NEW YORK -- Conservative churches that set high expectations for their members experienced faster and greater growth than other religious denominations in the 1990s, according to a study released Sept. 17.

"Religious Congregations and Membership: 2000" is based on self-reporting by religious groups. Because the U.S. Census Bureau does not ask about religion, this study -- first done in 1971 -- is considered the most comprehensive assessment available, according to The New York Times. The study was conducted by Glenmary Research Center and sponsored by the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies.

The fastest-growing religious denomination in the last 10 years was the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The church enlists thousands of young Mormon missionaries to recruit door to door, boosting its U.S. membership by 19.3 percent from 1990 to 4.2 million.

Conservative Christian Churches and Churches of Christ grew 18.6 percent since 1990; the Assemblies of God reported 18.5 percent growth; and the Roman Catholic Church saw membership increase by 16.2 percent.

The churches that lost the highest percentages of members were the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) with a 11.6 percent loss and the United Church of Christ, which dropped 14.8 percent.

The Catholic Church, with 62 million U.S. members, is still the nation's largest denomination. Southern Baptists are second with nearly 20 million members, according to the study. Combined, Protestant churches reported 66 million members.

"I was astounded to see that by and large the growing churches are those that we ordinarily call conservative," said Ken Sanchagrin, director of the Glenmary Research Center. "And when I looked at those that were declining, most were moderate or liberal churches. And the more liberal the denomination, by most people's definition, the more they were losing."