Religion in Uganda

Freedom of religion is guaranteed by the Uganda Constitution, but religions are expected to be registered with the government and then to secure a five-year license; registered groups are exempt from direct taxation.[https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-report-on-international-religious-freedom/uganda/ US State Dept 2022 report]

In 2023, the country was scored 3 out of 4 for religious freedom by Freedom House.[https://freedomhouse.org/country/uganda/freedom-world/2022 Freedom House website, retrieved 2023-08-08]

{{Main|Roman Catholicism in Uganda|Church of Uganda|Eastern Orthodoxy in Uganda}}

File:Rubaga Cthedral.jpg|Rubaga Cathedral, the seat for the Roman Catholic Church

According to the national census of 2014, Christians of all denominations comprised 85 percent of Uganda's population.{{cite web | url=http://www.ubos.org/onlinefiles/uploads/ubos/NPHC/2014%20National%20Census%20Main%20Report.pdf | title=2014 Uganda Population and Housing Census – Main Report | publisher=Uganda Bureau of Statistics | access-date=19 April 2018 }} The Roman Catholic Church had the largest number of adherents (39.3 percent of the total population). The largest Protestant church was the Anglican Church of Uganda, a part of the worldwide Anglican communion, at 32 percent. The category of Pentecostal/Evangelical/Born Again made up 11.1% of the population, while Seventh-day Adventists made up 1.7%, Baptists 0.3% and Eastern Orthodox 0.1%., although some sources estimate their numbers to more than 3%{{Cite web|date=2019-12-06|title=MASS BAPTISM: 60+ SOULS UNITED TO CHRIST IN UGANDA|url=https://journeytoorthodoxy.com/2019/12/mass-baptism-60-souls-united-to-christ-in-uganda/|access-date=2021-08-23|website=Journey To Orthodoxy|language=en-US}}

Jehovah's Witnesses operate in Uganda under the International Bible Students Association name and are working in a total of ten languages, including Swahili and Luganda. Followers of William M. Branham and Branhamism claim numbers in the tens of thousands, thanks in large part to translation and distribution efforts by Voice of God Recordings.{{cite web |url=http://branham.org/offices/20090715_AHistoryOnUganda |title=A History On Uganda |website=branham.org |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101120213817/http://branham.org/offices/20090715_AHistoryOnUganda |archive-date=2010-11-20}}

The Presbyterian Church in Uganda has 100-200 congregations. The Reformed Presbyterian Church in Uganda was a result in a split in the Presbyterian church.

The United Apostolic Church of Uganda, a Pentecostal denomination affiliated with the UPCI, has 424,739 constituents in 654 churches.https://unitedapostolicchurchug.org/about-us.html

The Baptist movement has its origins in American mission of the Southern Baptist Convention in 1963.William H. Brackney, Historical Dictionary of the Baptists, Scarecrow Press, USA, 2009, p. 586 The Baptist Union of Uganda was founded in 1974.Robert E. Johnson, A Global Introduction to Baptist Churches, Cambridge University Press, UK, 2010, p. XXV According to a denomination census released in 2020, it claimed 1,800 churches and 550,000 members.Baptist World Alliance, [https://www.baptistworld.org/member-unions/ Members], baptistworld.org, USA, retrieved December 5, 2020

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints claims more than 14,000 members in 27 congregations in Uganda. They also have two family history centers.{{citation | url= http://www.mormonnewsroom.ug/facts-and-statistics/country/uganda| title= Facts and Statistics: Uganda | publisher= LDS Church |access-date= 2016-05-25 }}

The Society of Friends has two yearly meetings, Uganda Yearly Meeting, part of Friends United Meeting and Evangelical Friends Church. There were about 3,000 members between the two in 2001.

{{Cite web | last = Zarembka | first = David | title = Friends Peace Teams: African Great Lakes Initiative | date = 2001 | url = http://www.quaker.org/qpr/zarembka-paper.htm}}

A 2015 study estimated some 35,000 believers in Christ from a Muslim background residing in the country at the time.{{cite journal|last1=Johnstone|first1=Patrick|last2=Miller|first2=Duane|title=Believers in Christ from a Muslim Background: A Global Census|journal=IJRR|date=2015|volume=11|page=15|url=https://www.academia.edu/16338087|access-date=6 December 2015}}

{{Main|Islam in Uganda}}

File:A mosque in Uganda.jpg

According to the 2014 National Census, 14 percent of Ugandans adhered to Islam.{{Cite web |title=Uganda |url=https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-report-on-international-religious-freedom/uganda/ |access-date=2023-12-07 |website=United States Department of State |language=en-US}}{{cite web | url=http://www.ubos.org/onlinefiles/uploads/ubos/NPHC/2014%20National%20Census%20Main%20Report.pdf | title=2014 Uganda Population and Housing Census – Main Report | publisher=Uganda Bureau of Statistics | access-date=19 April 2018 }} Most Muslims are Sunni, with a small minority of Shia Muslims. There was a small group of Ahmadis in the country in 2012.{{cite web | url=http://www.pewforum.org/uploadedFiles/Topics/Religious_Affiliation/Muslim/the-worlds-muslims-full-report.pdf | title=The World's Muslims: Unity and Diversity | access-date=2 June 2014 | date=9 August 2012 | publisher=Pew Forum on Religious & Public life}}

