Despite Protestant Growth, Hispanic Catholicism Holds Steady in U.S.
Younger generations leaving for Protestant churches, but immigrants make up difference
Jeff M. Sellers | posted 2/01/2003 12:00AM
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Espinosa has yet to tabulate final figures for Hispanic Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses, and denominational affiliations. Significantly, 6 percent (2 million) of U.S. Latinos have no religious preference.
The findings on Protestant affiliation challenge those of Greeley. He had stated that almost half of all Latino Protestants belonged to "moderate or even liberal Protestant denominations," according to Espinosa. The HCAPL study found that just 14.8 percent (1.6 million) of all Latino Protestants affiliate with mainline denominations. And of those, 43 percent (more than 666,000) claim to be born again.
Adding all Protestant totals of born-again Latinos to the 6.6 Hispanic Catholics who identify themselves as born again (26 percent of Latino Catholics), there are 12.2 million Hispanic, born-again Christians in the United States. That is 37 percent of all Latinos. Of these, 9.2 million (28 percent) are Pentecostal or charismatic (22 percent of all Latino Catholics identify themselves as both born again and Pentecostal, charismatic, or Spirit-filled.).
The study notes that Catholic churches have retained some Hispanics through liberationist and activist Latino priests, youth programs, and outreach to the poor and immigrants. Also contributing are increased lay participation and growth in Catholic charismatic movements.
The total number of Latino non-Catholics is 10.6 million, or 30 percent of all U.S. Hispanics.
Espinosa says the HCAPL study was the largest bilingual survey in U.S. history on Latino religion and politics (Christianity Today.com will cover Hispanic political involvement next week). It included a random-sample telephone survey of 2,310 Latinos across the United States and Puerto Rico (2,060 excluding Puerto Rico, which is not included in the released figures).
Jesse Miranda of Alianza de Ministerios Evangelicos Nacionales (AMEN) and Virgilio Elizondo of the Mexican American Cultural Center directed the study. The Tomás Rivera Policy Institute conducted the telephone surveys from August 21 to October 31, 2000.
With surveys conducted in 2000, the study arrives at its 2002 figures based on census projections for last year.
Jeff M. Sellers is an associate editor of Christianity Today.
Copyright © 2003 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.
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