Religion in Mexico

Mexico religion is Roman Catholic in its majority, and the Constitution of 1917 and the anti-clerical laws imposed limitations on the church and sometimes codified state intrusion into church matters. The government does not provide any financial contributions to the church, and the church does not participate in public education. However, Christmas is a national holiday and every year during Easter and Christmas all schools in Mexico, public and private, send their students on vacation.

In 1992, Mexico lifted almost all restrictions on the religions, including granting all religious groups legal status, conceding them limited property rights, and lifting restrictions on the number of priests in the country. Until recently, priests did not have the right to vote, and even now they cannot be elected to public office.

Christianity

Catholicism

Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral

Main article: Roman Catholicism in Mexico

Roman Catholics are 89% of the total population, 47% percent of whom attend church services weekly, one of the lowest of the developing world. In absolute terms, Mexico has the world's second largest number of Catholics after Brazil.

While most indigenous Mexicans are Catholic, at least nominally, some combine or syncretize Catholic practices with native traditions. In the Yucatán Peninsula, some Mayan people still practice the traditional beliefs of their ancestors, without being syncretized with Christianity; the same happens with the Wixarika people of Jalisco and Nayarit.

Protestantism

About 7% of the population (6,160,000 people over the age of 5, according to the 2000 census, including Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh Day Adventists, and Mormons) are Protestant, of whom Pentecostals and Charismatics (called Neo-Pentecostals in the census), are the largest group.

Orthodoxy

Although representing a small minority of Mexico, the Eastern Orthodox Church is present in the country. Although many Orthodox churches are composed of primarily immigrant communities, the Orthodox Church in America-Exarchate of Mexico has between 10,000-20,000 ethnic Mexican members mostly of convert backgrounds.

Seventh-day Adventist

There are also a sizeable number of Seventh-day Adventists (488,946 people)

Jehovah's Witnesses

The 2000 national census counted more than one million Jehovah's Witnesses. According to the Jehovah's Witness report of 2007 there are 639,320 active members (members who actively preach), but almost 2.5 million people attend the Jehovah's Witnesses annual Memorial of Christ's death (also known as the The Lord's Supper.)

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Main article: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Mexico

The first LDS missionaries in Mexico arrived in 1875. In 1885, 400 Mormon colonists moved to Mexico. The LDS Church claims over a million members. June 29, 1993, the Mexican government formally registered the LDS Church. This allowed the church to own property in Mexico. As of year-end 2006, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) reported 1,082,427 members, 207 stakes, 1,434 wards, 495 branches, and 6 temples in Mexico. Census figures however report only 205,229 Latter-Day Saints.

La Luz del Mundo

La Luz del Mundo is a Charismatic Christian denomination with international headquarters in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. Its flagship church in Guadalajara is said to be the largest non-Catholic house of worship in Latin America.

Islam

Main article: Islam in Mexico

Islam is mainly practiced by members of the Arab, Turkish, and other expatriate communities, though there is a very small number of the indigenous population in Chiapas that practices Islam. Official data estimates in the 2008 census show that there are 25,000 Muslims in Mexico,* [3] representing % 0.02 percent of the total population. In recent years, conversions to Islam may have increased this number by between 1,500 and 3,000 people.

Judaism

The presence of Jews in Mexico dates back to 1521, when Hernán Cortéz conquered the Aztecs, accompanied by several Conversos. According to the last national census by the INEGI, there are now more than 45,000 Mexican Jews.

Buddhism

Main article: Buddhism in Mexico

Buddhism in Mexico possesses demographic presence in the country. Approximately 108,701 Buddhists are counted in Mexico. Also one of six Tibet Houses in the world - Casa Tibet México - is located in Mexico City. It is used by the Dalai Lama and other leaders of Tibetan Buddhism to preserve and share Tibetan culture and spirituality. Alejandro Jodorowsky has stated that he discovered Zen Buddhism in the 1960s while in Mexico.

Nonreligious

Main article: Irreligion in Mexico

Although the demographics of atheism and irreligion in Mexico is hard to measure due to the fact that many atheists are officially counted as Catholic, almost three million people in the 2000 National Census reported having no religion.Recent surveys have shown that only around 3% of Catholics attend church daily and, according to INEGI, the number of atheists grows annually by 5.2%, while the number of Catholics grows by 1.7%.

External links

• Religion in Mexico