Brazilian census: Catholic population falls to 57%
http://www.myspiritfm.com/News?blogid=Catholic-News&view=post&articleid=286129&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
Mass in a Catholic church in Cotia, Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Jan. 25, 2020. / Credit: wtondossantos/ShuttestockSao Paulo, Brazil, Jun 9, 2025 / 13:30 pm (CNA).The percentage of Brazilians who identify as Catholic fell to 56.75% in 2022, a reduction of 8.4% compared with 2010, according to data from the 2022 demographic census released by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics.Despite the reduction, Catholicism remains by far the largest religion in the country, followed by evangelicalism and Brazilians who identify as having no religion, whose percentage has grown by 1.4% since 2010, accounting for 9.28% of the population. Evangelicals posted growth of 5.2% during the period, comprising 26.9% of the country's population of just over 203 million people.The trend of increasing numbers of people without a religious affiliation was discussed by the bishops during a January meeting in Rio de Janeiro. The archbishop of Porto Alegre and president of the National Conference o...
Mass in a Catholic church in Cotia, Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Jan. 25, 2020. / Credit: wtondossantos/Shuttestock
Sao Paulo, Brazil, Jun 9, 2025 / 13:30 pm (CNA).
The percentage of Brazilians who identify as Catholic fell to 56.75% in 2022, a reduction of 8.4% compared with 2010, according to data from the 2022 demographic census released by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics.
Despite the reduction, Catholicism remains by far the largest religion in the country, followed by evangelicalism and Brazilians who identify as having no religion, whose percentage has grown by 1.4% since 2010, accounting for 9.28% of the population. Evangelicals posted growth of 5.2% during the period, comprising 26.9% of the country's population of just over 203 million people.
The trend of increasing numbers of people without a religious affiliation was discussed by the bishops during a January meeting in Rio de Janeiro. The archbishop of Porto Alegre and president of the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil, Cardinal Jaime Spengler, referred to this population as "dechurched." Spengler said "there is an urgent need to invest in initiation into Christian life and the valorization of small communities of faith so that Catholicism can grow in Brazil."
Other religions account for 4.01% of the population. Spiritists represent 1.84%, while followers of Umbanda and Candomblé account for 1.05%.
Catholicism is the most prevalent religion in the five regions of the country, with the highest concentration in the northeast with 63.9% of the population, followed by the south with 62.4%, the central-west with 52.6%, and the southeast with 52.24%. The north has the lowest proportion of Catholics, 50.48%.
Conversely, the north has the most evangelicals, with 36.79% of the population, followed by the central-west with 31.39%, the southeast with 27.96%, and the south with 26.66%. The northeast is the region with the fewest evangelicals, with 22.47%.
Followers of Umbanda and Candomblé rose from 0.3% in 2010 to 1% of the country's population in 2022. They have the most followers in the south, with 1.6% of the population, followed by the southeast with 1.4%, the central-west with 0.57%, the northeast with 0.56%, and the north with 0.3%.
The southeast is the region with the most people who declared themselves to have no religion, with 10.5% of the population, followed by the central-west with 8.94%, northeast with 8.85%, north with 8.19%, and south with 7.13%.
The number of followers of spiritualism fell from 2.2% in 2010 to 1.8% in 2022 and its largest concentration is in the southeast with 2.7% of the region's population.
This story was first published by ACI Digital, CNA's Portuguese-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.
Full Article
http://www.myspiritfm.com/News?blogid=Catholic-News&url=10&view=post&articleid=286645&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
Credit: anonymous/ShutterstockWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 30, 2025 / 15:47 pm (CNA).A coalition of 20 American Catholic bishops and religious leaders from other faiths has signed on to a letter urging lawmakers to vote against a proposed budget bill because of provisions to increase funding for immigration enforcement."From our various faith perspectives, the moral test of a nation is how it treats those most in need of support," the letter read. "In our view, this legislation will harm the poor and vulnerable in our nation, to the detriment of the common good."The letter's signatories included Cardinal Robert McElroy of the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., and Cardinal Joseph Tobin of the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey. Phoenix Bishop John Dolan, Seattle Archbishop Paul Etienne, St. Louis Archbishop Mitchell Rozanski, and Sacramento, California, Bishop Jaime Soto were also among those who signed.In addition to the bishops, other signatories to the letter included the lea...
http://www.myspiritfm.com/News?blogid=Catholic-News&url=10&view=post&articleid=286633&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
Bethany and Daniel Meola, a married couple with a special heart for adult children of divorce, created the Life-Giving Wounds apostolate, currently celebrating its five-year anniversary in 2025. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Life-Giving WoundsMiami, Fla., Jun 30, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).Kendra Beigel was 14 years old when her family life took a turn for the worse. In her small-town Minnesota home, she was used to her parents arguing, but her family situation further disintegrated when her mother intervened in her father's alcohol issues and her parents went to court."It was like the whole town decided to take a side and get involved in our family business," recalled Beigel, who was raised Catholic. "I had to grow up quickly… Each stage of the initial separation and how it comes out of the blue, then the divorce and everything that it brings, and then the subsequent annulment; each brought its own hurts and difficulties and it never was easier."Now an adult, Beigel remembers thinkin...
http://www.myspiritfm.com/News?blogid=Catholic-News&url=10&view=post&articleid=286632&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
The "Hall of Constantine" is Raphael's masterpiece, depicting Constantine's victory over Maxentius at the Milvian Bridge. / Credit: Vatican MediaVatican City, Jun 30, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).After a decade of painstaking restoration, the imposing Hall of Constantine in the Vatican's Apostolic Palace, which houses Raphael's masterpiece depicting Constantine's victory over Maxentius at the Milvian Bridge, has been returned to its original splendor.This space, the largest of the well-known Raphael Rooms, was partially closed to the public in 2015 due to delicate conservation work that ultimately culminated in a result described as "exemplary" by Vatican Museums."In a way, we have rewritten the history of art," explained Barbara Jatta, director of the Vatican Museums, during a June 26 presentation to the press held at the Vatican Museums. She was joined by Fabrizio Biferali, supervisor of the art department for the 15th and 16th centuries; Fabio Piacentini and Francesca Persegati fro...