Two-thirds of these members are Irish, with the other third stemming from our immigrant population.

Today, there are 400 Evangelical churches in Ireland, in comparison with just 150 in 1980. Despite this increase, Evangelicals make up less than 1% of the population.

'Evangel' is the Greek word for gospel/ the good news, so Evangelical Christianity is simply Christianity based on the gospel.

The religion vows to focus on what Christians have in common, rather than different denominations and secular beliefs. They also stress the idea of a life with God, and encourage engagement with society.

Islam Membership: 20,000-25,000 Founded in Ireland: in 1950s Famous members: Muhammad Ali, Osama bin Laden, Tupac Shakur Though census figures suggest there are 19,147 Muslims in Ireland, Yahya alHussein, a spokesman for the Islamic Foundation of Ireland, says the number is more likely 25,000. The more modest census figure still represents a 394% increase on the figure for 1991, when just 3,875 Muslims were thought to be living here.

Muslims do believe in Jesus Christ, but they think he was one of about 124,000 prophets, rather than the son of God, and that he will return to earth as a Muslim.

They believe Mohammed was the last and greatest of all prophets.

Allah is God, and salvation can be achieved by praying to him five times daily, fasting throughout Ramadan, and going on pilgrimage to Mecca.

Muslims believe Allah wanted humans to suffer so as to erase their sins. They do believe there is a heaven and a hell.

Greek, Russian and Coptic Orthodox Membership: 10,437 Founded in Ireland: not known.

Internationally, 33AD Famous members: Tom Hanks, Josef Stalin and Vladimir Lenin (the latter two became atheists) According to the census, there was an increase of 2,815% in the membership of the Orthodox church in Ireland between 1991 (when there were only 358 known members) and 2002, making it the fastestgrowing religion in Ireland.

The Eastern Orthodox church is a union of independent churches, and is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, after Roman Catholicism. Indeed, the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches were one and the same until the Roman Catholic claim of papal infallibility, which caused a split in 1054AD.

The word Orthodox literally means 'right teaching' and the church vows to protect the truth about Christianity from anyone making false claims.

The Orthodox church also rejects Roman Catholic teachings about the immaculate conception, holy communion and purgatory.

Jehovah's Witnesses Membership: 5,140 as of last month Founded in Ireland: 1957 Famous members: Venus and Serena Williams; Naomi Campbell The history of Jehovah's Witnesses in Ireland dates back to 1891 when a bible lecture was given in Cobh.

For years, the work in Ireland was supervised from the UK, until in 1957 the first branch office was opened in Dublin. Today there are 115 congregations around the country, comprising over 5,100 members. Almost 10,000 people attended the Witnesses' last annual commemoration of Christ's death.

Jehovah's Witnesses believe in Almighty God, Jehovah, who created the heavens and earth. Their beliefs are based strictly on the teachings of the bible and to that end certain things are forbidden, such as service in the armed forces and blood transfusions. This is because one must only show allegiance to the Kingdom of God, and because God said the soul is present in the blood.

www. watchtower. org Buddhism Membership: 3,894 in last census Founded in Ireland: 1977 Famous members: Richard Gere, Jennifer Lopez, Joanna Lumley Buddhism began with the teachings of the Buddha . . .

the 'Awakened One' . . . in northern India some two and a half millennia ago. It is a religious tradition rooted in principles of nonviolence, loving kindness and wisdom. Meditation is an important means of stabilising the mind and developing the strength to deal with everyday existence.

While it is believed there were probably many individual Buddhists in Ireland over the years, Buddhism as an organised religion only came to Ireland in 1977, with the opening of its centre in Dublin.

It is estimated that there are now around 4,000 members, the vast majority of whom are Irish. "It is only now and again that we encounter people from Asian countries, " said John O'Neill of the Dublin Buddhist Centre, who believes that Irish people are attracted to the religion because of its lack of dogma and emphasis on meditation.

www. buddhism. ie Hinduism Membership: 3,099 Founded in Ireland: not known.

