Religion in South America#Christianity

Currently, all countries in the region in general are separate of the Catholic Church and declared secular states, which guarantees freedom of religion for its inhabitants. However, in Peru, Roman Catholicism serves as the official religion. In that country Catholic religious education is mandatory, and in most of the region's nations Roman Catholicism still sways the population.

File:Basilica of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Aparecida, 2007.jpg in Brazil is the second largest in the world, after only of the Basilica of Saint Peter in Vatican City.{{cite web|url=http://noticias.terra.com.br/brasil/interna/0,,OI1984236-EI306,00.html|title=Basílica de Aparecida aguarda 160 mil pessoas|access-date=2015-12-05|archive-date=2012-02-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120223232648/http://noticias.terra.com.br/brasil/interna/0,,OI1984236-EI306,00.html|url-status=live}}]]

According to a Pew Research Center projection in 2010, they predicted that 83.4% of the South American population will be Christian in 2020.{{Cite web |url=https://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/religious-projection-table/2020/percent/all/ |title=Religious Composition by Country, 2010-2050 |access-date=2020-10-18 |archive-date=2019-12-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191221014350/https://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/religious-projection-table/2020/percent/all/ |url-status=live }}

In many South American countries Catholicism is the most professed Christian denomination. In Paraguay, Peru, Colombia and Argentina more than three-quarters of the population is Catholic.

Catholicism was the only religion allowed in the colonial era; the indigenous were forced to abandon their beliefs, although many did not abandon it at all, for example, countries with predominantly Amerindian population such as Bolivia and Peru there is a syncretism between indigenous religions and the Catholic religion, that has occurred since colonial times. In Brazil or Colombia, Catholicism was mixed with certain African rituals.

File:00 1691 Church of Puerto Varas (Chile).jpg in Chile]]

Protestantism has had a presence since the nineteenth century, as a minority, but witnessed a strong increase since the 1980's. The majority of Latin American Protestants in general are Pentecostal. Brazil today is the most Protestant country in South America with 22.2% of the population being Protestant,{{Cite web |url=https://censo2010.ibge.gov.br/noticias-censo?id=3&idnoticia=2170&view=noticia |title=Censo Demográfico 2010 |access-date=2020-06-15 |archive-date=2020-11-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124100554/https://censo2010.ibge.gov.br/noticias-censo?id=3&idnoticia=2170&view=noticia |url-status=live }} 89% of Brazilian evangelicals are Pentecostal, in Chile they represent 79% of the total evangelicals in that country, 69% in Argentina and 59% in Colombia.«Luis Palau: Evangelist to Three Worlds», Christianity Today, 20 de mayo de 1983, pp. 30-1. Luis Palau, «The Gospel's Social Impact», Briefing (Portland, Oregon: Cruzada Luis Palau), verano de 1984, pp. 14-16. On the other part, in Uruguay 66% of evangelicals are Methodist, while only 20% are Pentecostal. There are up to an estimated two hundred million Pentecostals and Renewalists in Latin America.{{cite book | last=John | first=S.J.V.C. | title=Transnational Religious Organization and Practice: A Contextual Analysis of Kerala Pentecostal Churches in Kuwait | publisher=Brill | series=Global Pentecostal and Charismatic Studies | year=2018 | isbn=978-90-04-36101-0 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kntTDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA7 | access-date=2024-11-21 | page=7}} Approximately 160 million Latin Americans are Evangelical.{{cite web | last=Cristiano | first=Diario | title=Lausanne 4 hears about God's transformation in Latin America: from mission field to mission force | website=Christian Daily International | date=2024-11-21 | url=https://www.christiandaily.com/news/allan-matamoros-latin-america-from-mission-field-to-a-mission-f.html | access-date=2024-11-21}} Forty million South Americans are Christians independent from denominations.{{cite web | title=Custom Dataset | website=National Profiles | date=2024-11-21 | url=https://www.thearda.com/world-religion/np-sort?var=ADH_585 | access-date=2024-11-21}}

Brazil is the country with more practitioners in the world of Allan Kardec's codification of the Spiritism, followed by over 12 million people, with 30 to 45 million sympathizers. Most followers of the Spiritism are people that were mostly Catholic, Protestants and Atheists respectively.

Chico Xavier wrote over 490 books, which complements the spiritualist doctrine.

