Large numbers in Latin America abandoning Catholicism

Increasing numbers of Catholics in Latin America are abandoning the Church, according to a new survey.

The research, by the highly respected Pew Research Centre, found that in 30,000 residents of 18 countries (and Puerto Rico, a US territory) only 69 per cent of respondents confirmed they were Catholic, even though 84 percent of people said they had been raised in the Church.

The figures suggest that large numbers are moving towards either Evangelical Protestantism or are leaving religion altogether. A century ago more than 90 per cent of the people in the region were Catholics, but increasing numbers are moving towards evangelical church, which have more of an emphasis on moral living and offer practical answers to the question of poverty.

Some countries in the region, such as Uruguay, have almost as many Protestants and religiously unaffiliated people as Catholics. If the trend continues, “even Brazil, home to the largest Catholic population on earth, will no longer have a Catholic majority by 2030” according to Andrew Chesnut, religious studies professor at Virginia Commonwealth University and author of a book on evangelicals in Brazil.

The survey underscores the urgency of the Pope’s pleas for action in Latin America, where Catholicism has been intimately associated with culture, governance and history for more than 500 years. Pope Francis has called for Catholics to adopt a more missionary mindset and take their faith to people on the periphery of society – places where Protestants often find converts.

The surveys also mirror the decline of Catholicism among Hispanics in the United States, which is damaging the Church’s hopes that it can continue to grow.

The Pew survey found evangelicals showing more enthusiasm for their faith, expressed by attending church services and praying more frequently, adherence to moral teachings and the level to which religion is important in their daily lives.

The level of enthusiasm “often is more demanding in terms of personal commitment,” said Chesnut, an academic consultant to the Pew survey.

Protestants now make up 19 percent of the Latin American population, while another eight per cent now profess no religious affiliation, a figure reaching 37 percent in Uruguay. Roughly half these people did not grow up in their current congregations or in nonreligious homes, according to the survey.

Some 65 percent of Protestants in Latin America belong to evangelical congregations.

“Christianity in Latin America is thoroughly ‘Pentecostalised,’ with 70 percent of Protestants and 40 percent of Catholics identifying as charismatic,” Chesnut said. “If it weren’t for Charismatic Renewal, Catholic decline probably would have been even greater.”

In Brazil, where 60 percent of the population is Catholic, evangelical pastor Jay Bauman said the style of worship attracts people to Protestant congregations – along with the promotion of “prosperity Gospel| teachings by Pentecostals.

“You go in and there are services for healing and liberation, all sorts of things and even a message that basically is that Jesus Christ can renew your life, can change you,” said Bauman, director of Restore Brazil ministries in Rio de Janeiro.

“But what they add on to it … is: (God’s) going to make you rich or he’s going to make you prosperous,” he added.

Chesnut said services at World Youth Day 2013 in Rio de Janeiro showed more of a charismatic style, and it is being adopted by Latin American Catholics in increasing numbers.

The 2013 election of Pope Francis, the first in Latin American to assume the papacy, was interpreted as a sign of the importance of the region to the Catholic Church and concern over its seeming loss of stature.

Pope Francis has proved popular among Catholics in Latin America, “but former Catholics are more skeptical,” with only majorities of ex-Catholics in Argentina and Uruguay expressing approval of the pontiff, according to the survey.

Even with Pope Francis being popular among Catholics, “that hasn’t necessarily resulted in a ‘Francis effect’ in terms of greater attendance at Mass and participation in church life,” Chesnut said.