The majority of Nigeria's approximately 70 million Christians are either Roman Catholic (at least 18.9 million) or Anglican (18 million), but a diverse group of Protestant churches also claim significant members, including Baptists (the Nigerian Baptist Convention claims 6 million worshipping members), Presbyterians . Church Unearthed in Ethiopia Rewrites the History of Christianity in Africa By 2060 six of the countries with the top ten largest Christian populations will be in Africa, up from three in 2015, according to a new Pew Research Center report. Similarly, Church of Scotland numbers dropped to 18% from 31% in 2002. To take another focus, consider the nine nations that are on course to be the most populous in Africa by midcentury: Ethiopia, Nigeria, Congo, Uganda, Sudan, Tanzania, Kenya, Madagascar, and Niger. Africa: prevalence of Islam by country 2023 | Statista African churches are now firmly established in the United States in such urban centers as Houston and Atlanta. In 18 out of 27 countries with substantial Christian and Muslim populations in the region, Muslims trailed Christians by at least 10 percentage points. Nigerias religious fault lines are also highlighted in the report as, by 2060, it will be home to the third largest Muslim and Christian populations globally and will be the only country on the list on top ten largest populations for both religions. Another way of looking at the distribution of Christians around the world is by region. Or Does It. Despite being a major recipient of Western missions for centuries, Asia was the least evangelized (18 percent) in 1900 and continues to be less evangelized today (60 per - 00:00 Africa is one of the most dynamic centres of Christianity in the world. She hadn't eaten in a week. Christianity in Africa - American Renaissance During the same period Islam only grew from 14 to 29 per cent. Latin America held that title previously. Already, much of Latin America is closely following European trends, and survey evidence suggests a comparable process of secularization in several nations, including Brazil and Argentina. This phenomenon is particularly evident in sub-Saharan Africa, where Christianity is rapidly growing, largely due to high fertility rates. These demographic changes will inevitably have their impact on the worlds religious structures. About half of U.S. pet owners say their pets are as much a part of their family as a human member, How U.S. adults on Twitter use the site in the Elon Musk era, How the American middle class has changed in the past five decades. The percentage of the world that remains unevangelized continues to fall. Africa had about 130 million people in 1900. Meanwhile, South Sudan ranks among the top 10 most violent nations tracked by Open Doors (at No. (PDF) Christianity in Africa: a historical appraisal - ResearchGate Latin America: religion affiliation share 2020, by type, Voting intention for 2022 presidential elections in Brazil, by religion, Religious affiliation of the youth in Colombia 2021, Religious affiliation in Latin American and Caribbean countries 2020, Facebook: quarterly number of MAU (monthly active users) worldwide 2008-2023, Quarterly smartphone market share worldwide by vendor 2009-2023, Number of apps available in leading app stores Q3 2022, Profit from additional features with an Employee Account. By 2050, almost 1.3 billion Christians will live in Africa. Rather, the bulk of Christians are in: Of the worlds five major geographic regions, the Americas have both the largest number and the highest proportion of Christians. In 1900, Europeans made up around a quarter of the worlds population. It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts. . In 2023, Nigeria had the largest Christian population in Africa, with around 88.4 million people who identified as Christian. In Latin America, more than two-thirds of Christians in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador also report weekly attendance. 9), yet doesnt even make the top 50 watch list (at No. Worshipers at an evangelical Christian service at MFM Prayer City, a megachurch near Lagos, Nigeria, 2021. Muslims Are Converting to Christianity in Record Numbers (return to text), 4 See, for example, Philip Jenkins, The Next Christendom: The Coming of Global Christianity, Oxford University Press, 2002; Robert Wuthnow, Boundless Faith: The Global Outreach of American Churches, University of California Press, 2009; and Mark A. Noll, The New Shape of World Christianity: How American Experience Reflects Global Faith, InterVarsity Press, 2009. Although demography is far from an infallible crystal ball on the future of religious revivals and conflicts, trends in population growth and family do correlate strongly with religious attitudes. These changes have wide religious repercussions. ), In addition, more than 285 million Christians can be classified as evangelicals because they either belong to churches affiliated with regional or global evangelical associations, or because they identify as evangelicals. Sub-Saharan Africa is the region where Christianity enjoyed its biggest percentage growth in the 20th century. Similarly, in every African country surveyed, more than 60% of Christians say they attend church at least weekly. By 2050, that proportion will probably be closer to 8 percent. Clearly, Christianity has spread far from its historical origins. The Origin And Growth Of Christianity In Africa - WorldAtlas Profit from the additional features of your individual account. (See world maps weighted by Christian population in 1910 and 2010.). Christianity by country - Wikipedia There a lot of discussions lately about sub-Saharan Africa being the new "center" of World Christianity. Some European churches are too stuffy for African tastes. Only the continent of Latin America managed to outrank Africa in terms of number of Christian residents in 2017. Lebanon has by far the highest percentage of Christians (38%) in the region. 