Eastern Orthodox Christianity was brought to South America by groups of immigrants from several different regions, mainly Eastern Europe and the Middle East. This traditional branch of Eastern Christianity has also spread beyond the boundaries of immigrant communities. There are several Eastern Orthodox ecclesiastical jurisdictions in South America, organized within the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of Latin America.{{cite web|url=https://oca.org/directories/organizations/assembly-of-canonical-orthodox-bishops-of-latin-america|title=Organizations - Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of Latin America|website=oca.org|access-date=2018-03-05|archive-date=2018-03-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180305202524/https://oca.org/directories/organizations/assembly-of-canonical-orthodox-bishops-of-latin-america|url-status=live}}

Several groups of Christian immigrants, mainly from the Middle East, Caucasus, Africa and India, brought Oriental Orthodoxy to the South America. This ancient branch of Eastern Christianity includes several ecclesiastical jurisdictions in the South America, like Coptic Orthodox Church in South America and Syriac Orthodox Church.{{cite web|url=http://syriacpatriarchate.org/2016/10/meeting-with-the-president-of-brazil|title=Meeting with the President of Brazil|date=27 October 2016|access-date=11 March 2018|archive-date=11 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180311142855/http://syriacpatriarchate.org/2016/10/meeting-with-the-president-of-brazil/|url-status=live}}

Practitioners of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Jehovah's Witnesses religions also are exercised in Latin America.

{{Main|Hinduism in South America}}

Hinduism is the second-largest religion in Suriname, Guyana and French Guiana. According to the 2015 census of Suriname, Hindus constitute 23.1% of the population. While according the 2020 census of Guyana, Hindus constitute 31% of the populaition. Guyana and Suriname also have the Third and Fourth largest population of Hindus in the Western Hemisphere respectively, after the United States and Canada.

Indigenous creeds and rituals are still practiced in some countries with large percentages of Amerindians, such as Bolivia and Peru.

File:2017 Bogotá mezquita Central Abou Bakr Alsiddiq - calle 80 con carrera 30.jpg.]]

Argentina has the largest communities of both Jews{{cite web|title=World Jewish Population|last=LeElef|first=Ner|url=http://www.simpletoremember.com/vitals/world-jewish-population.htm#_ftnref1|access-date=2008-01-09|archive-date=2020-05-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200517231057/https://www.simpletoremember.com/vitals/world-jewish-population.htm#_ftnref1|url-status=live}}{{Cite web |url=http://www.jpppi.org.il/JPPPI/SendFile.asp?DBID=1&LNGID=1&GID=489 |title=The Jewish People Policy Planning Institute; Annual Assessment, 2007 |access-date=2015-08-09 |archive-date=2017-11-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107190542/http://www.jpppi.org.il/JPPPI/SendFile.asp?DBID=1&LNGID=1&GID=489 |url-status=dead }}[http://www.ujc.org/section.html?id=29 United Jewish Communities; Global Jewish Populations] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080531003148/http://www.ujc.org/section.html?id=29 |date=2008-05-31 }} and Muslims{{cite web|url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/26516.htm|title=Argentina|access-date=2019-05-26|archive-date=2019-06-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190604183124/https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/26516.htm|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2008/108511.htm|title=Argentina|access-date=2019-05-26|archive-date=2020-08-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803050733/https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2008/108511.htm|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/spanish/specials/newsid_4294000/4294241.stm|title=Arabs and Muslims in Latin America|date=17 March 2005|via=news.bbc.co.uk|access-date=9 August 2015|archive-date=11 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111214453/http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/spanish/specials/newsid_4294000/4294241.stm|url-status=live}} in Latin America. Practitioners of the Judaism, Buddhist, Islamic, Hinduism, Bahá'í Faith, denominations and religions also exercised in Latin America.{{cite web|url=http://lanic.utexas.edu/la/region/religion/|title=Religion & Theology in Latin America - LANIC|website=lanic.utexas.edu|access-date=2015-08-09|archive-date=2009-11-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091105161707/http://lanic.utexas.edu/la/region/religion/|url-status=live}}

Country By Religion in South America (2020 estimate):

• Major religious groups
• Religion in Africa
• Religion in Asia
• Religion in Europe
• Religion in Oceania
• Religion in North America

{{reflist}}

{{South America topics}}

{{continent topic| prefix = Religion in | state = expanded | title = Religion by continent }}

{{South America topic| Religion in }}

{{Americas topic| Religion in }}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Religion In South America}}