33% over five years.

The Revival Centres website lists 31 assemblies in Australia. A survey of ACNC data indicates the majority of these are numerically underwhelming; every assembly self-reported as being a 'small' charity, i.e. having a total annual revenue of less than $250,000 p.a. An approximation of the upper limit for such an assembly can be calculated by considering income from tithes based on the average Australian wage, and then halving the final figure. This would allow for somewhere between 40 and 50 people for an assembly enjoying the ACNC's maximum permissible annual revenue needed to retain the 'small' charity status. Another way of aggregating the data is to divide the total number of people self-identifying with the Revival Centres in the 2016 census, by the total number of publicly listed assemblies. The net result is an average of 48 adults per assembly. Given metropolitan groups would likely have slightly larger attendances than would regional and rural groups, I believe it reasonable to assume the majority of Australian assemblies would likely have somewhere between 15 and 25 adults in regular attendance.

In closing, based on self-reporting by individual members (i.e. ABS data) and pastors (i.e. ACNC data), the Revival Centres membership base in Australia is numerically so small as to be inconsequential. The impact of this branch of the Longfield heresy on local Australian communities is similarly inconsequential. Unfortunately, the same can't be said of the disproportionate impact the Revival Centers has had, and continues to have, in the lives of many past and current members!

The most recent (i.e. 2021) ABS census data won't become available for a few years yet. However, I'm confident we'll find then that the significant trend downwards continues. This heretical sect is dying, thanks be to God.

Blessings,

Ian

didaktikon@gmail.com

UPDATE:

I inadvertently misrepresented the 2016 RCI membership census numbers in my post, above. There I reported 1,491 adherents when the true figure was approximately half that number at 721 members. Incidentally, the RF fared little better, with a reported membership of just 768 members Australia-wide.

Spiritually impotent and numerically insignificant; a pox on both their houses!

Blessings,

Ian

Greetings, Gentlefolk.

The 2021 Census results have been published, and the findings are very interesting.

At the 2016 census a total of 721 people identified as members of the 'RCI' (I understand they call themselves the Revival Centres Church nowadays, but I don't want anyone inadvertently confusing them for the Roman Catholic Church, or 'RCC'). Surprisingly the most recent figure is 735, which represents a growth of 14 people (or 1.90%) across their 30-odd assemblies over the past five years.

Notably, the Revival Fellowship fared considerably better. In 2021 768 people identified as members of the 'RF', but that number has grown to 1,114 by 2021! This is a significant increase, being an additional 346 people* (or 45.05%) over the same period. Alarmingly, this heretical sect now constitutes approximately 0.00412% of the total Australian population. Putting this into perspective, there are as many adherents of Revival Fellowship teaching in Australia as there are followers of the Shinto belief system. But growth, never mind by a figure of almost half as much again, is alarming.

An eventual review of the 2026 census data should prove illuminating ...

Blessings,

Ian T.

* The RF no longer provides a public list of their assemblies on their official website.