{{Main|History of the Jews in Uganda}}

There are a small community of Ugandan Jews called the Abayudaya, numbering some 2,000-3,000.{{cite web |url=https://forward.com/opinion/385870/we-are-the-jews-of-uganda-this-is-our-story/ |title=We Are the Jews of Uganda. This Is Our Story. |last=Shadrach Levi |first=Mugoya |date=November 6, 2017 |website=The Forward |publisher=Rachel Fishman Feddersen |access-date=August 26, 2018 }} The group was formed by Semei Kakungulu in the early 20th century.{{cite web|url=http://www.kcholmim.com/abayudaya|title=The Abayudaya, The Jews of Uganda|last=Ben Abraham|first=Enosh K.Mainah|date=3 May 2006|publisher=KCholmim|access-date=22 April 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110810035748/http://www.kcholmim.com/abayudaya|archive-date=10 August 2011}}

About 1 percent of Uganda's population follow traditional religions only; however, in 2009, more people practiced traditional religious practices along with other religions such as Christianity or Islam. One survey in 2010 showed that about 27 percent of Ugandans believe that sacrifices to ancestors or spirits can protect them from harm.

{{Cite web | last = Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life | title = Executive Summary | work = Tolerance and Tension: Islam and Christianity in Sub-Saharan Africa | publisher = The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life | date = 15 April 2010 | url = http://pewforum.org/executive-summary-islam-and-christianity-in-sub-saharan-africa.aspx | access-date = 2010-07-11}}

Uganda has received media attention for interfaith efforts in Mbale. Founded by JJ Keki, the Mirembe Kawomera (Delicious Peace) Fair Trade Coffee Cooperative brings together Muslim, Jewish, and Christian coffee farmers. Members of the cooperative use music to spread their message of peace. The Smithsonian Folkways album "Delicious Peace: Coffee, Music & Interfaith Harmony in Uganda" features songs from members of the cooperative about their interfaith message.{{Cite web | url=http://www.folkways.si.edu/delicious-peace-coffee-music-and-interfaith-harmony-in-uganda/world/album/smithsonian |title = Delicious Peace: Coffee, Music & Interfaith Harmony in Uganda}}

File:Jinjia Temple.jpg.]]

{{Main|Hinduism in Uganda}}

The 2014 Census found that there were 13,905 Hindus, making up less than 0.1% of the population.

{{Main|Baháʼí Faith in Uganda}}

File:Africa's Bahai temple in Kampala.jpg in Kampala]]

The Baháʼí Faith in Uganda started to grow in 1951 and in four years time there were 500 Baháʼís in 80 localities, including 13 Baháʼí Local Spiritual Assemblies, representing 30 tribes, and had dispatched 9 Baháʼí pioneers to other African locations.{{cite web | last =Hassall | first = Graham | title = References to Africa in the Baháʼí Writings | work = Asian/Pacific Collection | publisher = Asia Pacific Baháʼí Studies | date = 2003-08-26 | url = http://bahai-library.com/hassall_africa_bahai_writings | access-date = 2008-06-21}} Following the reign of Idi Amin when the Baháʼí Faith was banned and the murder of Baháʼí Hand of the Cause Enoch Olinga and his family,{{Cite web |first=N. Richard |last=Francis |title=Enoch Olinga |year=1998 |website=Baháʼí Library Online |publisher=Baháʼí Faith Website of Reno, Nevada |url=http://bahai-library.com/francis_olinga_biography}} the community continues to grow though estimates of the population range widely from 19,000 to 105,000 and the community's involvements have included diverse efforts to promote the welfare of the Ugandan people. One of only ten Baháʼí Houses of Worship in the world, known as the Mother Temple of Africa, is located on the outskirts of Kampala.[https://furtherafrica.com/2022/01/30/the-intriguing-history-of-africas-only-bahai-temple-in-uganda/ Further Africa website, article dated January 30, 2022]

The Uganda Buddhist Centre, founded in 2005 by Venerable Buddharakkhita, is an initiative that intends to provide the first stable source of Buddhism in Uganda.{{Cite web | title=Uganda Buddhist Centre | url=http://www.ugandabuddhistcenter.org | website=www.ugandabuddhistcenter.org | access-date=12 November 2015}}

{{Main|Irreligion in Uganda}}

Only 0.2 percent of Ugandans claim no religion. The Uganda Humanist Association is a member of the International Humanist and Ethical Union and has been registered since 1996.[http://www.iheu.org/node/1474 International Humanist and Ethical Union website]

• Judaism in Uganda
• Holy Spirit Movement
• Movement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God

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