35), Ethiopia (No. How Africa Is Changing Faith Around the World, 6 of the worlds most populous nations will be in Africa by 2050. Read our research on: LGBTQ Attitudes & Experiences| Artificial Intelligence | Affirmative Action. In 2000, 814 million Christians lived in Europe and North America, while 660 million Christians called African and Asia home. During the 20th century, both groups grew substantially, partly by demographic expansion, but also through evangelism and conversion. Were hearing firsthand from those experiencing persecution, and we only report what we can document.. It is reportedly difficult to get cleanup crews to take away the dead animals that frequently litter Ugandan street corners. The Story of Africa| BBC World Service Nine in 10 Christians killed for their faith were in Africa, the rest in Asia. Click To Tweet In 1900, twice as many Christians lived in Europe than in the rest of the world combined. 43). In 2020, Christians accounted for around 60 percent of the Sub-Saharan African population, followed by Muslims with a share of roughly 30 percent. Boko Haramand splinter group Islamic State of West Africa Province , an ISIS affiliate continue to plague Nigeria and northern Cameroon., In the Sahel region just south of the Sahara Desert, Islamic extremism is fuelled by injustice and poverty. In 1990, Nigerians got a big scare when it was reported that witch doctors had perfected a technique for stealing womens breasts and mens penises with a touch or a handshake. (return to text), 5 This common definition of Global North and Global South is not a simple geographic division of the world into Northern and Southern hemispheres. While the absolute number of Christians in sub-Saharan Africa is expected to double in size by 2050, the Christian share of the region's population is expected to decline, dropping from 63% in 2010 to 59% in 2050. Open Doors believes it is reasonable to call Christianity the worlds most severely persecuted religion. So reports the 2021 World Watch List (WWL), the latest annual accounting from Open Doors of the top 50 countries where Christians are the most persecuted for following Jesus. In fourth place is Asia with 388 million Christians, though they only make up nine percent of the continent's population. Africans started the century as less than 1 percent of the global Catholic population, and finished it at around 16 percent. There are now over 200 million African Catholics, whose numbers could double by 2050, when they would constitute a quarter of all believers. And every day, 12 Christians are unjustly arrested or imprisoned, and another 5 are abducted. The oldest of these tarqahs is the Qdiriyyah, which was introduced to the Sudan region from the Middle East in the 16th century. Of all the parts of Christianity, the Holy Spirit does best on a continent that takes spirits seriously. But this shift is not wholly global, and population growth persists in sections of the Middle East and South Asia, and above all in Africa. The History of Christianity in Africa // Africa Study Bible Missionaries report that many Christians revert to charms and voodoo in a crisis. (return to text), 3 As of 2010, there were about 1.6 billion Muslims worldwide, representing 23.4% of the global population. There are already more Christians in Africa than any other continentthats not going to change soon. The clear discrimination and oppression suffered by Christians in 2020 must not be forgotten, even after the COVID-19 crisis fades into our collective memory.. Some convergence of these dynamics led me to write Black is a Church. The rise of Christianity in Africa is also captured outside the continent. The study analyzed 84 countries with sizable Christian populations. Her tiny body was skeletal; her skin . Prayer frequency is lowest among Christians in Austria, Germany, Switzerland, the UK and Malaysia, where fewer than 10% of Christians pray daily. In theory, Africa is a highly Christian continent. (For more details, see Christian Movements and Denominations. All but three of these 35 countries are in sub-Saharan Africa or Latin America. The Explosion of Christianity in Africa Projected Religious Population Changes in Sub-Saharan Africa | Pew To see the estimated size of religious groups in specific countries in 2010 and 2050, see. In Nigeria, the population in 1900 included 4.2 million Muslims and 180,000 Christians. The facial recognition software is linked to the Social Credit System in China, which monitors the loyalty of citizens with regards to the tenets of communism.. Meanwhile, the Muslim share is projected to increase from 30% to 35%. Since antiquity, Africa had been a continent largely involved in indigenous religious practises. Sign up to theQuartz Africa Weekly Brief herefor news and analysis on African business, tech and innovation in your inbox.