Internationally, around 2,500 BC Famous members: JD Salinger, Ben Kingsley Despite their substantial Irish membership, there are no Hindu temples in the Republic, meaning Hindus must travel to Co Fermanagh to find their nearest place of worship. However, there are two Hindu restaurants in Dublin which serve 'sanctified food', and offer a vegetarian menu.

Hindus are encouraged to be vegetarians due to the belief that all animals have 'atman' (or soul) and thus should not be killed. In addition, Hindus believe killing leads to bad karmic consequences.

Hinduism is one of the most diverse faiths in the world, making it difficult to classify as a religion.

However, all Hindus share some common beliefs: they all have one supreme God, called Braham. They also have countless other gods and goddesses, all of whom have different powers.

Hindus believe that the soul is eternal, and people are reborn many times until their soul receives enlightenment.

Latter Day Saints (Mormons) Membership: 833-2,800 (diverse opinions) Founded in Ireland: 1850 Famous members: Butch Cassidy and Jack Anderson The 2002 census suggests that there are only 833 Latter Day Saints in the Republic of Ireland, but according to Ronnie Boyd, public affairs director for the Mormons, their last count revealed a much healthier 2,800-strong following.

Boyd said he could not comment on the discrepancy in the figures but said that the Mormons' status as one of the fastest-growing religions in the world was quite possibly due to the emphasis they place on the family. Mormons believe that God lives in heaven with his wife, the Heavenly Mother, their only son, Christ, and 'exalted Mormons'. They follow a health code, known as the Word of Wisdom. This counsels against the use of tea, coffee, alcohol, tobacco and harmful drugs, and advocates healthy living.

Baha'i Membership: 490 at last census Founded in Ireland: 1948 Famous members: Carole Lombard, O Z Whitehead, John Ford Coley The first known Irish connection with the Baha'i faith was in 1848, but the first official organisation was not founded until 100 years later.

The most important principle for a Baha'i is the oneness of humanity. Baha'is believe that the creation of harmony and unity between all the people of the world is the fundamental purpose of religion. Internationally, Baha'i is one of the fastestgrowing religions and it is present in nearly every country in the world.

Baha'is follow the teachings of the prophet Baha'u'llah (1817-92) who they believe came after Moses, Jesus Christ and Mohammed. They believe in creating a just society, where all are equal regardless of gender or social class. Strict personal morality is an important part of Baha'i, as are devotional gatherings, praying together and the spiritual development of children.

www. bahai. ie Scientology Membership: approx 400-500 Founded in Ireland: 1956 Famous members: Tom Cruise, Katie Holmes, John Travolta Scientology, or 'the study of knowledge', is a religious philosophy that believes each man is an immortal spiritual being who has lived for many, many lifetimes.

The religion's founder, L Ron Hubbard, an American who lived in Ireland for some time in the 1950s, believed that man's capabilities are unlimited. To that end, he invented the theory of Dianetics, which says that every traumatic experience in a person's life has a negative effect on the mind.

Katie Holmes's alleged silent labour has made Scientology the subject of much media speculation.

This is a practice Scientologists believe is necessary to prevent the newborn baby from being traumatised.

Although Scientology as an organisation died out in the 1960s, it reopened in Dublin in the late 1980s. Over 55,000 Irish people have taken the Scientologists' personality test.

www. scientology. ie Atheism, agnosticism and 'no religion' Membership: 139,792 people classed themselves as atheist, agnostic or with no religion in the last census Humanism Association of Ireland founded: 1993 Famous atheists: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, David Attenborough The number of people belonging to no religion in Ireland has risen by 108% in the last 10 years and, after the Catholic church, they account for the second highest proportion of the population.

People with no religion include atheists (people who don't believe in God) and agnostics (people who believe it is impossible to know whether there is a God). Atheists and agnostics are sometimes Humanists, who believe that the happiness of individuals and of humankind depends on people rather than on religion and dogma.

The Humanism Association of Ireland was founded in 1993 for anyone who is an "atheist, agnostic, secularist, freethinker, rationalist, sceptic; does not believe in a god, is nonreligious or has no belief in the supernatural."

Humanism is based on the belief of a natural world and its evolution, and not on the belief of a supernatural power.

www. irish-humanists. org